Te Puke Primary gets new van thanks to kiwifruit festival

Pictured with the new Te Puke Primary School van are, from left, sports co-ordinator Elle Reid, Angel Largerwaard from Friends of the School, deputy principals Catherine Humphries and Kevin Piermarini.

Te Puke Primary School recently took delivery of the fruits of many people's labours.

The school's first Ray White Kiwifruit Festival only just happened by the skin of its teeth - just a few days before alert level 4 in March.

The festival also included a fun run.

''[That] also raised a significant amount of money thanks to all the donations from our whānau,'' says deputy principal Kevin Piermarini. ''The tamariki had an absolute blast, especially going through the colour run at the end.''

The van has been signwritten and is already being used on a daily basis.

''Our new van will enable us to participate in more education outside the classroom experiences, transport more students to Ngahere Kura, and to compete in various inter school sporting events.''

Kevin says the successful event couldn't have taken place without the sponsorship of Ray White Te Puke, Woodlands, Trevelyan's and Gull Paengaroa, ''and the wonderful community support on the day''.

''The school would like to thank our board of trustees, Friends of the School and our community for their collaboration to help raise funds to purchase a second school van.''

The second Great Kiwifruit Festival will take place on March 13, 2021 and is set to be even bigger and better than the first.