Where We Belong
It’s an exciting time for Ōmokoroa Point School, with some revisioning and rebranding in the past 18 months. As part of this, teacher Matt Short started writing a godwit-themed picture book titled ‘Where We Belong’, which has just arrived from the printers to the delight of Principal Sandra Portegys.
“Our plan is to give a copy to each family at school, along with new families who arrive, plus all the early childhood educators in our community, the doctors, etc.
“I hope it’ll help our community connect with our school and our vision. We’re delighted to have had sponsorship from The Centre and Barfoot & Thompson to publish the book.
“We’re also very grateful that Barfoot & Thompson sponsored a robotics kit for our Year 7 and 8 programmes,” says Sandra.
Locally resident children’s author Vince Ford helped see the project through to completion.
“We did a lot of workshopping exploring this message with the kids around the kuaka (godwit). Great stories are about overcoming a problem, so what problems may new children be facing here?
“Because of the nature of this community, it’s that sense of belonging. Like kuaka, kids come from all over, and it’s trying to tell a narrative about that, the values we’ve got in the school, and this environment,” says Vince.
Brent Dodunski says Barfoot & Thompson jumped at the chance to help with both projects.
“The book especially resonated with me, having moved to Ōmokoroa. This aligns very well with the company’s long-term strategic plan. This is all about community and families, while the robotics also fits in with our technology strategy,” says Brent.
The ŌPS radio station is set for a revamp, too, thanks to an 80s, 90s, and 2000s music mix DJ event at the Black Sheep on Saturday 18th May. Tickets are $15 from the school or on the door.