Articles by Sally Sumner

The impact of COVID-19 on our economy is yet to be seen in its entirety and may not be for some time. Fortunately for Franklin and Papakura areas, the sense of community is strong, and I believe it won’t be long before many businesses are back in full swing and it is up to all of us in the community to support them. The expected move to Level 2, hopefully mid-May will see…

Immensely talented local portrait artist Logan Moffat is undaunted by the postponement of his exhibition ‘The Mind is the Portrait’ due to the COVID-19 outbreak. He sees it merely as a reason to continue working on his portraits and to evolve what he knows as consciousness painting. A former student at ACG Strathallan, a graduate of Elam School of Fine Arts, with a BFA Honours, …

It’s hard to believe the events that have transpired in the last few weeks, but happen they have and as we enter another week in our bubbles, our daily routines are very much different than they were a few weeks ago. We go out for ‘essential supplies’, exercise in a local space keeping 2m from the nearest walker, check in with the official COVID-19 information available daily…

The revelling to bring in the New Year is a time-honoured tradition, and I am sure has been played out again this year. As we head into 2020 this year, it also marks the start of a new decade or does it? In recent years there has been debate about when a decade begins and ends. For some people, the next decade will begin Jan. 1, 2020, and end Dec. 31, 2029. For others, it won’t…

If you are looking for something to do as the weather gets warmer that gets you and the family out and about then you can’t go past the new Five Summits Walk and Bike Trail and accompanying map that has recently been developed in Pukekohe. A gift to the community from the Pukekohe Tramping Club for its 50th anniversary year, the Five Summit’s trail is an amazing near half…

The Christmas season is a time to celebrate being with family and friends. It can however sometimes isolate members of our community, especially our senior members, who are without a strong network around them or who’s usual network of friends return to their own families outside of the area. For a number of years now, locals, Amanda Mitchell and Carole Inight in conjunction with…

One of the main headlines this morning on the New Zealand news sites that I frequent each day reads “Why you won’t see Judith Collins nude this summer.” Another screams “'Sick' life-sized doll suggests scary future for office workers.” I suppose it makes a change from the 20 or so stories about the Rugby World cup, however it makes me somewhat embarrassed for my own profession…

It’s hard to imagine that behind the wide smile, bright eyes and amazing mop of dark brown curls sitting across from me, is a young man who in recent years has struggled with his own mental health. For Caleb Ihaia though it is a reality. Despite chatting confidently and articulately today about his recent experiences walking the Inca Trail, to raise awareness and funds for the…

I’m writing this on deadline day, we print in four hours, and someone in their wisdom has decided to waterblast the office roof, think bees, many, many bees all angry and upset, disturbed and buzzing and desperate to get into your head. That is what is sounds like, not very convivial to last minute creative morsels for heroic headlines and inspiring sentences. It did though get…

The feedback we had on last month’s Franklin Photo News story was amazing. What an incredible feat to scan all the pages of a magazine that 40 years ago was the social media of the day. The stories that have flown in about the people and events that are featured in the magazine have been both poignant, fascinating and humorous. Imagine my delight then, when one of the original…

As someone who has lived in rural Franklin for 20 years, Blackhawk Law Limited’s sole director, Kim-Shiree Grant, has seen immense change in the area. Kim-Shiree is not only familiar with the local farming scene, she's also aware of the way the use of rural properties are changing as Auckland city spreads its tentacles further south with rural properties quickly becoming zoned…

For the ninth year running ex pat Yorkshire people have gathered at the Pukekohe Cosmopolitan club during July for a series of traditional Yorkshire Day events. The event, which attracted 120 people this year, was attended by Bill Cashmore the Deputy Mayor of Auckland along with Andy Baker a member of the Franklin local Board. It commenced with the ceremonial arrival of the…

In early October, this year at the Trusts Arena in Auckland, the National Gymnastics Championships will once again bring talented children from all over New Zealand to participate and compete over 5 days. It really is the BIG event in the gymnastics calendar and involves Artistic, Rhythmic, Trampoline, Tumble & Aerobic disciplines. Franklin Gymsports have 9 children that have…

Temperatures may be dropping as we head for our two coldest months of the year, but things at elocal are hotting up! It always a pleasure to work every month with our local businesses and community groups and highlight all the great things about them and this month is no exception. From graphic designers, building companies, and barn door crafters, July elocal showcases some of…

The second Sunday of May is when New Zealand traditionally celebrates Mother’s Day. Its modern-day origins come from an American celebration created by Anna Jarvis in 1908 that became an official U.S. holiday in 1914. Interestingly, Jarvis would later denounce the holiday’s commercialisation and spent the latter part of her life trying to remove it from the calendar. …

New Zealand is still awash with grief in the aftermath of the killings in Christchurch that left 50 New Zealanders dead and many more injured. Our image overseas while tarnished as a safe haven, has been boosted by our Prime Minister who has presented the face of the nation as one that embellishes an inclusive spirit, one that welcomes all to the shores of New Zealand to start a…

One of the things I love best about being involved with elocal is the number of people that call in or email us to tell us about how much they liked reading the last edition and when will the next one be available. The number of calls from outside the area has increased somewhat as our regular readers pass on their own copies to friends, families or neighbours who have moved…

In years gone by, it has been a rite of passage for many New Zealand Kids to watch mesmerised trackside, Hot dog on a stick in hand, while custom and hand built road cars race round an oval dirt track, in all or nothing, guts and glory type racing that is Dirt Track speedway. New Zealanders have had a love affair with speedway of all kinds and Dirt Track racing at the Meremere…

It’s hard to believe that as you folks read this month’s edition of elocal it will be February, Kids will be back at school, the humidity will be full on, and we will have endured another year of who went, who didn’t and who did and didn’t do what at Waitangi. We have had lots of letters in over the holidays and requests from people wanting to hear more about certain topics, so…

Hard to imagine the end of yet another year is upon us and what a year it has been. Media seem to depict a gloomy picture, with house prices set to drop, rates to rise and business confidence at a nine year low, as companies worry about lack of direction in government policies, higher costs, softer demand and weaker profits. Nurses, teachers, support staff all have flexed their…