NZ Federation Cup | Annual Appeal Women of Influence | Cultural Concert

Rangi NewsOCTOBER 2015Rangi. For Life.

®

Cover info: Dannie Ackland takes a decisive shot during the nail biting final of the Federation Cup.Photo credit: CMG Sport Action Images

3 Leadership

3 News from the Principal

4 Board Report

5 Chaplain’s Column

6 Annual Appeal

7 From the Director of Fundraising

9 Around Rangi

9 Boarding House News

10 GATE Coordinator’s Desk

11 Exchanges

12 Sport Week

13 Years 7 & 8

14 From the Director of Music

16 From the Director of Theatre Arts

17 Federation Cup

18 Sport

18 Basketball

19 Football / Hockey

20 Netball 21 Orienteering 23 Equestrian

24 Celebrating Our Community

26 Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association

29 PTA News

30 Preschool News

CONTENTS

www.rangiruru.school.nzwww.rangiruru.school.nz Rangi. For Life.®

We’re making some changes

NZ Federation Cup | Annual Appeal

Women of Influence | Cultural Concert

Rangi NewsOCTOBER 2015

Rangi. For Life.®

Thank you

We’re making some changes to Rangi News and would love your input. It is important to us that Rangi News is relevant to all members of the Rangi Family. Please take the time to tell us what you’d like to see in this magazine by completing the short survey – it will only take a couple of minutes.

Visit www.rangiruru.school.nz/ rangi-news to download the survey.

PTA Golf Tournament

Sunday 18 October,

1.00pm tee off

An Evening with Dame

Jenny Shipley

Tuesday 20 October,

7.30-9.00pm

Rex Farrelly Rowing 'Do'

Thursday 22 October

5.30-7.30pm

Extreme You - Sarah Robb

O'Hagan

Thursday 5 November,

6.00-8.00pm

Prize Giving, Horncastle

Arena (all students

expected to attend)

Wednesday 2 December,

6.30pm

Leavers’ Ball, Air Force

Museum

Friday 4 December,

7.30pm

Upcoming Events

3www.rangiruru.school.nz

3 Leadership

3 News from the Principal

4 Board Report

5 Chaplain’s Column

6 Annual Appeal

7 From the Director of Fundraising

9 Around Rangi

9 Boarding House News

10 GATE Coordinator’s Desk

11 Exchanges

12 Sport Week

13 Years 7 & 8

14 From the Director of Music

16 From the Director of Theatre Arts

17 Federation Cup

18 Sport

18 Basketball

19 Football / Hockey

20 Netball 21 Orienteering 23 Equestrian

24 Celebrating Our Community

26 Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association

29 PTA News

30 Preschool News

You might have seen TVNZ’s Breakfast

programme a few weeks ago that

featured the wellbeing programme that

is happening in Year 8. The girls and their

teachers are actually the trailblazers for

the School Wellbeing Programme, which

will begin its planned roll out in other

areas of the school next year, although

some aspects, such as mindfulness and

gratitudes, are already happening in some

classes already. We have received quite

a lot of very positive feedback about the

work that is being done in Years 7 & 8 and

the piece on TVNZ had some wonderful,

spontaneous and sincere comments by

Year 8 girls about mindfulness, growth

mindset, using the word ‘yet’ which is so

powerful, and building good relationships.

Those of us who have seen the piece have

felt very proud and also very impressed.

You can see the full segment on our

Facebook page.

These girls were showing that they

were thinking about how they manage

their lives; how they deal with stress,

relationships, over-busyness and

challenges. They were showing the ability

to take time to centre themselves and

time to simply ‘be’. They were showing

the ability not to close their minds to

something but to see possibilities – to

understand the difference between a

closed mind and a growth mindset.

This ability to personally manage their

outlook and their lives is something that

is fundamental to wellbeing.

The cynics could say that wellbeing

is in danger of becoming the latest

trend and certainly a lot of providers are

hopping on the bandwagon. But anything

that makes us look at our lives and how

we live them, that looks at how we

cope with adversity and thrive through

challenges, that enables us to feel good

and function well, has got to be positive.

Many countries, including New

Zealand, are now looking seriously at

the wellbeing of their people. ERO has

recently done a study and found that out

of the 70 schools they looked at, only 11

had a wellbeing programme that was

effective. The ERO report states ‘Student

wellbeing is strongly linked to learning’

and explains that wellbeing is enhanced

when schools adopt evidence informed

practices.

In 2006 we conducted a Spirituality

survey of all the girls. We wanted to know

what they believed, what they were afraid

of, how they saw themselves. It gave

us some interesting data with which to

work, but it was far from the depth we

now need.

In 2013 we commissioned a much

broader survey, this time called a

Wellbeing Survey and encompassing the

area of spirituality as well as reaching out

to find out more about the girls in front

of us, particularly in the post-earthquake

environment. The survey covered, among

other things, emotional wellbeing, what

is important in life and self-perception,

values, feelings about world issues,

service, spiritual and religious beliefs

and life’s purpose. There was much of

value in the findings and these have

informed, and will continue to inform,

future actions. One interesting finding,

from a parents’ point of view, was that

the majority of seniors were bothered

by the time they spent on social media.

Not surprisingly everyone placed friends

and family as one of the most important

things in life and over 60% felt strongly

their life had a purpose, which is quite a

high score for this question.

We have also pulled together

NEWS FROM THE PRINCIPAL

The Importance of Wellbeing

Julie Moor and Senior Leaders

4

Julie MoorPrincipal

everything we do that is related to

personal development and wellbeing into

what we call our pastoral curriculum,

which I see as more important than the

academic curriculum. We have to have,

at the core of what we do, the wellbeing

of every student in mind, so that each

girl leaves the school with strength of

purpose and the ability not only to make

the most of her attributes and skills,

but the resilience to lead a positive and

purposeful life. This must sit at the heart

of a school and indeed a society. Young

people will achieve well, they will get

those personal bests, face life with gusto

and do all those wonderful things only

if they have a sense of wellbeing. It is

strategies such as the growth mindset

that the Years 7 & 8 (and other areas of

the school) have adopted that enable

this. Healthy, confident young people

are well placed to make the most of their

talents and abilities.

The aim of the Rangi Ruru Wellbeing

Programme is to establish a three-year

plan to build a dynamic comprehensive

and sustainable wellbeing programme

for staff and students and we have been

quietly getting the foundation for this

in place. We are keen to involve parents

and the evening with Tony Fernando was

part of this. We hope to present more

workshops and events for parents, as we

know there is much interest.

Schools have always had a range

of programmes around personal

development, but, as ERO discovered and

as we know, while well meaning, these

have often been random, not sustained

and not embedded into the fabric of the

school. Nor have they been reviewed.

How do we know what we are

doing is effective, short term or long

term? Quite simply we don’t and any

programme has to be firmly evidence-

based and proven, and there has to be

ongoing review. This is something we

want to set up. We are hugely fortunate

to be working with Lucy Hone, whose

area of expertise and passion is positive

psychology and wellbeing and who helps

us keep a steady path and clear sense of

purpose through what can be a plethora

of theories and well-meaning ideas.

Over the past decade we have

observed the same trends that are being

reported worldwide: girls presenting at a

younger age with depression and being

medicated, high levels of anxiety, more

relationship issues. The World Health

Organisation predicts that by 2020

depression will be the second leading

cause of disability.

We are a high performing school, our

families and girls have high expectations

and with that come real tensions. In

a recent presentation to the Board,

Lucy referred to a new breed of “fragile

thoroughbred students”, a phrase that

unfortunately does resonate.

So it is essential that we put the girls

and their long term wellbeing at the

centre of all we do and look closely at

our own practices and messaging. All of

this leads to some big societal questions.

What is success? How is it measured?

Where does the pressure really come

from? What are the messages we are

sending our young people – that being

really busy means you are important and

therefore it is good? That working long

hours is good? When does achieving

goals become a stretch too far? What

is of real value in life and what are we

prepared to do to achieve this?

And so we have begun a journey.

Too often schools rush in with answers

before they know the real questions and

we will be continuing to develop our

programme slowly and incrementally,

and based on known scientific evidence

and best practice. We have a Wellbeing

Committee and a Board and staff

committed to making this happen.

If, as a school and a society, we are

to embed sustainable change that will

enable our people to flourish, this is not

a quick fix. This is not some random

messaging. This is not a few great

speakers. This is incremental, cultural,

embedded and generational. Schools

are one part of the picture, but one that

can make a significant and long term

difference. So it’s a complex but endlessly

fascinating issue that lies at the heart of

our society. And the only way to start is

with the data and it’s good to see New

Zealand is, along with organisations

worldwide, starting to look beneath the

surface.

“Wellbeing cannot exist just in your own head. Wellbeing is a combination of feeling good as well as actually having meaning, good relationships and accomplishment.” Martin Seligman

NEWS FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Stuart NattrassBoard Chair

A Message from the BoardPrincipal Recruitment Update Applications for the Principal’s role

have now closed. Graham Ewing and

Kerrie McGirr of EQI Global, the search

firm engaged by the Board to manage

the recruitment process of our new

Principal, are on track with the search

process. Their candidate sourcing

strategy includes networks across a

variety educational leadership settings

within New Zealand and overseas.

EQI Global has indicated that there

is a great deal of respect within the

education community for Rangi Ruru

and its people. Our achievements are

well known and well regarded. There

has been immediate recognition of the

stature of the role within networks keen

to assist in finding the right person with

the necessary skills and attributes to

lead Rangi Ruru. The Board appointed

committee has received a long-list of

all applicants from EQI Global and they

will agree a short-list of candidates to

proceed to an initial interview with

Graham Ewing. Interviews with the

Board and its committee will then

take place during October, as well as

checking and assessment processes.

It is anticipated that the Board will be

completing its final interviews mid-

November. This is an indicative timeline

as it depends on the availability of all

concerned. The Board expects that an

appointment will be made and that the

successful candidate will be in place for

the start of the next academic year.

5www.rangiruru.school.nz

LEADERSHIP

Sharing the StoryWhy Would Chaplains Need Nourisment?

Karanga from both sides rang out making my spine tingle.

Our Rangi Kapa Haka welcomed our visitors to Christchurch.

Speeches of welcome, hymns, readings, resonated from within

Knox, and as we celebrated God’s presence in our midst with

a service of Eucharist, bread broken and wine consumed, the

story shared; what could be more empowering than to begin a

gathering with Powhiri and Eucharist. This opened the door to

making connections, sharing our stories and friends were able

to greet each other in the name of Jesus Christ.

Our keynote speaker for the evening was the Rev Kenneth

Fleck. He spoke about his time as a missionary in Thailand to

those suffering from AIDS. Kenneth worked for Project Radical

Grace ‘Going in Faith, Working from Hope, Living in Love.’ His

words opened the door to making connections, he nourished

us with his sharing of the story.

Why you may ask do Chaplain’s need nourishment? Ours

is an interesting and at times lonely position to fill it requires

dedication and lots of aroha.

Pastoral care is for all. As a Chaplain I must be able to give

in situations where young people are sad, lonely and stressed.

I am an educator, I need to offer a platform from which our

girls may grow in spirituality and faith whatever that faith may

be. I must be open in all situations; there are weddings, and

baptisms and funerals and there is the daily routine. There may

be clan competitions where I need to be able to support all

clans, as well as being there for my own clan; in my case the

glorious DOUNE.

Chaplaincy is also about giving, sharing, and loitering with

intent to hear the story, and most importantly my sharing of

the story not just to six hundred or so young people but also

to all members our faith community. As you can see in order

to maintain a high level of Pastoral Care, I as a Chaplain need

at some point each year to meet to have my spiritual batteries

re-charged. In order for me to be seen as relevant to the girls it

is important that I keep up with what is going on in the world,

especially in the area of communication. I pray daily to be

seen as relevant in our school and also for our students to find

strength on their journey of spiritual discovery from me and

from those within our gathered community.

I am so thankful to have been able to attend this conference;

there was much food for the journey and a good dose of God’s

empowering love. My soul is filled, my love of God has been

strengthened and now I may continue to empower the young

people I journey with on a daily basis. In the name of the

‘Shared Story of a God who loves us.’

Shalom

Te Rangi marie ki a koutou

A’salaam aleikum

PeaceRev K

Kirstie McDonald (Rev)Chaplain

Rangi Ruru Kapa Haka pictured during the recent Cultural Concert at Middleton Grange.

6

LEADERSHIP

2015 Annual Appeal Support the 125 Scholarship Trust, Hilary Orr Sports

Trust or the Museum and Gallery by completing and returning the enclosed 2015 Annual Appeal brochure

Rangi. For Life.®

Annual Appeal 2015Rangi Ruru has come a long way since our last appeal; we

have celebrated 125 years of outstanding education for five

generations of young women and we have seen the completion

of several new and refurbished buildings that not only provide

the girls and staff with inspirational teaching and learning

spaces, but also provide wonderful facilities for our alumnae

and wider community to share and appreciate.

The far reaching community of Rangi Ruru friends and

supporters continues to grow every year. You are a valued

member of this vibrant community and I would like to invite

you to be part of this year’s Annual Appeal.

Three BIG Reasons to GiveThe goal of our annual appeal is to ensure the legacy of

excellence and opportunity for every girl. This year we are

again focussing on three areas of need: growing the 125 Scholarship fund so that it is sustainable; enhancing the sporting opportunities for all students, and equipping the Rangi Ruru Museum and Gallery so that our treasures and

stories can be shared. Alternatively, you can choose to give to

the Principal’s discretion fund.

“Your gift, whether it’s a large amount or a smaller contribution, will help

more Rangi girls go out into the world with determination, integrity, generosity of spirit and pride in their

achievements.”

Giving to the Annual Appeal is simple: you can give to one

or more areas of need either by making a one-off donation, or

by nominating an amount to contribute on a regular basis. You

can donate online, or complete the gift form in the brochure

inside this edition of Rangi News.

Rangi Ruru has grown because of the generosity and

passion of its people. Your contribution will make a difference.

Thank you

Julie Moor

Sylvia Barnett, Rangi Ruru Scholarship recipient

7www.rangiruru.school.nz

Rangi Ruru Women of Influence Series 2015The phrase ‘to inspire, challenge and

empower’ forms part of our promise

to our girls. There is no better example

of how we do this than two events the

school is hosting in Term 4.

We are incredibly fortunate to have

two impressive speakers, Dame Jenny

Shipley and Sarah Robb O’Hagan, giving

generously of their time to share their

wisdom and experiences with us and to

support two important causes.

Tickets to both events are limited and

will sell fast so be in quickly to ensure

you don’t miss out.

Tickets available online from rangiruru.school.nz/key-dates-and-events

Sarah WilkinsonDirector of

Fundraising

FROM THE DIRECTOR OF FUNDRAISING

Join us for an evening with Dame Jenny Shipley to

learn the qualities needed for girls to thrive and lead

in their future and how they can make the most of the

opportunities that will come their way.

Dame Jenny Shipley was New Zealand’s first female

Prime Minister and today is a Director, Advisor and keynote

speaker with a special interest in mega trends in business,

economic and social development opportunities globally.

Jenny chairs a number of boards including Global Women New Zealand and gives her time to a number of causes including as Vice President of the Club of Madrid, a group of 102 former Presidents and Prime Ministers and a member of the World Women’s Leaders Council. Both groups work in many countries, promoting democracy, the advancement of women and every aspect of social and economic improvement and progress. She is Patron of the Alliance of Girls’ Schools (Australasia), Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre and the New Zealand Heart Foundation’s “Go Red for Women”. She has also established a Namibian Education Trust that supports a cluster of schools in Northern Namibia.

Proceeds from this event will go towards the Rangi Ruru 125th Anniversary Scholarship Appeal.

Creating and Celebrating Opportunities for Girls

Don’t miss this fantastic opportunity to meet alumna

Sarah Robb O’Hagan, President of Equinox, one of the

world’s premier fitness lifestyle companies.

We are honoured and excited that Sarah is travelling

from New York to share personal anecdotes and stories

from her adventures and how we can achieve more in our

careers and lives.

Sarah supports the advancement of women’s leadership

worldwide and has a particular interest in helping girls

get access to sports; has served on Hillary Clinton’s US

State Department Council to Empower Women and Girls

through Sports, and is also a trustee of the Women’s Sports

Foundation.

Sarah is also an active member of the World Class New

Zealand Network, as she remains committed to helping

New Zealand’s development, international competitiveness

and economic growth.

This is a unique opportunity for young professionals,

senior students, parents, grandparents and alumnae to hear

from a truly inspirational leader in a relaxed and sociable

environment.

Funds raised from the ticket sales will go towards Project Blue Sky (Sports Centre).

Extreme You – Bringing All Of You To All You Do

Tuesday 20 October 2015, 7.30 - 9.00pm Merivale Lane Theatre$30

Thursday 5 November 2015, 6.00 - 8.00pm Gibson Centre$20 (adults) $10 (student)

8

Date: Tuesday, 20 October 10am – 11.30amVenue: Merivale Lane Theatre FoyerRSVP: Tuesday 6 October. Call Rachel Vavasour 03 983 3782 or email r.vavsour@rangiruru.school.nz

We’re holding this special morning

tea so that you can learn more about

the legacy you’ll join by leaving a gift

in your will to Rangi Ruru. You will hear

a wonderful performance from our

talented music scholars and meet one

of our recent alumnae and scholarship

recipient, Kristy Havill, who currently

represents New Zealand in the Ladies’

Clay-Target Shooting team.

It’s our desire to raise awareness

about the power a bequest can have

in transforming lives and we believe

this is the perfect time to think about

the difference a bequest can make to

young women like Kristy.

Rangi Ruru has been part of the national

campaign Include a Charity Week from 6 –

12 September.

Include a Charity Chair, Dianne Armstrong

said, “Large and small charities all benefit

from Kiwi generosity and, contrary to

popular belief, bequests are not just for the

rich and famous! Over 60 charities have

joined together to form a united voice

behind a campaign week that provides so

much social good for our communities”

includeacharity.org.nz

Bequest Morning Tea

FROM THE DIRECTOR OF FUNDRAISING

Date: Tuesday 22 December, 4pm – 6pmVenue: Boardroom, Te Koraha, Refreshments providedRSVP s.wilkinson@rangiruru.school.nz

Christmas is an important time

for family and friends, a time to re-

connect and catch up with people

we perhaps haven’t seen for a while.

After talking with several alumnae

based outside New Zealand, we

have decided to organise a casual

get together for our international

alumnae returning home for

Christmas. This will give people the

opportunity to have a look around

the school as well as reconnect with

friends and family.

Contact Sarah Wilkinson if you

will be in Christchurch for Christmas

and you would like to come along

for wine and fudge at Rangi Ruru on

Tuesday 22 December. Friends and

family members are welcome. We

look forward to seeing you.

Christmas at Home for International Alumnae

Take-a-Seat Campaign

What an amazing response from the

Rangi community! More than half of the

theatre seats have now been taken and

with Christmas not too far away, this

could be the ideal present for someone

special. You’ll receive a certificate with

the seat number and location so you

can send it as a gift.

The first 50 plaques will be applied

to the seats before the end of Term 4,

so if you haven’t taken a seat yet be in

quick to get yours.

Take a seat!In fact, make it your own.“I am thrilled to support the Merivale Lane Theatre and help young and talented performers to achieve their dreams.”

Dame Malvina Major

Engraved plaques are $300 each and will be fixed to the back of our colourful seats with individual or family names for ten years.

rangiruru.school.nz/take-a-seat or contact Sarah Wilkinson on 03 983 3728 or s.wilkinson@rangiruru.school.nz

9www.rangiruru.school.nz

Around Rangi

Boarding House News There is always a flurry of activity in the

boarding house, but Term 3 is particulary

busy for our boarding community. If

the girls aren’t conscientiously finishing

internals or preparing for their school

examinations, they are rushing to

their winter sporting activity, music or

production rehearsal, or one of their

many other commitments. Our girls are

truely impressive; the way they juggle so

many commitments yet still manage to

laugh and joke and enjoy life!

As I write, many of our girls are

currently away competing in their various

codes at Tournament Week. We have girls

as close as Ashburton and as far away as

Taupo and Tauranga, but it is wonderful

to get the daily updates on their progress;

they are thoroughly enjoying both the

sport and the camaraderie of their team.

There are 20 boarders involved in the

various teams, competing in basketball,

netball, hockey, cycling and football. Go

Rangi! Go Rangi Boarders!

One of our annual Term 3 events for

the Years 9 and 10 girls in the House is

our Junior Boarders’ Dance. This much

looked forward to event is organised

and run by our Year 13 girls, led by

our incredibly capable Head of House,

Becky Wilson. This year the theme was

horror and the junior girls had a lot of

fun splattering red paint over their white

shirts! As it was a Friday night event, it

was quite surreal to watch streams of

boys and girls from all the other boarding

houses in Christchurch pour through our

doors. We had employed a few boarding

fathers to supervise, however at no time

were the dads needed as the Year 13

girls, along with the chaperones from the

other schools, had everything well under

control.

The other special event for our

boarders this term was the annual Year

11 Formal Dinner. This is our chance to

sit down with just the Year 11 girls, away

from the House, dress up and enjoy a

fabulous three course meal, and listen to

Georgina Craigie, an ex-Head of House,

inspire the girls about their future. Julie

Moor joined the boarding managers in

sharing this wonderful opportunity to

celebrate our Year 11 boarders.

Not forgotten this term were our

very important boarding parents! At the

beginning of the term we managed to

get our parents and guardians together

for our Cocktail Party, a relaxed evening

held in the Gibson Centre, to simply share

a drink and nibbles and chat with other

parents. This was a superb evening and

I’m told it didn’t stop there for many of

them as they took the party down to

Merivale afterwards!

Finally, every year at this time, the staff

at the Boarding House and school like to

give back to our wider community. Thus,

we hold our very own Cholmondeley

Biggest Morning Tea in the Boarding

House. This year we managed to raise

$243 at the event to help the children’s

centre and we hope to add to this total

with our annual Boarders’ Concert. This

event allows us to show off all the talent

the girls in the House have, as well as raise

a few more dollars for Cholmondeley. It is

an event that everyone in the House looks

forward to.

Treena RuwhiuDirector of

Boarding

Year 11 formal dinner

AROUND RANGI

10

Across the GATE Coordinator’s DeskTerm 3 has been an industrious term

with girls focussing on preparation

for the practice examinations. It is

a valuable time for reflecting on

academic progress, planning ahead

for the end of the year and particularly

pertinent for choosing the right

subjects for 2016. Petra DyerGate Coordinator

AROUND RANGI

Robotics

Two teams of Rangi students met at CPIT

with hundreds of other students from

around Canterbury to compete in the

RoboCup Junior New Zealand event in

August. This is a national event where

students may choose from Theatre,

Rescue and Soccer.

The team, comprising Abby Croot,

Eugene In and Yang Kun Xiang, won the

Senior Soccer category. In this category

students are required to design and

program two robots to compete against

an opposing pair of robots by kicking

an infra-red transmitting ball into their

designated goal. The robots fought a hard

battle to achieve the winning number of

goals.

Suzanna Davis, Charlotte Smillie and

Alisha Bedggood won the Senior Theatre

category. In this category participants

programme their robots to music and

are encouraged to give their robots real

personalities. Our robot charged along to

the song, “Today Is Gonna Be a Great Day”

by Phineas and Ferb and performed all the

right moves.

Left to right: Charlotte Smillie, Alisha Bedggood, Suzanna Davis.

From left to right: Yang Kun Xiang, Abby Croot, Simon Dyer (tutor), Ross Widdup, (Leader of Faculty-Technology)

Rangi Ruru Big Brain Bee Winners

Four Year 11 Rangi girls took out the

2015 South Island Brain Bee Challenge

held in Dunedin, which is a competition

for high school students where they

learn about the brain and its functions,

neuroscience research, find out

about careers in neuroscience and

work to dispel misconceptions about

neurological and mental illnesses.

The girls first had to qualify for the

South Island competition by achieving

highly in a multi-choice test and after

qualifying, Marisol Hunter, Ashleigh Goh,

Francesca Beaton and Isabella Gregory,

competed in both team and individual

competitions. They went on to take

1st place in the team event, winning

individual prizes, a trophy, and a prize

package for the school valued at more

than $1600.

Ashleigh and Marisol both made the

individual final where Ashleigh placed

5th and Marisol 2nd. Marisol received a

trophy, cash prize and a week at Science

Camp at Otago University.

Ashleigh Goh, Marisol Hunter, Isabella Gregory and Francesca Beaton (all Year 11)

Georgia Canning, Year 13 (right)

Francesca Beaton, Ashleigh Goh, Jocelyn Bradley

Trip to Otago University Christchurch Simulation Centre

New Zealand Model United Nations

11www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

Indian Exchange 2015During the last school holidays we were

lucky enough to go on an exchange

to Unison World School in Dehradun,

Northern India. Driving through the gates

of Unison World School the differences

compared to school at home were

phenomenal; from the endless amount

of security guards positioned all over the

grounds, to the big marble staircases and

extremely tall buildings.

The contrast between Rangi and

Unison is huge. A normal school day in

India consists of getting up at 5:30am

for morning exercises (running or yoga)

and classes start at 8am, with 9 periods a

day, 6 days a week. We took part in many

workshops like henna, sari and dance

classes, where we learnt some traditional

Indian dances. Every day after classes

we had sport, which was compulsory for

every student.

There is definitely less freedom for the

students at Unison as they are not allowed

to have phones while they are at school

and have no access to the internet except

at certain times on Sundays, but most

social media sites are blocked. They are

also not allowed out of the school unless

accompanied by a guard while on a day

trip which only happens about once a

month. We were given extra privileges so

we could contact home.

In the middle week of our trip, we were

extremely fortunate to be taken to the

popular and bustling city of Jaipur with

Eva’s buddy, Rudra, and her lovely family.

Rudra’s family also surprised us with a trip

to the incredible Taj Mahal on our second

day. We were unbelievably lucky to be

looked after so well and to have people so

willing to go the extra mile for us taking us

to one of the Wonders of the World.

In Jaipur, we learnt to be extremely

appreciative of what we are so incredibly

lucky to have. Beggars would approach

us when we were in cars and knock on

the window to ask for help or approach

us on the streets. This was something

that we all found heartbreaking to see

and experience, but made us extremely

grateful for our homes, families and

opportunities, and motivated us to want

to go back and help some of these people

one day. Clean streets that don’t smell and

don’t have piles of rubbish are pretty much

a given here in New Zealand, but in India

we realised how lucky we are to have such

clean cities, as this is a reality throughout

Indian towns and cities.

This trip to India made us really

value the freedom we have here at home

and we are extremely grateful to have

experienced a completely different culture.

This exchange pushed us out of our

comfort zones; it encouraged us to meet

new challenges and taught us that we can

handle something completely different. It

really made us realise how good we have

it in New Zealand. It also taught us to be

tolerant and accepting of other cultures

and people coming from such different

backgrounds. This was a once in a lifetime

opportunity that we were so lucky to have

at Rangi.

Hannah Davies, Cherish Russell, Eva Parsons and Giovanna McLaughlin

From The KitchenRangi fudge is now Fair Trade & Organic!

It is made from fair trade and organic

ingredients, plus free range local eggs.

The chocolate icing is 55% Chocolate

which is also fair trade and organic.

The eggs used in the sandwich bar are

now also free range and organic. Our new

range of fair trade snacks in the canteen

are selling well and the girls are loving

them.

Eva Parsons, Giovanna McLaughlin, Hannah Davies and Cherish Russell standing in the pink city, Jaipur

Eating traditional Indian food In a traditional Indian fabric shop

On top of a fort

12

AROUND RANGI

Sport Week

As usual Sport Week was action packed,

with activities each day and a chance for

all students in the school to get involved.

In addition to the regulars such as the

sports quiz, count the balls, and find the

ball, there were also specific activities

each day.

The week started with an inspirational

speech in chapel by Marcus Whippy from

the Canterbury Rams, who has been

employed by Canterbury Development

Basketball to coach and promote the

game to young people in the region. He

spoke to the school about his journey

from a young boy growing up in Fiji to his

time at the University of Hawaii, where he

attended on a basketball scholarship.

Lunchtime on Monday saw the

Clans pitched against each other in a

3 x 3 basketball competition. As usual,

Glamis took the title on the day! Tuesday

lunchtime viewing was the Rangi Sport

Council vs Christ’s College basketball

game. Although the boys arrived very

late, there was still time for the girls to

take them on and narrowly come away

with a win.

Wednesday started early with a brisk

½ hour walk for girls and keen staff,

followed by Posh Porridge supplied by

the Riccarton Bush Market. The toppings

were divine and a great way to start the

day! To round out the day with food, the

sports council set up a stall outside the

Helen Kitson for all students heading

out to Wednesday sport, and supplied

them with a healthy afternoon tea of

smoothies, fruit and baking.

Thursday was mufti day with the

theme of Colour, and was complimented

by a Colour Run during the lunch break.

Friday was reasonably subdued, with the

annual Battle of the Banners taking place

in the gym over lunch and Real Fruit Ice

Creams on sale in the courtyard outside

Te Koraha. All teams involved in Winter

Tournament Week put their artistic

talents on show to produce the best

poster for the week. Congratulations to

the Senior Basketball team whose efforts

were rewarded with the win!

Huge thanks to the Sport Council for

their outstanding and memorable efforts!

Lottie Eglinton Head of Sport

13www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

Years 7 & 8

Term 3 started off with an exciting visit

from TVNZ who wanted to find out more

about the Mindfulness practices we use

in the Year 7 & 8 area. They came in to

film a piece for Breakfast and whilst it

seem to take weeks to air, it was great

to see the girls (and staff) represent the

school and talk about some of what we

do.

The girls have been working hard

all term in Kapa Haka to prepare for the

Primary Schools’ Cultural Festival. This

was a joint performance with Medbury

and on the night, all students were well

rehearsed and performed superbly.

Fourteen of our hockey girls have

been representing the school at the AIMS

Games in Tauranga. After months of

fundraising, practises and planning, the

girls have just completed the tournament

in 12th place. This was the first time we

have sent a team and look forward to

competing again in the future.

We also had a team compete at the

Cantamaths competition and our Bellbirds

Choir and Orchestra contributed to the

Kids in Town concert in September. The

girls have also been rehearsing for the

Christchurch Primary Schools’ Music

Festival and will perform at Horncastle

Arena on October 30.

On Friday 23 October, Years 7 & 8 are

hosting a Market Day. The girls have been

working in small groups, as part of their

Social Sciences study this term, to create

a product and/or service which they will

market and sell on Market Day. Profits will

be donated to a charity, which yet to be

decided. The girls are really getting into

this topic and learning not only about

designing and creating a product, but

also about competition, advertising and

marketing, the legal aspects of selling

goods and financial literacy. We are

all looking forward to the day and will

hopefully see you there!

Sally Fail Lead Teacher Years 7 & 8

Speech and DramaThe six girls who took part in the

Christchurch Speech and Drama

Competitions all did very well.

Isabella Carter was 2nd in Prose

Reading and gained VHC in Speaking

Poetry. She also received her VHC in

dramatic monologue.

Georgia Woodley was 1st in Prose

Reading, 2nd in Poetry Speaking and 3rd in

her dramatic monologue.

Abi O’Regan was 1st in Acting

Shakespeare, 1st in her dramatic

monologue. She also received the Lynn Williams Prize for Acting Shakespeare and

the Christchurch Competitions Prize for

the most Outstanding Performance.

Livvy Pride gained 2nd in Poetry

Speaking, 1st in the Test Poem, 1st in

Storytelling, 1st in NZ Poetry and Prose,

the Noeline McAleer Cup for the highest

points in Poetry Speaking, the Jubilee Cup for Storytelling, and the Balch Trophy for

NZ Poetry and Prose.

Millie Osborne received the

Christchurch Competitions Prize for the

Most Promising Performer in the 16 – 19

age group.

Amy Huang gained 1st Place in the

English Speaking Union Canterbury Scholarship and she was also the

Christchurch nominee for the Young Performer of the Year Award which will

be held in Palmerston North in October.

Amy also gained the Neta Neale trophy

which is given to the winner of the English Speaking Union Canterbury Scholarship.

14

AROUND RANGI

From the Director of Music

The highlight for this term was the

annual Cultural Concert. This was

once again a highly successful evening

featuring a wide range of performing

artists – Dance Companies, Jazz Band

and Combo, Resolutions, Concordia,

Sheilah Winn, Kapa Haka and Rangi

Sinfonia. Performing to a packed house,

this concert showcased the incredible

talents of the girls, including original

student work in dance, drama and the

Jazz Combo. The girls clearly all enjoyed

performing to the very appreciative

and supportive audience of family

and friends. Congratulations to all the

performers, but also to the Head of

Culture, Claire McSweeney, and her very

efficient and capable team for the superb

organisation behind the scenes.

Rangi’s senior chamber music groups Jeunesse Élégante (Grace Leehan –

violin, Karen Hu – cello, Grace McKenzie

– piano) spent part of the Term 2 break

in intensive rehearsals for the NZCT

Chamber Music Contest Nationals, held

in Wellington at the start of August. The

Nationals were an amazing two days

where the girls represented themselves

and Rangi so well. Their group was

selected for one of the final six places,

and won a Joan Kerr Gold Award. The

girls can rightly feel very proud of this

wonderful achievement, a fitting tribute

to their extraordinary talent and work

ethic. In addition Grace and Grace were

also selected as another of the finalist

groups in their National Pettman Junior

Academy group the Amici Quartet.On the same weekend as the

chamber music nationals, the Jazz

Band and Combo participated in

JazzQuest in Christchurch. Both were

delighted to gain Silver awards. Four

days later they travelled to Blenheim for

the Southern Jam Youth Jazz Festival,

another wonderful and enriching

learning experience. For a few days the

girls experienced life as professional

musicians, an experience that is very

valuable, not only in terms of their

playing, but also in their personal and

social development. The band was

delighted to receive a Gold award, and

the Combo a Silver. Huge thanks and

congratulations must go to the band

director, Michael Lawrence, and combo

director, Nanako Sato, for their dedication

and inspirational work with the girls.

Special mention must be made of

drummer Karen Hu. At JazzQuest she

Jazz Band

soloist. Geeny also continues to play

for Showbiz, this time in the orchestra

for Spamalot.

• Violinist and violist Grace Leehan

continues to play professionally with

the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra

and will also give a full solo lunchtime

concert in the Christchurch Music

Centre’s Outstanding Young Musicians

series on Friday 9 October.

• Violinists Grace Leehan and Yuna

Chon, viola player Rebecca Harris, and

flautist Isabella Gregory, are members

of the Christchurch Youth Chamber

Orchestra. Isabella is also a member

of the University of Canterbury Flute

Performance class.

• Isabella, this time as a pianist, won

the Under 16 Piano Scholarship at the

Christchurch Competitions during

July.

• Drummer Karen Hu and trombonist

Rebecca Harris have both been

accepted as members of the

Christchurch Youth Jazz Orchestra.

In addition Rebecca is also playing

trombone in the Christchurch Youth

Orchestra and was placed 3rd in U15

national brass band competitions.

• Livvy Pride (violinist and leader)

and Eden Cotter-Longworth (viola),

have been selected as players in

the Canterbury Schools’ Regional

Orchestra.

• Xiaoling Liu (Year 11) and Gabby

Cresswell (Year 13) both had songs

- ‘Bruised Knees’, and ’This Time’

respectively, that made it to the top

40 in the annual Lion Foundation

Songwriting Competition. Part of

their prize was a $50 Rockshop

voucher and a session to have their

songs professionally recorded. These

recordings will be released later in the

year.

Links to the various performances

mentioned can be found on the Rangi

Facebook page.

Janet Kingsbury

Director of Music

Resolutions

15www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

received the award for the Best Big

Band Drummer, and at Southern Jam

received three awards - the New Zealand School of Music Award for Best Big Band Drummer, the Interislander Award for Best Original Composition – ‘Kazza’s

Jam’, and the Jan and Malcolm Arnold Award for Most Outstanding Musician.

In addition she, along with bass player

Xiling Liu (winner of the Massey University Conservatorium of Music award for Best Bass Player), trombonist

Rebecca Harris and alto saxophone

player Julie Kim, were selected for

the AllStars Band. For Karen this is an

extraordinary achievement, coming

just four days after her success at the

National Chamber Music Finals.

The third week of the term saw

Resolutions and director Helen Charlton

travel to Wellington for the BIG SING

Finals, where 24 of the top secondary

school choirs from throughout New

Zealand were invited to attend.

Resolutions gave two stunning recital

programmes and was thrilled to win

a Silver Award. The girls learnt much

through the opportunity to be involved

in this event and were excellent

ambassadors for Rangi in every respect.

Other notable music events this term

included:

• Concordia and the Junior Chorale

participated in the Voices festival on

Wednesday 2 September.

• The Rangi Sinfonia once again

participated in the 2015 Secondary

Schools’ Orchestra Festival on Monday

14 and Tuesday 15 September.

• The Rangi Players and Bellbirds

enjoyed a lovely outing to perform at

Kids in Town, held at the Re:Start Mall

in Cashel Street during September.

CongratulationsAll girls are to be congratulated for

some stunning performances this

term. The following girls deserve our

congratulations on some stunning

individual successes:

• Violinist Grace McKenzie has

been selected to take part in a

series of masterclasses during the

Term 3 break with internationally

renowned German violinist Elisabeth

Kufferath. Grace also performed as

a violin soloist with the Canterbury

Philharmonia earlier this year,

and will play as a piano soloist in

the Christchurch Music Centre’s

Outstanding Young Musicians series

later this year.

• Geeny Moon has been announced

as the concerto soloist with the

New Zealand Secondary Schools’

Symphony Orchestra next year. She

is a past principal horn player in this

orchestra, which every year invites

one outstanding alumni to play as a

soloist. Geeny also continues to play

for Showbiz, this time in the orchestra

for Spamalot.

• Violinist and violist Grace Leehan

continues to play professionally with

the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra

and will also give a full solo lunchtime

concert in the Christchurch Music

Centre’s Outstanding Young Musicians

series on Friday 9 October.

• Violinists Grace Leehan and Yuna

Chon, viola player Rebecca Harris, and

flautist Isabella Gregory, are members

of the Christchurch Youth Chamber

Orchestra. Isabella is also a member

of the University of Canterbury Flute

Performance class.

• Isabella, this time as a pianist, won

the Under 16 Piano Scholarship at the

Christchurch Competitions during

July.

• Drummer Karen Hu and trombonist

Rebecca Harris have both been

accepted as members of the

Christchurch Youth Jazz Orchestra.

In addition Rebecca is also playing

trombone in the Christchurch Youth

Orchestra and was placed 3rd in U15

national brass band competitions.

• Livvy Pride (violinist and leader)

and Eden Cotter-Longworth (viola),

have been selected as players in

the Canterbury Schools’ Regional

Orchestra.

• Xiaoling Liu (Year 11) and Gabby

Cresswell (Year 13) both had songs

- ‘Bruised Knees’, and ’This Time’

respectively, that made it to the top

40 in the annual Lion Foundation

Songwriting Competition. Part of

their prize was a $50 Rockshop

voucher and a session to have their

songs professionally recorded. These

recordings will be released later in

the year.

Links to the various performances

mentioned can be found on the Rangi

Facebook page.

Janet KingsburyDirector of Music

16

Rehearse two productions at once? Only possible through the

support of the school, the commitment and tenacity of the

students, and an incredible Theatre Arts staff who consistently

go out of their way to ensure our girls have an array of

extraordinary opportunities both inside and Passengers by award-winning playwright, Fiona Farrell, was

rehearsed over the same period as Julius Caesar, with some

in the cast in both shows and rehearsing nearly every day. I

had the joy and honour of co-directing this play with Hannah Clarkson and I was inspired by her calm and surefooted

command of physical theatre. It was also a delight for the

girls and me to see Hannah take the stage in a cameo role.

She and Kirsty Bell escorted the production to London and, in

what I believe to be a New Zealand first, presented the play at

the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. The four performances

there were a huge success and an experience the girls will

never forget. Alongside their own performances, the cast were

treated to performances and workshops at RADA, The Globe,

The National Theatre and The Royal Shakespeare Company.

On top of that, there were West End musicals, plus sightseeing

in London, Bath, Stonehenge, and Stratford Upon Avon. This

was all topped off with a sell-out season of Passengers back in

Christchurch.

The announcement of the junior production was hotly

anticipated, and the auditions provided a nervous few weeks for

a large group of hopefuls. With casting complete, rehearsals are

now well underway for Bugsy Malone, which will be presented

with Christ’s College in The Old Boys’ Theatre from 18-21

November.

Also currently in rehearsal are three productions that will

enter the international theatre festival on Norfolk Island in the

September holidays. Year 12 Drama will present Rainbow’s Ending by Noel Greig, and there are two Year 13 groups: one

will present an ancient Greek play, The Bacchae by Euripides,

and the other a brand new play by Angie Farrow, Breaking

News.

Finally, as I prepare to embark on a new challenge as

Deputy Principal of Tauranga Boys’ College, I wish to extend

my gratitude to the Board, Management, staff, and students of

this fine school. I have had such incredible encouragement and

support since I arrived in 2011. It has been a privilege to lead

and share learning in the Arts in this environment and I will

miss the energy, the passion, and the care.

Ekea ka tiritiri o te moana

– Ascend to the heights of

your aspirations.

Robert GilbertDirector of Theatre Arts

AROUND RANGI

From the Director of Theatre Arts

Passengers

M A LO N E

CHRIST’S COLLEGE & RANGI RURU GIRLS’ SCHOOL

Music and Lyrics by Paul WilliamsBook by Alan Parker

By arrangement with Warner/Chappell Music Ltd administered by Hal Leonard Australia Pty Ltd.

18-21 NOVEMBER 2015, 7.30PMOLD BOYS’ THEATRE

Book online www.bugsy.co.nz

17www.rangiruru.school.nz

SPORT

This year we had a good core of players

who won the South Island Six–A–Side

tournament at the start of the year and

then went on to win the Porritt Cup. The

team showed an ability to score goals

which was exciting for us. Throughout

the season we had a few injuries to key

players and we had to balance injury

management and fitness so that we had a

full team for Federation Cup. We felt that

we had a group who could win if they

played as a team, but you are never sure

what the opposition can do to you in a

tournament and how strong the North

Island teams are. We spent the season

growing players, improving their skills

and working on team work.

We played against Columba College

late on Monday evening on a flooded

turf in torrential rain. The ball could not

travel more than a few metres so it was

a memorable game with skilful over-

heading by Danielle Ackland ensuring we

maintained a territorial advantage and

got the win.

A highlight also was the complete

team effort on defence against Villa Maria

College in the semi-final and Claudia

Reid’s winning goal from a powerful

strike at the top of the circle.

A turning point in the tournament

was when one of our key players

Annabelle Wilson was injured before our

quarter final against Auckland Dio and

suddenly we had to change all our plans.

The girls overcame this obstacle with

focus and determination to prove we

could win games with our team structure

altered. We won 4-1.

The final game started with a huge

amount of pressure on our defence. St

Margaret’s were awarded numerous

penalty corners from the start. We always

have tough games against St Margaret’s

and know each other’s strengths well.

We have finished ahead of them at

Federation Cup for four out of the last five

years and were very proud of that record

and wanted to maintain it going into the

final.

Excellent goal keeping from Aimee

Hayward, and defensive deflections by

Sophie Radovonich, Jess Gunn, Phoebe

Spiers and Danielle Ackland really saved

the day. The ability of the girls to make

good passes under pressure changed the

momentum and the game evened out

as it progressed. The game was tense

throughout and numerous attacking

corners were not converted. Our key

goal scorer Charlotte Arthur with Margot

Willis, created some good opportunities.

The game went to drop off; once again

the defence were calm under pressure

with Gunn making a number of timely

tackles. The attacking skills of Margot

Willis, Sophie Radovonich and Charlotte

Arthur, led to the winning goal, giving us

a 1-0 win.

The team had an even spread of

players across the age groups. There are

only four Year 13s so it leaves a strong

core of players for the future, and we

have a strong group in the Second

Eleven to fill the spaces. Rangi Hockey

is strong and focuses on developing

players throughout the season. Charlotte

Arthur was a standout with her skill and

leadership throughout the week. She

was the Tournament leading goal scorer.

The senior leadership team of Charlotte

Arthur, Rebecca Skurr, Sophie Radovonich

and Jess Gunn provided maturity and

leadership in the games and the younger

players Amelia Wilson, Brittany Wang,

Emma Hewitt, Alex Summerfield, Alice

Luxton, Claudia Reid and Lucy Simpson

developed throughout the week. Our goal

keeper Aimee Hayward had a wonderful

week and did not concede a goal in the

semi or final. The team were supportive

of each other and had fun which

contributed to a positive attitude.

We have now finished our season for

2015. The girls will now be focussing on

their school work and some individual

hockey programmes. The Canterbury

U15 Girls will be going to a National

Tournament in the holidays and Rangi

has a number of girls involved in this

programme.

Our thanks go to Vanessa Trent,

who has been an amazing physio for

many of the girls and helped with

the rehabilitation and conditioning

throughout the season. We also

appreciated the support from Rangi - Dr

Stubbs at the tournament and Jo Fogarty,

Director of Sport and the parents who

catered for us in Tauranga with their

nutritious meals. Thanks also to Karen

Radovonich, the Team Manager and to

the dedicated coaches, John Radovonich

and Rachel McCann who have spent

many hours planning and coaching.

John and Karen RadovonichTeam Coach & Manager

Hockey 2015 Federation Cup Winners

The winning team

18

BasketballYears 9/10 South Island Tournament, NelsonOur first game was against Ashburton

and it was a very hard way to start the

tournament, as we’d had little time to

play as a team. We ended up losing to

Ashburton by 30, which was not the

result we wanted.

We did go on to win the rest of

our pool games against Waimea,

Marlborough Girls’ High School,

Middleton Grange and Nayland College

leaving us 2nd in our pool. In a very close,

hard fought semi-final we lost to St Hilda’s

by 10 points. We were very disappointed

not to make it to the final but all very

happy with how much we had improved

as a team since the first game. We played

off for 3rd and 4th the next day against

Kaiapoi High School and we won by 15

points. We were very pleased to finish the

tournament with a win and of course the

bronze medal! Thanks to our coaches,

Amy Gardiner and Caleb Harrison and Ms

Fogarty for being camp mum.

Jess Miller Year 10

Senior A South Island Tournament, DunedinWith a tough pool, the first day was a

hard day for all as we had a very narrow

loss to Ashburton and then a loss to

Christchurch Girls’ High School, who

we pushed very hard. The next day we

finished pool play with a big win over

Cashmere High School and then had

another convincing win against Timaru

Girls’ High School. We then had a tough

loss against Burnside High School;

however, we finished the tournament

very strongly with a win over St

Margaret’s College. Overall we finished

11th in the tournament with some tough

games but also strong performances

against some of the top teams in the

South Island. Thanks to our coaches

Rose Walker and Caleb Harrison and

Mr Bradley and Kate Eglinton for their

contribution.

Sarah Brown Year 13

CyclingAt the start of tournament week Andrew

Williamson and I took four determined

and excited girls for the two day Tour of

Cuddon. This is a build-up event heading

into New Zealand Secondary Schools’

Nationals at the end of September. Three

of the girls had raced this tour before,

with Libby Vincent making her debut.

The tour consisted of four stages; a hill

climb, road race, individual time trial

and finally a criterium. The girls’ times

are recorded over the weekend giving

them a general classification and overall

placing. Also featured in this tour is a

Queen of the Hill and Sprint Ace jersey.

We had some fabulous results with

Libby Vincent winning the U20 Hill climb

and the Individual Time Trial, Sarah

Donald 2nd U20 Criterium and Chloe

Jenkins raced hard and aggressively to

take 2nd in U17 Criterium. In all events,

the girls placed in the top 10. Libby

Vincent placed 3rd overall in the U20.

All round a successful weekend

leading up to the NZSS Nationals.

Ava Morrow had a successful

weekend at the Junior Tour of Selwyn.

She won the Time Trial, both of the

32km road races, and placed 2nd in the

Criterium to win the overall U15 girls’

grade.

Anton Mogridge Team Manager

Litolff Cup WinThe team won the 15 km team time trial

in convincing fashion, crossing the finish

line 12 seconds ahead of rivals Villa Maria

College at the Litolff Cup in Tai Tapu in

August.

I can’t believe I am writing this second

edition of Rangi News for 2015! It feels

like I have only just finished the last

edition! Where has Term 2 gone?

As with every term, this one was

busy with a wide variety of both

individual and team achievements

and experiences involving many of

our motivated and talented young

women. Our top Hockey, Netball,

Football, Cycling and Basketball teams

were preparing and fine-tuning for

tournaments, and this was also the

time for semi-finals and finals.

The annual junior sports exchange

with Craighead Diocesan also took place

this term. Hosted this year by Craighead,

nearly 100 girls from Years 7-10 and

coaches travelled to Timaru to represent

Rangi Ruru in netball, hockey and

basketball. This exchange plays a special

part in the sport programme at Rangi

and it was a successful day for the Rangi

junior teams with all but two teams

winning their games.

Sport

Jo FogartyDirector of Sport

Junior Basketball team. Alida Pohatu-Barnes in action

Follow the new Sport Facebook page to keep up to date with Sport at Rangi.

19www.rangiruru.school.nz

SPORT

The new team made up of Sarah

McLeod (Year 12), Libby Vincent (Year

13), Ava Morrow (Year 10) and Millie

Mannering (Year 13) have been through a

year of rebuilding after losing the title to

Christchurch Girl’s High School in 2014.

Head Coach, Marc Prutton says the

girl’s dominance in this race is a credit

to their determination and the hours put

into training and preparation.

“Considering the inexperience of

several members of the team coming into

this season, I am thrilled at the progress

the girls have made in this relatively short

time. This result is a wonderful bonus”,

said Mr Prutton.

Rangi Ruru were back-to-back

champions in 2012 and 2013.

FootballRangi Football has enjoyed a resurgence

this year under the guidance of Head

Coach Xavier Morin and had some

fantastic results both in the Premier

Division One League and during

tournament week.

Rangi embarked upon their high-

stakes National Tournament Qualifier

against Cashmere High at ASB Park, with

the winners guaranteed a much coveted

place at the Lotto Premier Tournament in

Taupo. The sun shone and a nail-biting

match saw the girls win 2-1 and progress

to Nationals for the first time.

Throughout the season, battling

injuries and outside commitments,

the entire squad were required to pull

together to ensure progression through

pool play. Notable victories were

recorded against Cashmere High School,

Lincoln High School and Middleton

Grange, with the team conceding only

four goals in their five pool games, three

at the hands of St Andrew’s College.

Finishing an impressive 2nd allowed the

team to compete for a top six position in

the Premier Division One.

The second half of the season

resulted in two losses and two hard

fought draws, requiring a comprehensive

victory over Christchurch Girls’ High

School to progress to the semi-finals.

An outstanding 3-0 win secured our

spot. Sadly Burnside High School were

too strong in our semi-final fixture and

Rangi faced St Andrew’s College in our

final League match, with 3rd or 4th up

for grabs. A phenomenal team effort and

some individual moments of excellence,

including two goals from Team Captain

Laura Grigg, resulted in an impressive

4-1 victory and 3rd spot in the League,

an improvement of two places on last

season.

The Lotto Premier Tournament was

held in a rather windy and rainy Taupo.

After a loss to Tauranga Girls’, a win over

St Hilda’s, unfortunately Auckland Dio

were simply too strong in the second half

with Rangi suffering a 2-1 defeat.

The following four matches resulted

in three wins for Rangi, including a

resounding 3-0 victory against Hillcrest

in our penultimate match, with two

goals from Vice-Captain Rebecca Wilson,

setting up a grudge match for 21st/22nd

against Marist, to whom Rangi had

lost in last year’s Satellite Tournament

Final in Tauranga. The match was that

much more poignant for our amazing

Year 13 players (Grace Buchan, Laura

Grigg, Phoebe Murray, Tess McKean and

Rebecca Wilson), stepping out in their

Rangi Football colours for the last time.

Pleasingly Rangi dominated play from

the beginning and a lovely goal from

Phoebe Murray secured a 1-0 victory for

the girls.

It was a privilege being away with

such a mature group of girls whose fierce

competitive spirit was only tempered

by their unstinting commitment to fair

play. Our thanks are extended to those

members of the Rangi squad who were

unable to make Tournament, particularly

Una Foyle, whose talents enabled us to

place so highly in our League throughout

the year. Particular thanks also to Ruby

Blake-Manson and special thanks to

Jennifer Leadley in her capacity as

‘Parent Manager’.

Jon Kimber Team Manager

Hockey – 2nd XIOur 2nd XI Hockey team is filled with

strong talented Hockey players and their

skills were on display at the National

2nd XI tournament in Ashburton during

tournament week. Expertly coached

by Grant Edwards and Kate Willis,

and very ably supported by Alison

Summerfield as manager and Mandy

Anderson and Angela Lidstone as school

representatives, the girls had everything

they needed to produce a complete

performance in Ashburton.

Unfortunately they were in a tough

pool and although nearly causing an

upset in their first game against rivals St

Margaret’s, they went down 3-2. Their

second game was also tough against

another close rival Christchurch Girls’

High, with this game producing their

second loss for the day!

As the week went on and the team

developed greater continuity, they went

from strength to strength on the field,

beating Rangitoto (1-0), Auckland Dio (2-

0), Tauranga Girls’ (3-1) and then Auckland

Dio again in the 5th /6th playoff (1-0). A

wonderful way to finish the tournament

and a great result. Having only come

together as the tournament team merely

weeks before the actual tournament

began, these results show not only their

natural talents, but their ability to come

together as a cohesive unit.

The Football team at tournament

20

Hockey – Years 7 & 8Early this year we decided to give

the Years 7 & 8 hockey girls an

opportunity to go to the AIMs Games

in Tauranga. Realising the cost per

girl to travel to Tauranga and stay in

motel accommodation for the week,

the parents met and decided on three

fundraising ideas. The first idea evolved

under Aaron Lee’s guidance as the girls

helped with roasting, grinding and

packaging coffee, including designing

their own labels. They managed to sell

about 350 packages of coffee.

The second venture was for the

parents to sell wine which also proved

profitable.

The Festive Dinner was the third

idea, so once more, Aaron, along with

Jen Kean and Julie Willimann, set

about making it a reality. Contacts were

valuable as all the food and wine was

donated, and local businesses donated

vouchers for the silent auction. With the

parents help the Te Koraha staffroom was

cleared and transformed into a beautiful

dining hall. The girls were involved in

preparing the food during the day and

serving the meal at night, under the

guidance of Donna Lee. Over $12,000

was raised which was an amazing

outcome.

The group fundraising has meant

the team has bonded well on and off

the turf. The girls have practised under

the guidance of coach, Kelvin Reid,

and returned from tournament with a

creditable 11th placing.Helen Joblin

NetballThe strong presence of Rangi Ruru

teams throughout the grades at the

Quarter Finals for Christchurch Netball

was a positive sign for Rangi netball, with

teams from U19 to U13 taking part. Well

done to the Rangi Ruru B, G, I, J, K, N, O

and S teams. Four of the teams won their

Quarter Final games – B, G, O and S - and

went on to play a Semi-Final on the same

day. Special acknowledgement to the

G team who won their semi and played

Papanui High School ‘A’ in the final of the

U17 Division 2 competition the following

weekend. This was a fiercely contested

battle which was won by Rangi in the

last moments of the game, where the

girls kept their composure under much

pressure – and atrocious conditions!

Congratulations to the team and Year

13 coaches, Henrietta Murray and Tayla

Reid, for all their hard work this season.

Mention should also be made of the

Rangi Ruru E team who played in the

final of the Wednesday competition

versus Linwood Mixed. The result didn’t

go our way but the team played some

great netball throughout the season to be

in the position to contest the final.

The Junior South Island Tournament

is played each year in the July holidays.

Each team plays eight games over three

days so to win six out of eight games

is a good result. However, tournament

rankings often become about one game

which is the difference between making

the top 16 or bottom 16; or the top 8 and

the bottom 8. This was the case for the

10A netball team at the Tournament this

year. The team played some fabulous

netball but two losses was all it took to

put them in 13th position. This doesn’t

accurately reflect the positive netball

these girls played, nor the gains they have

made this season as players and a team,

but is a reality of tournament netball.

SPORT

AIMS tournament

Senior A netball team – looking ready to South Island Tournament in gear sponsored by the Shoe Clinic Riccarton

Specialising in Pilates, Barre, and DanceFit classes.

Pilates mat classes now being held at:Fitzgerald Dance Studio Rangi Ruru Girls' School

Thursdays 6pm, Saturdays 10am.

New courses commencing 17 October. Visit www.enforme.nz for more info.

21www.rangiruru.school.nz

The 9A team had a more challenging

tournament, with two wins, four losses

and two draws, to finish 29th. The real

promise of this team was shown when

they went on to play Craighead in a junior

sports exchange in August and won

31-25. Craighead had finished 8th at the

junior tournament a month earlier.

This year the Senior South Island

Tournament was held in Timaru. The

team had a great week of netball with

more wins than losses but again it was

two unfortunate losses that put the team

down the rankings. Playing Waimea

College for 23rd/24th place, the team

had to dig deep to win, coming back in

the last quarter to finish the tournament

(and for some their last game in the Rangi

dress) on a positive note.

For both the senior and junior teams

competing in these tournaments, the

final rankings don’t always reflect all the

hard work, commitment and effort that

a team has put in during the season. It

shouldn’t always be just about the end

result. The skills that are learnt by taking

part in tournaments – in fact, sport

in general - are lifelong skills; how to

cope under pressure, how to deal with

frustrating losses and stay measured in

the face of success.

Last year we commented on three

key ingredients for the future success

of netball at Rangi Ruru – player

development, strong coaches and player

commitment. Player development

is always at forefront of mind and

opportunities to support and encourage

girls at all levels of netball are essential.

Conditioning is a now a core part of

our netball programme and this year

Ross Kennedy was contracted to deliver

this aspect of player development. We

hope to run the ‘HeadStart’ programme

established by Anna Thompson and

Hayley Saunders for juniors in the coming

term and will be targeting players with

individual programmes for off-season

development. A new aspect of the 2016

programme is the intention to run a

wider training squad session once a week

for our top teams. This will be beneficial

to player development as well as ensuring

that our coaches are on the same page in

terms of targeting areas that need work.

Player commitment is an ingredient

we need to keep mixing. There is an

expectation that all players – regardless

of the team they are in – are committed.

Whether they sign up to be in a social

team or are in the A team, it is expected

that they turn up, attend all trainings, do

the additional practices their coach(es)

ask of them and work hard to be the best

they can be for their team.

Each season we are grateful for the

support we get to help deliver netball at

Rangi Ruru – from the girls and extended

whanau who volunteer to umpire each

week to the parents who manage or

coach teams; to the coaches who are

so invested in supporting our girls to

become the best they can be and to the

parents who support their daughters

each week on the sideline. Thank you for

being part of netball at Rangi.

Finally, congratulations to Kate Boyd

and Isabella Evans from the Senior ‘A’ team

who were named in the Christchurch

Netball Centre U15 teams this season.Mandy Anderson

OrienteeringThis is the first time we have entered

two teams with several girls being

new to the sport and the results for the

Canterbury School Championships,

held in September, were fabulous. All

the girls did brilliantly. They showed

great patience and kept clear heads as

they worked their way methodically

around some quite challenging courses.

Everybody had clear rounds which was

important for our overall team totals.

The results were:

Sprint Course (held at University of Canterbury)– Marisol Hunter 1st in Senior

Girls’ Championship, Siena Rapley 3rd

in Intermediate Girls’ Championship,

Lucia Rapley 2nd in Junior Girls’

Championship, Olivia Mander 1st in

Intermediate Girls’ Standard, Amelia

Bryden 3rd in Intermediate Girls’

Standard, Meredith Seeto 1st in Junior

Girls’ Standard and Kate Edwards 2nd in

Junior Girls’ Standard.

Distance Course (held at Halswell Quarry) Marisol Hunter 2nd in Senior

Girls’ Championship, Siena Rapley 3rd

in Intermediate Girls’ Championship,

Lucia Rapley 2nd in Junior Girls’

Championship, Olivia Mander 1st in

Intermediate Girls’ Standard, Amelia

Bryden 2nd in Intermediate Girls’

Standard and Kate Edwards 1st Junior

Girls’ Standard.

Overall, both the Intermediate and

Junior Girls’ teams won their respective

divisions in the teams events.Tuula Rapley Parent Supporter

SPORT

Rangi Ruru G team – Winners U17 Division 2, Christchurch Netball Centre

life & disability

A sincere thank you on behalf of all Winter tournament teams, to the Mainland Foundation and to the Rangi Foundation for their financial support of the travel costs in getting these teams to their respective tournaments.

22

SPORT

Further Congratulations

Sarah McLeod and Gabi Newman won the U19 team race,

Chloe Jenkins 7th in the U19 Girls’ Individual race and

Isabella Carter and Ava Morrow 2nd in the U16 team’s

event at the Canterbury Secondary Schools’ Duathlon

Championships.

Una Foyle has just been named in the NZ U20 Women’s

Football team. This team will travel to Tonga later in the year

to attempt to qualify for the next U20 World Cup.

Brittany Wang has been named in the NZ Trampoline

team to compete at the World Age Group Trampoline

Championships in Denmark in December. She has been

selected for all three disciplines, Trampoline, Double Mini

Trampoline (DMT) and Synchronised Trampoline.

Charlotte Arthur has just been named in the Junior Black

Sticks Squad and has been invited to attend the Future Black

Sticks training session in October.

It’s almost time to put the oars down...Current and former Rangi Rowers and parents:

Join us to celebrate Rex Farrelly’s (almost) 30 years involvement in rowing at Rangi Ruru.Thursday 22 October, 5.30-7.30pmGibson Centre, Rangi Ruru Girls’ SchoolRSVP by 19 October to Charlotte Montgomery cvjmontgomery@xtra.co.nzPlease say on your RSVP whether you are a former rower or a parent. If you have any photos we would love it if you could attach a copy. Drinks and nibbles provided.

Kate (coach), Ashleigh, Sophie & Francesca, Rangi Ruru Women’s Epee Team

Ashleigh Goh competed in the U17 Australian Nationals

during the July holidays, and was selected for the New Zealand

Women’s Epee A team, which finished in 3rd position. Ashleigh

also competed in the Fencing Mid-South Secondary Schools’

Championships, where she finished 1st in the Women’s Epee.

23www.rangiruru.school.nz

SPORT

EquestrianInternational Riders!Horse-riding is an activity many of our international students

have not experienced before, and the girls are loving it. For

some their very first ride is also the first time they have

ever actually touched a horse. Yu had her very first “horse

experience” this term and after her ride said “I find I have fallen

in love with horse riding!“

It has been exciting to see these girls get to know and feel

confident around such large animals, and to develop a different

view of the world from the top of a horse. The girls learn to ride

at different paces [speeds], play games, jump small obstacles

and take part in group activities and informal competitions.

Many of these girls live in the Boarding House, and share their

experiences and enthusiasm with their friends, encouraging

them to join in the sport too.

Claire said “Before I came to New Zealand, I had found Rangi

Ruru not only provided students with the best education, but

also an excellent equestrian course. I feel excited because in my

opinion, horse riding is a fantastic thing that we can work closely

with animals and enjoy a high speed exercise”.

For Hyewon, “Riding is a quite unusual thing to do in Korea,

not common for girls to do and I thought it’s amazing how all

the girls here in NZ ride horses and are not afraid of them. One

big reason why I started riding was because it was such a good

opportunity for me to communicate with horses and people. I

just want to tell you that for me riding was a first opportunity to

communicate with animals and I have really enjoyed it.”

“There are no chances for me to have riding lessons in

Thailand”, Meena said. When she came to Rangi and found out

that there are horse riding lessons available, she felt very pleased

and was so excited about it.

“I am really happy to do horse riding and I love it, just like

I love horses”, says Bing. “Riding horses makes me feel good,

especially when the horse is cantering, it makes me feel like I am

flying, free and intensely warm-blooded and excited. Horses are

really cute animals. Horses are my friends. Riding them is not

like driving a car, they are alive and have their own intelligence

and thinking. When I sit on the back of the horse the things I am

working on are to try to ‘talk’ and be friends with the horse by

using body language and nonverbal cues.”

Bing’s parents value what it does for their daughter and

think it’s a graceful sport, very good exercise and helps develop

understanding and knowledge, to work with horses. Most

importantly, to live with nature and to adore an animal. While

her mother is very proud that Bing can trot and canter, and that

she has taken up the challenge of riding, which would not be

possible in China. Her family members are keen to learn as well.

The school is proud of what these girls have already

achieved.

Pippa Young Director of Equestrian

Yu (Claire) Liu’s first time ever on a horse!

Bing Han

24

CELEBRATING OUR COMMUNITY

The Extraordinary Things You DoThe Global Project CommitteeThe Global Project Committee is excited

to be collaborating with World Vision and

Amanda Cooper-Davies (Class of 1978),

to help bring hope and happiness to

families in developing countries through

the project, Hope: Recipes For Life. World

Vision needs our help in raising funds,

so we are giving you an opportunity

to get on board and make this project

amazing. Its success will have a positive

impact on numerous lives. The Global

Project Committee is planning many

entertaining and fun projects for the

remainder of 2015 and into 2016,

including movie nights and a formal

dinner. Keep an eye out on Ultranet and

your emails for further details about

all the events and fundraisers. You

and the Rangi community can make a

real difference – you just need to get

involved.

Hope – Recipes for Life AMANDA COOPER-DAVIES (1978) and KATIE PARISH (NEE O’BRIEN) (1992)

Purga was a malnourished girl

in southern India.

Her father is blind

and his business

was struggling.

He couldn’t afford

enough food for

his family. Two Rangi old girls, Amanda

Cooper-Davies and Katie Parish, recently

visited Purga’s community collecting

material for a book they are producing

for World Vision New Zealand.

Amanda is producer of the book and

Katie from Little Sister Films, is using

video skills she began learning at Rangi to

produce video content. Using augmented

reality, smart phone and ipad users will

scan a code in the book and view online

video content.

The book will be out in time for

Christmas next year.

Girls from each year group on

the Global Project committee are

enthusiastically fund raising to cover the

production costs. This includes page

sponsors that means when the book goes

on sale, 100% of the sale price goes to help

children like Purga.

Megan Ryburn (2001)Julie Moor & Mel L’Eef met up with past

student Megan Ryburn during the recent

London season of Passengers. Whilst at

school Megan became interested in Latin

America through studying Spanish. She

says “we were taught by the inspirational

Leslie Stewart. With Ms Moor, he helped

set up an exchange to a school in

Santiago, Chile, which I was lucky enough

to participate in with two others when

we were in Year 12. I fell in love with

the country, and I’m still great friends

with the Rangi girls I went on exchange

with, and keep in close touch with the

Chilean girls who were our host sisters.”

Megan was fascinated by the culture,

but also quite shocked at the poverty

and inequality, and wanted to return at

some stage to learn more about Chile and

perhaps do some voluntary work.

After her undergraduate study,

Megan moved over to Chile to improve

her Spanish and teach ESOL, and to be

with her now husband Pablo whom she

met in Christchurch. She also started

volunteering with an NGO working

with migrants over there; this followed

on from her work in Christchurch,

volunteering with Refugee Services

Aotearoa New Zealand.

A migrant herself, Megan moved to

New Zealand when she was nine, and

she says “My experience of migration was

very privileged; we were moving from

one prosperous country to another… and

yet it was still challenging to adjust to life

in a new country. In my late teens, I began

to think how incredibly fortunate I was

to have experienced such an easy move

across the globe, and to wonder how it

must feel to migrate in dire economic

circumstances, because you feel you

have no other choice, because you fear

for your life. And then to get there and

often be so vilified and stigmatised.”

Megan was inspired by the work

being done by the NGO community

and sought to study more about Latin

America, and particularly migration

from and within the continent. She was

awarded a scholarship to do an M.Phil in

Latin American Studies at the University

of Cambridge in England which she

completed in 2012. Continuing with

her studies, Megan is almost finished

her PhD at Queen Mary University of

London. Megan’s PhD is focused on

migration within the global South “as

almost half of international migration

happens within the South (i.e. between

‘developing’ countries) but there’s very

little known about it,” specifically Bolivian

migration to Chile. “I’m really hoping

my work will shed a bit of light on the

labour exploitation, discrimination,

and difficulties accessing housing

and healthcare that they face, but also

highlight some of the beautiful cultural

practices they’re bringing to the country

and the role of NGOs like the one I

worked with in supporting migrants.”

Megan hopes to finish her Ph.D in

October, but in the meantime is busy

with her new position as a Fellow in

Human Geography at the London School

of Economics and Political Science. In

her last year at Rangi Ruru, Megan was

Head of Culture, and she also won The

Davey Cup for Creative Writing on three

occasions. Megan was also awarded the

Rangi Ruru Faletoese Cup in 2005 and the

PTA Prize for the Best All Round Girl in the

School; many would say she is living up

to the award, and the Rangi values.

25www.rangiruru.school.nz

Aeila Moody, Grandmother to Sarah

Hobson (Class of 2000), attended Rangi

Ruru from 1942-1945. Now 85 with her

70s on reunion just around the corner,

she remembers with tremendous

fondness her time at Rangi and the

friends she made. As a huge supporter

of Rangi, Aeila wrote the following poem

in 2010 which not only is beautifully

written, but is a snapshot in the School’s

history.

Published here is a small excerpt

from Aeila’s poem. Please visit www.

rangiruru.school.nz/category/principals-

blog for the full poem. Rangi Ruru Girls’

School thanks Sarah, Aeila’s gorgeous

grand-daughter, for providing the poem.

Aeila Newton (on the right) and her sister Barbara in Rangi school uniform (1942).

CELEBRATING OUR COMMUNITY

Aeila Moody

A Rangi GirlBy Aeila Moody

When Amberley House went on the blink our parents had to think and think.

Rangi Ruru was the school they chose, one certain thing it would not close!

I was so small with tiny feet, quite untidy, not so neat.

A scaredy-cat I guess that’s true, but Rangi showed me what to do.

The girls were great, we all were friends - they tidied up the loose ends.

The Rangi sports were quite a lark; we held them then at Rugby Park.

The day we thought was quite a whizz, the College boys got in quite a tizz!

Our skirts were short, our legs were fat - imagine what they thought of that…

The swimming pool it served us well, I’m sure the new one will have some

tales to tell.

We all had midnight feasts in the cellar, in the dark with not a fella.

Things tasted awful, saveloys were raw, and we thought it against the law!

The dentist was our biggest fear; the matron took us year by year.

We caught the tram at number nine, and then we returned for tea on time.

We all felt safe and well looked after, simple pleasures and much laughter.

The ‘Rangi Tangi’ was our last fling, a lovely meal and songs to sing.

Two girls they acted and made up rhymes to poke fun at leavers of past times.

The Gibson days were like no other, taught us to care for one another.

Now I am old and grey, not blue; but still a Rangi girl through and through.

An excerpt from

26

RROGA

Helen Tait

GET MORE INVOLVEDThe Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association (RROGA)

needs you. If you would like to get more involved

in RROGA, be a Friend of the RROGA Committee or

have a skill which you think would be valuable to the

Committee, please phone Jo Dodgshun 03 355 5308

or email dodgshun@ihug.co.nz

Annual Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association Lecture: Getting the Most out of Your Travel – An Evening with Helen TaitFriday, 21 August 2015

Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association

was delighted to present alumna

and travel guide guru, Helen Tait, as

speaker for this year’s Annual Rangi

Ruru Old Girls’ Association Lecture.

Using her significant travel

experience, Helen was able to

present different possible options

to help attendees think about

and choose the very best travel

options. What to look for in a travel

company, what to expect from agents, whether to inoculate,

whether to choose a guided tour or go it alone were just some

of the discussion topics.

Helen has been guiding with several companies for many

years and has led tours in every continent (except Antarctica

– still on her bucket list!) A lovely slide show of her own

photographs rolled throughout the lecture with plenty of sights

to spark the travel bug. As well as being an active member of

the Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association Committee, Helen is the

Secretary of ProGuides, the national tour guides’ organisation.

The Annual Rangi Ruru Girls’ School Ball Proudly brought to you by RROGA

Preparations for the Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association

(RROGA) 2015 Leavers’ Ball are well underway. The band is

booked, the food is ordered and the theming is being prepared.

Rumour has it that many Year 13s have booked their make-

up sessions, bought their shoes and confirmed their dress

colour. It is also rumoured that a few thoughtful ones have got

themselves a holiday job to help pay for

the extravaganza.

With the view to trying to keep

it real and help inform students, Jo

Dodgshun, RROGA President, will speak

with Year 13s about what to expect

during the lead up to the event and

on the night. She will talk about the

important things like ticketing, seating,

regulations relating to alcohol, The

Presentation and, most importantly,

the pitfalls of wearing high-heels. She

will also endeavour to answer any

questions students may have.

Friday, 4 December, 7.00pm Airforce Museum

RROGAAlumnae events and celebrations

RROGA Luncheon in DunedinJo Dodgshun and Rachel Vavasour had the delightful

privilege in attending the Annual Otago|Southland Alumnae

Dinner in Mosgiel. The company was full of chatter, the food was

delicious and the snow fell. Jo updated those present on School

and Alumnae happenings. Thank you so much for having us.

If you are having an event with a Rangi Ruru Alumnae

flavour let Rachel Vavasour know. She and the Committee would

be delighted to assist in any way possible.

2014 Leavers’ Ball

27www.rangiruru.school.nz

RROGA

Book Launch Petals and Bullets – Dorothy Morris: New Zealand Nurse in the Spanish Civil War by Mark Derby

Saturday, 5 September 2015 It was with tremendous

pride that the Rangi Ruru

Old Girls’ Association with

the School, hosted the New

Zealand launch of Petals and

Bullets – Dorothy Morris:

New Zealand Nurse in the

Spanish Civil War.

After attending Rangi

Ruru from 1917, Dorothy

Morris trained as a nurse at

Christchurch Hospital. She

was only 36 when she left for

England and one year later

began her remarkable and

pioneering work in Spain.

Petals and Bullets is based on the vivid, detailed and evocative

letters Dorothy sent from Spain and other European countries as

she served firstly in the Spanish Civil War and later in World War

2. Her descriptions of the extraordinary conditions under which

she served as a nurse in hospitals supporting the Republicans,

followed by taking up the directorship of a Quaker-funded

children’s hospital in Murcia, Southern Spain. As Franco’s

forces advanced, she fled to France and directed Quaker relief

services for tens of thousands of Spanish refugees. During the

Second World War she was an advocate for the rights of women

working in the munitions factories and later worked with the

huge numbers of homeless refugees in the Middle East and

Germany.

It was an absolute delight to welcome three speakers to

the launch. Dorothy’s god-daughter, Jane Taylor, spoke of the

personal and family life of Dorothy, giving a real insight to her

strength of character and her dedication to serving others. The

audience certainly gained an appreciation of Dorothy’s high

intelligence and sense of humour.

The author, Mark Derby, spoke of the process of writing

Petals and Bullets. His meticulous attention to detail in his

research and his admiration for Dorothy and her work, became

very obvious as he talked. Mark is an experienced and well-

known author and historian and he has certainly crafted a

remarkable book about a remarkable woman.

Finally, with a doctorate in New Zealand history, Megan

Woods was able to place Dorothy Morris into context with other

extraordinary women, not only in New Zealand’s history, but in

international history as well.

The book launch was an inspirational afternoon. It felt

significant that it was held in The Gibson Centre, a facility

named after several other pioneering women, and we all were

left in no doubt about what Dorothy would be doing if she were

alive today, given the refugee crisis in Europe.

Mark Derby, Author, signs copies for guests

Exhibition – Rangi Ruru Alumnae Served in WarThe recent book launch of Petals and Bullets sets the

scene for the Rangi Ruru Museum and Gallery’s first significant

exhibition – to open November, 2015. As New Zealand

remembers its involvement in the World Wars, a display of

alumnae who served mostly as nurses, will be prepared by the

Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association Committee and assisted by

Year 12 history students.

28

Keep in touch onlineThe Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association Newsletter is a great way to keep up-to-date with upcoming events and celebrating news of alumnae and current students, but are you aware of the other ways of communication the School and the Association are using? We encourage you to LIKE the recently launched Rangi Ruru Alumnae page on Facebook so that you can remain connected with Rangi family/whanau.

Useful links for Rangi Ruru Alumnae:https://www.facebook.com/RangiRuruAlumnaeLinkedIn – Rangi Ruru Girls’ School and the Rangi Ruru Professionals Club

Update your contact details with the school here:http://www.rangiruru.school.nz/our-community/ rangi-ruru-alumnae

Rachel Vavasour RROGA

Administrator

To express an interest in being involved in any of the annual tournaments

and competitions, please contact Rachel Vavasour, RROGA Administrator: email

r.vavasour@rangiruru.school.nz or telephone +64 3 983 3782.

To qualify you MUST have a Rangi Ruru Connection: past pupil, past/current

staff, parent of past or current pupils and friends of the School.

2015 Reunions Save the Date

2015 REUNION6/7 November 2015

It is your School Reunion this year if you were in Form 3

in 1945, 1955, 1965, 1975, 1985, 1995.

The Reunion co-ordinators are:

1995 Rebecca Smith

rebeccasmith0881@gmail.com 021 827 990

1985 Kelli Scott

scott_kelli@hotmail.com 027 338 5599

1975 Hayley Stewart

hayleypstewart@yahoo.com 021 411 113

1965 Marg Box (Meares)

margbox@icloud.com 03 208 3483

1955 Ann Willis (Free)

john.annwillis@xtra.co.nz 0274 536 707

1945 Rachel Vavasour

r.vavasour@rangiruru.school.nz 03 983 3782

2016 Tournament Dates Confirmed

Tennis Tournament: Wednesday, 10 February 2016

Bowls Tournament: February – RACHEL TO PROVIDE DATES BY 25

SEPTEMBER

Golf Tournament: Friday, 18 March 2016

Bridge Tournament: Tuesday, 24 May 2016.

Put the dates in your diary and get your leave

applications in now.

RROGA

29www.rangiruru.school.nz

The Parent Teacher Association at Rangi Ruru have been busy

planning two school community events – the first is the annual

PTA Barn Dance – a chance for fathers and daughters to enjoy

the opportunity to participate in a fun evening together.

Our other focus is towards fundraising as the PTA like to

be able to support the school by providing funds for extra

resources to enhance the learning opportunities for all students.

We hope to see you at our major social and fundraising

event for 2015; the Rangi Ruru Golf Tournament on Sunday 18

October. This is being organised by a small group of the PTA

and it will be a fun event for all, as family and friends can play

a round of golf together and then enjoy dinner and drinks in

the club-house. We really appreciate your support and hope

that you will attend. We would also love some help with prize

donations for the various competitions during the event. Please

contact Sara Philip at 0274 555 432 or sara@bakerboys.co.nz if

you would like more information or are able to help.

We hope to see you there - we value your support.

News from the PTA

PTA NEWS

PTA Golf Tournament

Sunday 18 OctOber 2015 • ruSSley GOlf clubticketS On Sale frOm www.ranGiruru.SchOOl.nz/StOre

Join Rangi Ruru’s PTA for our major event for 2015.

•Teams of 4 ($260 per team)•Ambrosecompetition(suitableforallgolfingabilities)•Large prize table with lots of fun competitions

Enquiries about teams or sponsorship please contact Sara Philip on P: 0274 555 432 or E: sara@bakerboys.co.nz

Sponsor a hole $300

30

This term we have welcomed many new

families to our preschool whanau. The

weeks are certainly getting busier, but

there are still a few spaces available for

new family and friends.

We have said farewell to several

friends, off on the new adventure that

is Primary School. One of the ways

we support the transition to school

process, is by visiting Elmwood School

and experiencing life in the new entrant

classroom and playground. These visits

are also wonderful opportunities to catch

up with friends who have already made

the move.

As a team we are always reflecting

on what is occurring here at Rangi

and the learning outcomes available to

the children. These positive outcomes

are made so much stronger due to

the amazing support and partnership

we have with our families. It is

extremely important to us that we use

the aspirations and expectations of

our families to guide the learning

opportunities, experiences and outings

that occur here.

There have been numerous

highlights this term, but two of the best

would have to be our Teddy Bear’s Picnic,

and a Double Decker outing to Arion

Farm Park. Teddy Bears of all shapes and

sizes (and a few imposters) spent the

day with us. It was a day full of laughter,

games and stories about bears and picnic

food treats! Our amazing full centre

outing to Arion Farm Park was made

even more special by the spectacular

support of so many parent helpers. For

many of our children it was their first

outing on a bus – and what a bus it was!

A London Route-master double decker.

Climbing up the stairs and looking out

over the cars was such a treat, as we

ventured all the way out to McLeans

Island. At the farm park, spring was in full

flight; with so many baby animals to see

and touch, it was hard to know where

to start. A fun filled time of learning

was had by all and the fun continued as

we hopped back on the bus for home,

remembering to swap over so that our

friends who had travelled on the bottom

got to experience travelling on the top

level too.

We cannot finish the term without

mentioning the amazing optional

activities that we are fortunate to be

able to provide here at Rangi. Music

with Sandy on Mondays, Playball with

Coach Ryan on Tuesdays and Dance

on Thursday with Hyde. These three

activities add depth to our programme

and also compliment the wonderful

environment for learning that the school

facilities, such as the gymnasium, library

and science block provide for us.

Our little feet (and big voices) are

certainly a part of daily life within the

school grounds!

Warm regards,Linda Scanlan Centre Manager

Preschool News

Share the joy of childhood46 Rhodes Street, MerivaleT:

03 983 3757

E:

preschool@rangiruru.ac.nzW:

www.preschool.rangiruru.ac.nz

We invite you and your child along for a visit, to familiarise yourself with our nurturing environment, welcoming community, wonderful teachers and fantastic educational programme.

• Rangi Ruru Preschool is a small community based centre for children aged 2 to 5 years

• Operating 8.15am – 4.30pm

• Located in the quiet and attractive grounds of Rangi Ruru Girls’ School

• Offering 20 Hours ECE

• 100% qualified and registered teachers

• Educational programme to meet the needs of your child

• Respectful and nurturing care.

Rangi Ruru Preschool

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PRESCHOOL NEWS

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Cultural Concert

59 Hewitts Road, Christchurch 8014Phone +64 3 983 3700

office@rangiruru.school.nzwww.rangiruru.school.nz