Team Up programme helps Paengaroa Kindergarten

Paengaroa Kindergarten has received $1500 from Tramains agents Ally Ross and Sam Hitchman.

Two local real estate agents have helped Paengaroa Kindergarten children continue their bush visits.

As part of Tremains Team Up programme, Ally Ross and Sam Hitchman have already been able to hand over $1500 to the kindergarten with the money going towards replacing 10 car seats that have passed their expiry date.

Head teacher Debbie Dagger says the kindergarten is grateful for and appreciative of the donation.

"All our car seats expired over the Covid period so we were, all of a sudden, faced with a humongous bill to replace them, so it's come in very timely - it's brilliant really," she says.

Being unable to use the seats had made it difficult to take children on one of their favourite outings.

"We usually head out into the ngaherehere - head out into the bush - every day with a group of children."

They head out to Redwood Farm.

"We've been going there for about nine years," says Debbie.

For each sale Ally and Sam make, $500 goes to the kindergarten and, so far, enough has been donated to cover four car seats. The Kindergarten Association has helped to provide others, but these will have to be paid for at some point.

Ally says through the programme, agents can nominate a non-profit group, organisation or club to receive the $500 from each sale.

All three of Sam's children have been to the kindergarten and her youngest is still there.

"Sam has a long affiliation with Paengaroa Kindy and she asked them if they were interested and they said 'oh my gosh, yes', particularly as their normal way of fundraising had been diminished greatly," says Ally.

The tie-in with the kindergarten is set to continue.

"We're just extremely grateful for their ongoing support, especially at this time with fundraising being so difficult with Covid," says Debbie. "We weren't able to fundraise for the last two years, so it's a great partnership."