Nikki Kaye

I visited the Grey Lynn Community Library today to fill the big shoes as a ‘Special Guest reader’. It was an incredible amount of fun seeing the joy in the young childrens faces as I read stories of “Ka Pai the Kiwi” and danced the Caterpillar dance.

It also provided a great opportunity to meet and talk to some of the young mums in my electorate, as well as the Library staff.

Fellow MP Hekia Parata and I hosted a ‘Ladies Lunch’ on Monday as an opportunity to brief key Business and women involved in community organisations on hot political topics. Hekia gave an amazing speech that included her journey to becoming a Member of Parliament. Hekia is someone that I admire and I am sure has a huge future in politics. We covered a number of issues such as Auckland Local Governance and Education.

I really enjoyed the opportunity to meet so many smart women interested and enthusiastic about doing what they can to contribute to NZ.

I attended the re-opening of St Patricks Square on the 17th of this month. It was a great day for residents and people who work in the CBD. The square is a great space for Aucklanders in the CBD.
I went for a tour and was in awe of the history and heritage of St Patricks Cathedral.

On Saturday I completed the 41km Great Barrier Wharf to Wharf race. I handed over $800, raised for Kaitoke school kids.

The race was the toughest run I think that I have ever done. The forest road track was a bit of a mud bath in parts and included a lot of hills steadily increasing upwards for 13 km. It is a stunning course though, and there were a few moments where I just stopped and took in the view. The Medlands hill and the final one before Tryphena were long and hard, as was the remaining 5km which was a series of hills before Shoal Bay and the wharf.

It was a massive effort by so many Barrier locals to make the event happen. For a small community they have a lot of heart and an event like this brings in extra funds to the community at the end of a long winter.

They did a great job and I look forward to doing what I can to make the event even more successful next year.

I hit the streets of Downtown Auckland on Friday as part of the Arthritis Orange Appeal Week. I joined the street appeal and donned the orange vest in a quest to raise funds for those New Zealanders suffering from Arthritis.

I was outside the Downtown Westfield at the bottom of Queen Street, alongside my fellow fundraiser, Margaret (pictured) from Waiheke. Margaret was a real sweety as were the other people there helping out.

Over half a million New Zealanders will be affected by Arthritis in their lifetimes so it is a hugely worthwhile cause and it was very special to be a part of the appeal campaign.

I attended Auckland Zoo on the 13th to take part in celebrating the arrival of the super celebrity Kakapo – Sirocco. Associate Minister of Conservation Kate Wilkinson gave a superb speech and mentioned her meeting with Sirocco’s sister Hoki on Codfish Island.

There are now 124 Kakapo in NZ as a result of a very succesful breeding program. Join Sirocco’s facebook page here

Join me in volunteering for this years Conservation Week. There are Auckland based events running for the entire week –
check out www.conservationweek.org.nz for full details.

Leader of the pack at Frocks on Bikes

The Frocks on Bikes event over the weekend was fantastic. I had a lot of fun and it was great to be a part of this worthwhile cause that attempts to gain momentum for better cycle routes in our city.

See the Auckland City Harbour News article here

Nikki and some student volunteers at E-Day

I had the pleasure of joining in on the E-Day Clean-up over the weekend at the Wilson Carpark on Fanshawe St in the City. (more…)

Massive turnout at the Grey Lynn Farmers Market on Sunday

The Grey Lynn Farmers Market on Sunday was an absolutely fabulous day out and I felt privileged to be involved. I donated some wine for prizes and fundraising raffles.

The Market is an incredible event for the community and it was great to help out. The day was a huge success and the massive turnout blew me away. (more…)