Kaitāia’s Anne West Kindergarten staff Bonny Anderson, head teacher/pouako; Siobhan Halse-Soutar, teacher/pouako; Florence Amosa, teacher/pouako; Erana Piripi, teacher/pouako; Rachael Mullins, administrator; and cook Papara Poharama (Nanny Barb) are preparing for the kindy’s 70th anniversary celebrations.
Kaitāia’s Anne West Kindergarten staff Bonny Anderson, head teacher/pouako; Siobhan Halse-Soutar, teacher/pouako; Florence Amosa, teacher/pouako; Erana Piripi, teacher/pouako; Rachael Mullins, administrator; and cook Papara Poharama (Nanny Barb) are preparing for the kindy’s 70th anniversary celebrations.
Great teachers and staff, a fabulous community of parents and whānau and fantastic kids, that’s what Anne West Kindergarten teacher Siobhan Halse-Souter thinks is behind the continued success of the Kaitāia early childhood centre as it celebrates its 70th anniversary.
And Halse-Souter should know, her eldest boy, now 35, wentthere, she’s spent time as a relief teacher there and is now at the kindy fulltime.
She said it’s an exciting time for Anne West Kindergarten and its many former students, teachers, parents and supporters, and many of them will be at the 70th platinum jubilee celebrations on May 13.
The outdoor play area at Kaitāia’s Anne West Kindergarten
Halse-Souter said the commemorations would be very popular, with Anne West Kindergarten having hundreds of children, whānau and teachers through its doors in the intervening 70 years.
“The kindy is such a positive place to be for all and the fact we have several generations of the same family through the doors shows how highly thought of Anne West Kindergarten is in the community.
“I think [that success] is down to the fact we have had amazing people involved all along. From great management, teachers, whānau and the kids themselves, just so many wonderful people from Kaitāia started their learning here.”
She said one of the original founders of the kindergarten was Phyllis Tailby, the father of long-time Kaitāia College principal William Tailby, with William among the first cohort of students.
Phyllis Tailby cutting the cake to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Kaitāia’s Anne West Kindergarten which she helped found. The early childhood centre turns 70 this month
“We’ve always had such great community support from the start, and they have always turned out to help us when we’ve needed it. And the quality of the teaching and support staff has always been outstanding, with so many having a strong attachment to Anne West Kindergarten," Halse-Souter said.
The kindy still has some of the original resources from the start, including the rimu playing blocks that have been the source of fun for generations of kids, and in recent years had added an edible forest and outdoor space for the children to explore and better understand nature.
The edible forest at Kaitāia’s Anne West Kindergarten is thriving as the kindy celebrates its 70th anniversary this month
In 2015, Anne West Kindergarten became an Enviroschools kindergarten and joined a nationwide group of schools and early childhood centres who are all committed to a kaupapa of creating a healthy, peaceful, sustainable world. This means living in a country where people work with positive energy to connect with each other, their cultural identity, and their surroundings, to create a healthier, peaceful, more equitable society. Anne West Kindergarten has achieved Enviroschools Bronze.
The kindy is inviting past and present teachers, students, board members, committee groups and any other community whānau to an open day on May 13 from 8.30am to 2.30pm, with a shared kai and cake around 12pm.
