Kia ora!
Firstly, a heartfelt thank you to the hundreds of individuals and many organisations that has supported us over the last several years at Summerhill. Thanks to volunteer efforts, donations, grant funding and sponsorship we’ve accomplished so much. As a working livestock and forestry farm, keeping Summerhill open for the public to enjoy is a huge task and the progress made reflects the value our community places on Summerhill and its vision to preserve, maintain, and enhance this beautiful green belt for generations to enjoy.
This month we bid farewell to two valued Trust members, Claire Worden and Geoff Neilson, who have contributed immensely over the past 7 and 5 years, respectively. We wish you both all the best in your next chapter.
At the same time, we are delighted to welcome two new Trustees to the team. Lesley Park, whom many may know as the organiser of the very popular fun-run event, Skedaddle, and Darryl Jensen, who will oversee farm operations. A warm welcome to you both.
We wish everyone a festive Christmas and fun-filled summer holidays with family and friends, and look forward to seeing you at Summerhill soon!
Best Wishes,
Summerhill Charitable Trust
Highlights of 2024...
Summerhill Community Hub
A few years ago, it became clear that the pressure on the 60-year-old woolshed and the growing need for a dedicated gathering space at Summerhill required a new solution. Since then, the Trust has been steadily working to turn that vision into reality. In July, CC Built began construction on the Summerhill Community Hub, a simple space built with timber from our forests. Once completed, this hub will be a focal point for education and recreation within the Pāpāmoa Hills. Opening in March/April 2025, we are looking forward sharing this space with the community! Special thanks to all our amazing funders for their support! Special mention to TECT for their generous grant funding of $266,513 towards construction.
Carpark Upgrade
With growing visitor numbers to Summerhill, our gravel lot was no longer fit for purpose. With the help of Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Stevenson Quarry and Addline, we are currently working on improving the surface, drainage and parking spaces and is scheduled for completion in early 2025. No more dodging big muddy puddles in the carpark!
Your time and donations in 2024...
Being a privately owned non-profit, we rely on donations and volunteers to help us carry out projects that help improve and enhance Summerhill for the community. Here are just a few of the ways your time and donations have helped this year.
Restoration
In partnership with Mountainbike Tauranga and volunteers from Craigs Investment Partners and with the help of donations, we successfully planted 4,000 native plants around the new Skills Area. Thank you to the Horticulture Skills Group for assisting with mulching.
We also made some great strides in pest plant management this year, thanks to volunteers from Graincorp, donations, and funding from Bay of Plenty Regional Council. Together, we’ve removed thousands of woolly nightshade.
Predator Control
Our dedicated pest control volunteer team have removed nearly 800 introduced pests from Summerhill’s forests since the program was set up in late 2022- a tremendous effort in protecting our native wildlife.
This year, we were able to purchase additional possum traps thanks to proceeds gifted from The Skedaddle, an annual event at Summerhill. These new traps have been a game changer in our efforts to reduce possum numbers at Summerhill.
Big thanks to Bay Conservation Alliance for helping us replace all our rat traps for a more efficient and user friendly model.
Structures
In collaboration with AKL School of Architecture and their thesis students, we’ve expanded our collection of unique structures at Summerhill in 2024, adding two fantastic creations to the park. These include The Kaka by Wooyoung Jang and another impressive piece by Billy Pengelly. Your donations have helped cover the cost of the timber used to bring these and all the other creations in the park to life.
In The Pipeline..
Our park map is getting a facelift! We are currently in the process of upgrading the maps and adding more signage to improve way-finding in the park. This is a big job, click here to donate and help us get this underway.