Trust gives bridge site cash boost

BOOST: The Anzac Memorial Bridge site is a Historic Places Trust category 1 site at Kaiparoro. PHOTO/FILE

An historic site at Kaiparoro is being given a helping hand with the Eastern and Central Community Trust donating $900 towards its maintenance.

The Anzac Memorial Bridge site, which links along a short walk to the adjacent W A Miller Reserve, south of Eketahuna, is a Historic Places Trust category 1 site and cared for by Friends of Anzac Memorial Bridge.

The trust donation will help with the cost mowing and weed spraying for a year.

The Anzac Memorial Bridge was built in 1922 in the aftermath of World War 1 with stone from the Makakahi River and is New Zealand's only war memorial bridge. It was originally a one-way bridge but was sidelined after road improvements to modernise the road through Wairarapa and Tararua districts.

It bears the names of soldiers from the area who fought and died in the two world wars, including relatives of Olympian Peter Snell.

The former director of New Pacific Studio, Dr Kay Flavell, who now lives in the United States, played a big part in caring for the site and was an active member of the friends organisation which has landscaped the site, put in the walkways and paths and planted trees.

The bridge regularly features in Anzac Day commemorations with a service held there each April 25.

Recently the trust helped the Henley Men's Shed with its expansion plans with a $20,000 donation.

The shed's extensions are a two-part project to provide a quiet area away from machinery and workshop activities. The new area will be used for life-story writing, presentations on specialist issues and health-related seminars and discussions.

Phase two of the planned work is to isolate wood working machinery and install a dust extraction system.

In 2008 the trust donated $30,000 towards the cost of the new Men's Shed building.

Henley Men's Shed has more than 120 members and neighbouring Men's Sheds are also expanding, with 50 members at Greytown and more than 20 at Featherston. All three groups work together, have reciprocal memberships and avoid duplication in the programmes they deliver.