Crawshaw School hits 30 years
Teachers at a Hamilton school have had a hand in influencing several generations of families.
Having been at Crawshaw School for much of its existence means principal Jill Littlewood and teacher aide Lynn Haumaha have seen children of former pupils come through.
In Haumaha’s case, that includes kids and grandkids of her own.
They’ve even seen past pupils achieve stardom, and some who have ended up marrying their former classmates.
Both began working Crawshaw, in Nawton, in 1996.
The school will be celebrating its 30th birthday with a reunion in April and the pair said it was a chance to remember those who have passed through and reunite with old friends.
‘‘When the school was built, this area was very new,’’ Littlewood said. ‘‘Everybody had come from somewhere else.
‘‘Once we started getting the second generation in, you felt like the school had a village around it.’’
The school has grown from 150 to 300 pupils since its establishment in 1988 and two of Haumaha’s children were foundation pupils, though that was before she started working there.
Another two enrolled when at they got old enough. Since then, she’s also had six grandchildren attend the school.
‘‘I remember going for the interview, and we didn’t just turn up at the school, we went down to the old doctor’s surgery in Avalon Drive and had to go in there for an appointment for our children to be able to start school,’’ she said.
Littlewood took over as the second principal Crawshaw has seen after the death of founding principal Kevin Lawson in 2011.
She said his death, and the subsequent grief, united the school and community.
‘‘When Kevin passed away, we saw how the whole community just pulled together,’’ she said.
‘‘The school has a really whanau feeling.’’
The reunion will be held on April 13 and will begin with a dawn service to acknowledge those involved with the school who have died, followed by an open day between 1 and 3pm.
The day culminates in a concert and mass powhiri in the evening.
More than 80 people have registered their interest, Littlewood said. To register, visit the school or www.crawshaw.school.nz