Gary Hamnett and Lin Keo have a unique friendship. It is a connection that doesn’t require words, just a helping hand through the hard times.   They first met over a shared love of coffee and chatter, which turned into a friendship...... Read More

  You need to choose your words carefully when you are the best debaters in the Bay.   Mount Maunganui College’s senior debating team took out top honours at the recent Bay of Plenty Regional Debating Competition, and The Weekend...... Read More

  A Tauranga public health official has issued a timely reminder to the Bay of Plenty population to check their medical records and catch up on immunisations.   Local medical officer of health for Toi Te Ora, Dr Neil de Wet, issued the...... Read More

There are few things in the world that make people cringe more than a serious discussion about regular bowel movements. But with the help of the Western Bay of Plenty Ostomy Society, two Tauranga residents are encouraging people to speak out about...... Read More

Townies will get the chance to look beyond the farm gate this month. Bay of Plenty Federated Farmers is organising a Farm Day on March 24 at the McLeod’s property – that’s 1189 Welcome Bay Road for farming newbies. For rural folk,...... Read More

It was a subtle change of language - a tweak of her words and the online audience she was targeting. It doubled Tauranga glassmaker Jo Tricker’s income in a year. After swapping ideas with a business mentor, Jo’s glassmaking workshops at...... Read More

  Doreen McNeil doesn’t do parties – “I can’t stand them,” she admits.   However, the Brookfield abstract artist reluctantly acknowledges that turning 90 is a bit special and she better do something. So, the...... Read More

  Plastic cards, pay-day lenders and truck shops. According to debt expert Diane Bruin, they are the three evils confronting people who “don’t know what they don’t know” about managing money.   A mentor, advisor...... Read More

  According to the city’s private swimming pool owners, it is an “unadulterated revenue grab”.   The authorities, on the other hand, cite compliance and safety. Either way, it sent a swathe of Tauranga pool owners onto...... Read More

  Anglican Parish of Gate Pa is organising a great night of stories, cooking demonstrations, songs and laughter with Tauranga’s Stephen and Tommy (Kapai) Wilson - two brothers committed to helping the homeless and unemployed people in the...... Read More

  The current legal gender change application process is “nothing but outdated curly-haired wig sh*t”.   That’s the verdict of one Tauranga transgender woman who believes that statutory declaration is the way forward. The...... Read More

  “I could have gone out and water-blasted the drive,” says Brian Elmes of his first decent Johnny Cash in a more than a year. For Johnny Cash, read slash, read piddle.   The Bethlehem man can joke about it now, but until he...... Read More

  John Tuck is a tough man - not because he’s built like a tank, but because he’s a fighter through and through.   To say he has a high pain threshold is an understatement. Parts of his body are damaged from the results of Haemophilia....... Read More

  It is more than just a gumboot. It symbolises New Zealand’s history of farming and our ‘get stuck in’ attitude.   But for Graeme Hoete, better known as Mr G, the iconic gumboot represents much more than that. The Papamoa-based...... Read More

Bringing it back to basics is often the way people find peace within themselves and their decisions. However, in Wendy Garvin’s case, she took things to the next level by exploring the depths of her soul in one of the planet’s most diverse...... Read More