CATCHING UP: Tim checks out Pacific poverty

School holidays in the Pacific won't be about sunbathing and snorkelling for Bethlehem College student Tim Armstrong, one of three secondary school students heading to Vanuatu for nine days on September 28.
The young Kiwi leaders are off on a Sanitarium-funded travelling scholarship to see development work in action on the beautiful but poor Tanna Island.
The Bay of Plenty Times followed Tim's progress through the selection process. "It's going to be awesome to actually see the work World Vision does. I feel it's going to set me up for the rest of my life," the 16-year-old said.
Travelling with fellow scholars Anna Morey of Waikato and Felicity Jansonius of Taranaki, the trio were selected from 20 secondary students representing the top 40 Hour Famine fundraising schools around the country.
During that Sanitarium Senior Scholarship week, students learned about poverty, development and aid work. The three travelling scholarships were awarded at the end-of-week awards dinner.
The trio will visit World Vision projects on Tanna Island, where they will spend most of their time. Projects include water supply systems, health and sanitation, adult literacy and food security.
"I hope to come away with a greater knowledge of poverty and of the Pacific," Tim said. "It will be great to have a personal experience that I can draw from when talking to people about World Vision and their work."
The Sanitarium Health Food Company has been sponsoring student trips to developing countries for 23 years with World Vision New Zealand.
Anna Bowden
Few leads in rape probe
Police investigating the rape of a 20-year-old Tauranga woman near the Hairini Bridge on September 1 are no closer to finding an offender.
Detective Sergeant Paul Basham said that after completing all routine inquiries, police were awaiting forensic results, which they hoped could provide a lead. He would not reveal what the evidence was but said it could be weeks before police knew if it could help them.
Police received many calls from members of the public after calling for information on the attack, including any sightings of the woman trying to flag down traffic on Turret Rd.
Meanwhile, police say they have exhausted most of their options into finding the man responsible for a sex attack on a schoolgirl on her way to Mount Maunganui College.
The 16-year-old student was allegedly indecently assaulted during the attack by a man who demanded sex from her about 7.30am on August 25.
Detective Bruce Ross of Mount Maunganui said police looked at video camera footage that they hoped would show the attack or the offender. But the inquiries had not assisted.
With no leads from witnesses, it was unlikely they would find the offender, Mr Ross said.
There was always a chance the girl might see the attacker in the street and recognise him but there was little more police or members of the public could do to find him.
Beck Vass
Port Prime bounces back
Port Prime, the Mount Maunganui company that was partially destroyed by a fire in August, is well on its way to a full recovery.
"We lost a total of four days of production," said Jeanette MacLennan, co-owner of the company, which paints weatherboards and other home-construction timber.
She said everyone had been very helpful in seeing the company back to its feet including neighbours, customers and staff.
"Everyone's been fabulous," Ms MacLennan said.
There is still damage to one of the two buildings that the company operates out of but Ms MacLennan expects it to be completely fixed in the New Year.
One bit of good to come out of the incident had been the fact her six-year-old son's class has been able to use the fire for a school project. The Bethlehem Primary students have visited the fire station and workers at Port Prime to see how they have been affected by the event.
Overall, Ms MacLennan said they were taking a positive outlook and forging ahead with the day-to-day running of the business.
Joel Ford
Skippers dig in over pier
Three Tauranga charter and commercial fishing operators locked in a dispute with the city council over berthing rights on Coronation Pier have refused to sign a legal deed.
Deep Star skipper Garth Le Lievre said that instead of signing the document, they are considering getting their own engineer's report on the soundness of the seaward section of the pier.
They disagree that the slab of partly corroded concrete deck warranted condemning their end of the pier. Their rentals should be funding repairs until Tauranga City Council decided on the long-term future of the wharf.
Mr Le Lievre continues to use the pier for his charter business, even though Deep Star was meant to be only tying up on the stand-alone poles alongside the pier, and loading and unloading passengers elsewhere.
He has had no reply from the council about using the pontoons beside the Kestrel. The two other boats are the Enterprise and Sea Prophet.
John Cousins