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Our
upcoming
events
2012
Thurs, 24 May 2012
Annual General Meeting
Thistle Marble Arch Hotel
Click here for registration
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Come
to the AGM on 24 May 2012
We
will be holding our
Annual General Meeting on 24 May 2012 at the Thistle Marble Arch Hotel
on 24 May 2012 from 6.30pm. All paid-up members of the New
Zealand Society are welcome to attend (at no cost), and you will have
the opportunity of hearing the reports of the President and our
Honorary Treasurer for the 2011/12 year. You will also have
the opportunity of voting for members of the General Committee (who
undertake the day-to-day running of the New Zealand Society).
This is your opportunity to be heard and to get involved.
The official Notice of the AGM can be downloaded by clicking here,
and Nomination Forms for membership of the General Committee can be
downloaded by clicking here.
Please register your attendance via our Ticketing system so that we can
make the appropriate accommodation requirements in the hotel's
conference facilities. We look forward to seeing you there.
ANZAC
Day commemoration evening at
the Penthouse
Having
braved the wind
and rain at the Dawn Ceremony, the memorial at the Cenotaph and after
the Service at Westminster Abbey, we were delighted that the evening of
25 April was relatively fine for our ANZAC commemoration at New Zealand
House. Ross Becker (of Becker Fraser Photos, Christchurch)
captured one of the most glorious sights over London during the
afternoon while we were setting up for the evening. Ross
Becker and Moira Ross had been interviewing a number of the key people
who had contributed over the last year and a half to help the
fundraising effort for the Canterbury Earthquake appeal and Ross took
this wonderful photo of a rainbow over London: click here
(High resolution copies of this can be purchased with the proceeds
going to the Earthquake Appeal.)
During the evening, we had a full house who enjoyed some great Kiwi
hospitality, while at the same time remembering the fallen, those who
sacrificed, and those who were left behind in the wars over the last
century. ANZAC Day is the national day of remembrance for New
Zealanders and Australians who fought side by side for the first time,
and is both a day of commemoration and celebration for our two
nations.
We raised a record amount in our charity raffle, the proceeds of which
will go entirely to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
They do a remarkable job ensuring that the 1.7 million people who died
in the two world wars will never be forgotten, and caring for
cemeteries and memorials at 23,000 locations, in 153 countries.
Our thanks go to all those who attended and made this a great and
memorable evening.
Kent
Gardner named UK New Zealander
of the Year 2012
The
Award recognises
the outstanding contribution that a New Zealand or British national has
made in presenting a positive image of New Zealand in the United
Kingdom. Kent Gardner, the Chief Executive of Evans Randall,
received the 2012 Award in recognition of his fundraising efforts
towards those affected by the Canterbury earthquake (and aftershocks)
and, in particular, the creation of the “Step Up 4
Christchurch” event, a charity stair run up the 1,037 steps
to the top of the 180 metre tall ‘Gherkin’ office
tower at 30 St. Mary Axe in the City of London. This event
alone raised £325,000.
Waitangi
Day Charity Dinner
On
Friday, 10 February 2012 the New Zealand Society hosted the Waitangi
Day Charity Dinner at Plaisterers' Hall in the City of
London.
We
were honoured to have esteemed guests including HE Mr Derek Leask, the
New Zealand High Commissioner, Past Master Stephen Strakerfrom the
Girdlers' Company and Mr Chris Myers, the UK & European
Regional
Manager for Air New Zealand. Hilary Timmins, the well-known
New
Zealand television personality (including for 'It's in the Bag' and the
live Lotto draws) was our wonderful MC. There was a wonderful
welcome and performance by Ngati Ranana London Maori Club, and our
guest speaker for the evening was the award-winning Kiwi
comedian
and compere, Jarred Christmas.
The sparkling wine reception was very kindly sponsored by Brancott
Estate who provided us with their new Saugivnon Blanc Brut NV, with
mussels kindly donated by Sealord Caister Limited.
The three-course dinner featured venison (given to us by New Zealand
Farmers Limited), lamb given by Silver Fern Farms (UK) Limited, and
delicious hokey pokey ice cream provided by Anna Hansen MBE of The
Modern Pantry Restaurant.
The wines served during dinner were all kindly donated and were
wonderful: Trinity Hill 2011 Hawkes Bay Sauvignon Blanc (UK
distributor: Enotria World Wine), Greywacke 2011 Marlborough Sauvignon
Blanc (kindly donated by Kevin Judd and distributed in the UK by
Liberty Wine) and Mud House 2010 Central Otago Pinot Noir (UK
distributor: Maisons Marques et Domaines). The beer was
donated
by Monteiths (UK distributor: Pierhead Purchasing).
The coffee was generously given by Bullet Coffee.
During the evening, Mr Myers of Air New Zealand announced the coveted
New Zealander of the Year Award 2012 (see above).
We also held our traditional Charity Raffle, which raised more than
£2,000 for the New Zealand Society Charity Fund.
The prizes (which were all generously donated) were:
(1) An original painting of Billy T James (valued at £2,000)
by
the New Zealand artist Mandii Pope.
(2) A £500 voucher from Air New Zealand.
(3) A £1,000 voucher from Sailing Holidays.
(4) An ANZAC tour for one (including Eurostar & Hotel) on the
Western Front (valued at £329) from First Festival Travel.
(5) Two tickets for Ladies Day at Royal Ascot, day trip (valued at
£178) from First Festival Travel.
(6) Dinner for 4 people at the Bleeding Heart Restaurant (Robyn
&
Robert Wilson).
(7) Dinner for 2 people at The Modern Pantry (Anna Hansen MBE).
(8) Voucher to the value of £100 at Kopapa Café
&
Restaurant (Peter Gordon).
(9) Dinner for 2 people at Suze in Mayfair (Tom & Susan Glynn).
(10) A box of 12 gourmet pies from the New Zealand Gourmet Pie Company.
Full details of the dinner and all our sponsors available
soon.
Membership
now on sale online
We are
now
offering membership
via
our online ticketing system, with your year's membership starting from
the first of the month in which you join. This enables new members to
join us any time of the year, and benefit from a full 12 months of
discounts and members' offers. More information is on the About us page, and you may
apply for membership by clicking
on the Membership page.
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Kiwi Calendar
Fri 18 May 2012, 7.00 pm
Food and Wine Evening at
Woodlands Park Hotel in Cobham, Surrey
"Les Blues vs The All Blacks"
An evening with specially selected wines to
accompany a delicious five-course meal
Book online from £75 pp
Telephone: 0845 072 7581
Book Now
6-7 July 2012
NZ Studies Network Inaugural Conference
http://www.nzstudies.com/future-meetings/
Sat 27 October 2012, 7pm
The Mutton Birds
O2 Empire, Shepherd's Bush Green, London W12 8TT
Tickets on sale from Ticketweb.co.uk (08444 771 000)
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The New Zealand
Society provides opportunities for people with an interest in
New Zealand who reside in the United Kingdom to meet
socially. We are a non-profit, voluntary society, with
a dedicated Committee from many different backgrounds, all of whom have
a desire
to put something back into our UK Kiwi community. Please let us know if
you are interested in joining the Committee, or helping in another way.
A varied calendar of events takes place each year, and in February
we hold a annual Waitangi Day Charity Dinner, as well as a
commemorative church service. Together with
Air New Zealand, we award one person as the UK New Zealander
of
the Year, for recognition of outstanding contributions towards
promoting the interests of New Zealand or New Zealanders in the UK. We
also
raise money for our charitable fund for worthy New Zealand/UK
causes: see our Charitable Donations page.
We look forward to welcoming you along to our events this
year. You do not need be be a member to come to most events,
however members usually receive a discount. Click on the links above
for information about previous events, membership and full society
contacts.
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