Paddling for a cause
The adage ‘‘we’re all in this together’’ carries extra meaning when you’re paddling down a river in a double-hull waka.
‘‘We all have to be in sync because if one of us flips it, and buggers it up, we all suffer,’’ city council maangai Ma¯ori Norm Hill observed as Hamilton mayor Paula Southgate and four city councillors set out on a Sunday morning paddle down the Waikato River from Tamahere to Hamilton.
But the chances of the city politicians taking an impromptu river dip were remote, as the novice paddlers were guided on their
10.5km journey by members of the Waikato Dragon Boating and Waka Ama Association.
The paddle was part of Southgate’s efforts to support ‘‘Move your butt’’ – a nationwide campaign to raise funds for Bowel Cancer New Zealand’s patient support services. The mayor’s father died of bowel cancer at age
54. Southgate also used yesterday’s event to pay tribute to city councillor and former Silver Fern Margaret Forsyth, who died in May, aged 59. ‘‘I want to take a beautiful moment to remember Margaret who passed away recently from bowel cancer after a year-long battle with it,’’ she said.
‘‘If we can do our bit to raise some funds for this campaign, which is being led at a national level by [ex-Silver Fern] Jenny-May
Clarkson, then I’ll be delighted.’’
The river paddle was suggested by Hill who said he was keen to use the excursion as an environmental and cultural teaching experience.
‘‘At every bend of the awa, there is a chief, a guardian, and typically at different parts of the river there are areas of significant heritage and cultural value.’’
Joining Southgate on the river paddle were councillors Mark Bunting, Sarah Thomson, Ewan Wilson and Ryan Hamilton. Veteran councillor Martin Gallagher kept a watch on proceedings from a nearby safety boat.