Sky Tower leap to empower kids
As Paula Sadgrove stood on the ledge of the Auckland Sky Tower there was a moment of doubt.
‘‘At one point when my toes were hanging off the edge there was a brief moment of fear, but when they let me go, I was just loving it.’’
For many, the idea of jumping off the highest building in the Southern Hemisphere would be more than a little unsettling, but for the Mercer Primary School principal, it’s a small price to pay to raise money to help her students.
For the past two weeks, her school has been part of the Graeme Dingle Foundation’s KiwiCan Programme.
‘‘It’s an initiative to build kids’ character, and belief, and opportunities, and personal strength,’’ said Sadgrove.
She believes the programme has already had a positive impact on the students.
‘‘It been an incredible pick-up, the kids are saying the chants... it’s been a really positive start.’’
‘‘But to have the two teachers on staff and to run this programme... we need a substantial amount of money to pay for their training and salaries,’’ she said.
To keep KiwiCan going at the Mercer School, Sadgrove took the plunge off the Sky Tower as part of the Graeme Dingle Foundation’s annual Drop Your Boss campaign.
When she first announced her plans to jump at the school assembly there was some confusion amongst the children.
‘‘I don’t think they quite understood and it was kind of a week or so before the kids came up to me [and said], ‘like Sky Tower? Like the big tower?’’’
She hopes the leap will inspire others to support her students.
‘‘We’ve already seen some interest from large organisations, down to a student in year two who’s made his donation online,’’ she said.
To help keep KiwiCan going at Mercer School donate online at https://givealittle.co.nz/ fundraiser/paula-sadgrovemercer-school-drop-your-boss.