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Youth week was "Popping"
Auckland City Youth Council has proudly hosted yet another successful event to
mark the National Youth Week with the theme of Relationships for 2009.
The event entitled "In My Hood - Balloon Rave" brought together young people
in the Mount Albert area to show the community what young people value in their
community and attempt to strengthen those ties that young people recognise. Mount
Albert War Memorial hall was filled with a vibrant source of energy and laughter
on 27 May 2009.
Participants each received a balloon which they were able to write their personal
messages on according to what they felt they wanted in or felt about their community.
Balloons were thrown into the air as the count down took place, leaving the hall
decorated in rainbow colours. The event ended with a rave where music and lights
flashed the night creating an alcohol free environment for youth to release themselves
in and have some fun as well as have their voice heard.
The only downside to the event was having low numbers which was due to the choice
of date. It was unfortunate that many school events took place during the same time
frame; however the event was a great learning curve.
"We will probably hold our youth event some time around International Youth Day,
as it's less likely to clash with exams like NZ Youth Week does" says Catherine Tamaseu-Russell, Chair of ACYC.
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| Balloons being thrown into the year at Youth Week |
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Lest We Forget
A morning start of 4am was not a duty that this year's members of the Auckland
City Youth Council had in mind. However, for this year's ANZAC Day service at the
Auckland War Memorial Museum, ACYC members awoke unusually early on 25 April
to participate in the Dawn and Civic Commemoration services.
ACYC has participated in this event annually and this year was no different.
Our involvement included distributing Order of Service programmes to attendees,
distributing poppies, laying crosses and also laying a wreath during the Civic Commemoration
service.
After the dawn service, members of ACYC lay crosses for the Unknown Warrior and
soldiers on the banks of the Museum. Attending the Mayor's Breakfast followed shortly,
which was a comforting contrast to the wet and cold weather outside. ACYC members
remained for the Civic Commemoration Service, where two representatives, Nive Sharat
Chandran and Paea Ahokava lay a wreath on the cenotaph on behalf of Auckland youth
during the ceremony.
The wet weather on the day of the ceremonies seemed worrisome. Fortunately, many
members of the public attended which was heartening to see the phrase "lest we forget"
from the Ode of Remembrance being implemented.
Poppy Day acted as a prelude to our involvement in the ANZAC Day ceremonies.
During Friday, 24 April, ACYC members collaborated with the RSA to manage
poppy stalls around Auckland for the day. We managed to cover areas such as Queen
Street, the Ferry Building and Newmarket with assistance from members of the Cadets,
Army and RSA. This allowed ACYC to maintain its relationship with the RSA as well
to interact with various members of the Auckland community.
The organization of this event was delegated to the "Poppy/ANZAC Day" project
group, made up of NiveSharatChandran, Justine Yu, Priyanka Victor and Seo-Jin Jeong.
Paea, ACYC representative, remarked, "I felt honoured representing Auckland Youth
and keeping the memory of those who sacrificed their lives on ANZAC Day". We collectively
agreed it was a significant event well worth participating in.
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| ACYC members distributing poppies at the dawn service |
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Youth have a say in council's 10 year plan
A subgroup of ACYC - the Ten Year Plan project group organised a forum on 4 May
for the youth of Auckland city to discuss their perspective on the Auckland City
Council's Ten Year Plan. It was held in the Freeman's Bay Community Hall and the
main means of promotion were through flyers, posters and word of mouth.
Being a weekday, the turn out did not reach our expected number but despite this,
we successfully gathered a wide range of opinions from the young people present.
After the forum, our group organised all the ideas from both the forum and our own
networks to incorporate into the ACYC submission to the Auckland City Council.
In early June, the project group made an additional oral submission in the Town
Hall Council Chambers and received a generally positive response. Speaking on behalf
of the youth of Auckland city was both a challenging and rewarding experience.
Updated August 2009
