Bay of Plenty Times
  • Bay of Plenty Times home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Sport

Locations

  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Katikati
  • Tauranga
  • Mount Maunganui
  • Pāpāmoa
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Bay of Plenty Times

Bay firefighters to make dreams come true (+video)

Kiri Gillespie
By Kiri Gillespie
Assistant News Director and Multimedia Journalist·Bay of Plenty Times·
10 May, 2016 08:26 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Bay of Plenty firefighters are auctioning off the ultimate firefighter experience to raise money for Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand.

Anyone who has dreamed of one day becoming a firefighter now has the chance to be one for a day as part of a Bay of Plenty fundraising drive for charity.

Tauranga firefighters Shane Baker and Aaron Waterreus are auctioning a "once in a lifetime" ultimate firefighting experience to raise money for Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand.

The two Rotorua-based firefighters are taking part in the annual firefighter Sky Tower Stair Challenge on May 28 and are fundraising as part of their entry.

"We were sitting in the office thinking 'what can we do?'. We're both busy doing different jobs and sometimes we're not together but let's make this thing happen," Mr Baker said.

"We thought it would be a bit of fun, something a little bit different to baking stalls or sausage sizzles."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The winners of the auctions will spend a full day at the New Zealand Fire Service National Training Centre in Rotorua.

The purpose built training centre is like a Hollywood movie set with hotel, shops, and a petrol station that can all burst into flames at the push of a button. Winners will learn firefighting skills such as hose running, using fire extinguishers, using fire hydrants, climbing ladders, using breathing apparatuses and even the "Jaws of Life" which are often used to cut patients from car wrecks.

The winners will then be able to put their newly acquired skills to action in a range of fire and rescue "emergencies" on site.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"We call it a once in a lifetime firefighting experience," Mr Baker said.

He said there were many people who often grew up wanting to be a firefighter but never quite reached their goal.

We thought it would be a bit of fun, something a little bit different to baking stalls or sausage sizzles.

Firefighter Shane Baker

This was a way those people could finally make their dreams a reality, he said.

This was the first auction of its kind for the New Zealand Fire Service, which was enlisting extra staff to help run the day and emergencies, Mr Baker said.

The auction has already netted one winner, who bid $2500 for the experience.

Mr Baker and Mr Waterreus were now re-listing the auction on Trade Me in search of the second person.

"The name of the game is to raise as much money as we can," Mr Baker said.

Mr Waterreus said the winners would get to do "absolutely everything a firefighter does on duty, except it will be busier".

"We will go to lots and lots of jobs. We'll have a chemical spill, fire in a house, hotel fire, car accident, everything the fire service responds to," he said.

"It's going to be a great day."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

View video (right) of Mr Waterreus explaining the day

Mr Waterreus said the only limitation would be from the winners themselves.

"It's whatever they are comfortable doing. If they are not flash with heights we won't be hanging them from a ladder anywhere."

Mr Waterreus took part in the Sky Tower Challenge last year and said he wanted to make a real impact this time around.

"I'm not a fan of going out and shaking a bucket so this is a good way to raise awareness and money for Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand," he said.

Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand is the national organisation dedicated to supporting patients and their families living with a blood cancer - leukaemia, lymphoma or myeloma or a related blood condition.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

To bid on the auction go to: trademe.co.nz and search Ultimate Firefighter Experience or listing number 1084469309.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Sport

Sam Ruthe breaks NZ records in LA

Bay of Plenty Times

Tauranga's Sam Ruthe breaks two NZ records in LA

13 Jul 04:58 AM
Bay of Plenty Times

Donations save school from brink of closure

13 Jul 12:01 AM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Sam Ruthe breaks NZ records in LA

Sam Ruthe breaks NZ records in LA

The 16-year-old Tauranga runner lowered his own national U17 and U18 1500m records at the Sound Running Sunset Tour in Los Angeles. Video / Athletics NZ

Tauranga's Sam Ruthe breaks two NZ records in LA

Tauranga's Sam Ruthe breaks two NZ records in LA

13 Jul 04:58 AM
Donations save school from brink of closure

Donations save school from brink of closure

13 Jul 12:01 AM
'Palpable grief': Motorcyclist who killed two people had 11 previous driving convictions

'Palpable grief': Motorcyclist who killed two people had 11 previous driving convictions

12 Jul 11:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Bay of Plenty Times e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Bay of Plenty Times
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP