The sun was shining, the lambs were frolicking, the snails were sliding and the artwork was stunning.
Thursday was a colourful and fun day for the pupils, parents, friends and staff of rural Patoka School as it staged its big pet day. But there was a lot more than just pets
to take in.
There were snails to "race" and balloons to propel, and some remarkable old school desks that had been painted up into truly wonderful artworks for a fundraising auction.
Artist Michelle Carswell, who takes art classes at the school, was heavily involved in the paint-a-desk plan and some of the results were startling - one was a sort of 3-D image of the seafloor. Her own effort, a stunning pirate ship image, drew a top bid of $115.
The auction raised just over $1000 for the school.
There was "sheep" mustering with weighed-down balloons, painted as sheep, serving as the flock, and some impressive artwork in a display staged in the hall. Everything from models of farms and pictures of animals ... clearly a lot of talent among the young of Patoka.
In one classroom there was a "Master Chef" cook-off with youngsters preparing corn fritters, and there was a "Crazy Wheels" parade of decorated bicycles, and when it came time to stage the great pet parade it was clear the children had gone to some effort.
Dogs and puppies and lots of sheep ... some adorned in colourful bandannas. Roosters, cats, goldfish, guinea pigs ... and even a spider!
One of the organisers of the day, Rachel Train, said the success meant the day would become an annual event.
The generosity of sponsors had been overwhelming
She thanked Farmgear HB at Puketapu, Farmlands Napier, Barry's Motorcycles, FMG Insurance, Barry Macklow from Peter De Barre Livestock who was auctioneer, and cook-off judge Erin Reed of Napier - who was the inaugural Good Keen Girl competition winner at Mystery Creek.
All involved agreed it was a great day to be in Patoka.
