Lions supply new seats for Kaponga Cemetery

Some of the Kaponga Lions take a seat on one of the two newly installed seats at Kaponga Cemetery. (l-r, back row): Brendan Forsyth, Shelley Pope, Colin Pope. (l-r, front row): David Smith, Trevor Hurley.

"Lots of cemeteries have seats where people can sit and reflect."

Trevor Hurley, a member of the Kaponga Lions, says when he put forward the idea of organising a couple of benches for the Kaponga cemetery at a Lions club meeting, it met with plenty of support.

Publicity officer for the club, David Smith, says the group were discussing things they could do for their centennial legacy project and David's suggestion of benches made sense.

As part of Lions Clubs International's centennial celebration last year, Lions around the world adopted the message 'where there's a need, there's a Lion', and worked toward the Centennial Service Challenge to serve 100 million people by the end of 2017.

David says that once the idea of the benches met with approval from members as well as South Taranaki District Council, who manage the cemetery, it wasn't long before the benches were made and ready to be installed.

David says the club is grateful to Sanfords of Auroa for donating the concrete base for the seats which were made by Armourshield in Normanby.

The two benches have now been installed at the cemetery, where it is hoped they will be used and appreciated for years to come.

David says the Kaponga Lions have a proud history in the district and currently have 34 members. He says the club was established in 1972 and some of the original members still take part in club activities.