Newsletter - March 2026
- Helen Vear
- Mar 23
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 23
Greetings from the President:
I love to watch winter creeping in on us at this time of the year with the leaves starting to change colour and the extra dew on the grass in the mornings... as beautiful as that can be, for some of us it can also mean a lot of work coming up in the garden. Working outside in the autumn sun is something I look forward to and if you’re going to be doing it too, enjoy, but if you don’t have a garden, a stroll through any of our parks will give you a very quick ‘dose’ of autumn’s beauty.
The new series Transforming Christchurch has been put together by Pam Craig and Prue Taylor. Twenty six years into the century and in spite of ups and downs, Christchurch is proving to be a popular city to live in. Speakers in this series will look at developments which have contributed to this and also at some of the plans for the future of the city.
Series Two: Transforming Christchurch
March 30 | Hayley Guglietta Manager Avon Otakaro Network | From Red to Green |
April 13 | Professor Malcolm Campbell School of Earth and Environment University of Canterbury | The Transforming Population of Christchurch |
April 20 | Nigel Cox Head of Recreation Sports and Events Christchurch City Council | Recreation, Sports and Events Transforming Christchurch |
May 4 | Dr Martin Fisher Senior Lecturer Above the Bar Ngai Tahu Research Centre University of Canterbury | Ngai Tahu and Christchurch |
May 11 | Kiri Jarden Leader Community Arts Team Christchurch City Council | Delivering Christchurch’s Arts and Creative Strategy |
Hearing Loop
Did you know St Marks has a hearing loop and those with a hearing aid should be able to access it. A telecoil (T-coil) in a hearing aid acts as a miniature wireless receiver. It picks up magnetic signals from hearing loops in venues. You may need to check with your hearing aid provider whether you can access this system directly via a button on your hearing aid or through the Telecoil App on your smartphone.
Recent Movie Outing
Anyone would think our members at the recent movie outing to Tenor: My Name is Pati were upset but this wasn’t the case at all. It was the story of amazing success and those who went were so pleased and happy for the two brothers that it made them cry…. well, perhaps not quite as theatrically as the mock-up suggests (😂) but getting the pic together looks like they had a lot of fun.
Thank you to Pam Craig and Jill Halliburton for organizing the outing. 25 U3A Godley members attended which was a great turnout!
Member Interest
The second talk in our first series of Environmental Sustainability was Judith Lofley, a Kelp Artist. As you can see below there was great interest in the kelp products that Judith brought with her.
Remember to Check that Your Car is Locked!
Recently there was a car stolen from the St Mark’s carpark on a Saturday afternoon.
Please remember to secure your cars, with windows up and valuables out of sight.
Wednesday Walking
Won’t continue as there really wasn’t enough support to make it work but thank you to Jan Cleave and Liz Swallow for trying. It was well worth ‘a go’ and the between-series walk will continue as per usual.
Morning Teas
Continue every week – all welcome and there just might be a little Easter surprise next Monday…
Recent Art Trip
The recent visit to the Christchurch Art Gallery to Unutai e! Unutai e! offered an insight into the deteriorating state of freshwater across the Ngāi Tahu takiwā which had prompted the iwi to take court action against the Crown. It was developed by Dunedin Public Art Gallery in collaboration with Ngāi Tahu leaders and acclaimed photographer Anne Noble.
The exhibition used photographic works to highlight the realities being faced by waterways across the country. Noble's images documented the environmental degradation affecting a significant number of waterways within the Ngāi Tahu takiwā and the consequences for Ngāi Tahu whānau, hapū and iwi working to restore wai māori, uphold rangatiratanga, and protect mahinga kai practices. I particularly enjoyed this exhibition – it was well worth the effort of attending and thanks again to Julie Foley for her organisation on our behalf. The exhibition is still open. All U3A Godley members are welcome to attend the art trips – to know about them you need to send your name and email address to u3agodley@gmail.com and we’ll pass your details on to Julie.
Did You Know?
The statue of John Robert Godley, recognized as the founder of the Canterbury settlement, was first unveiled and erected in Cathedral Square in Christchurch in August 1867. The bronze statue was sculpted by English Pre-Raphaelite sculptor Thomas Woolner.
It was temporarily moved to the north side of the Cathedral in 1918 to make way for a tram shelter before being returned to its original position in 1933. Following damage in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, it was restored and reinstated in Cathedral Square in 2015. ‘Pic shows the statue’s unveiling in Cathedral Square in 1867. Charles Bowen, the top-hatted figure, is addressing the almost 2000-strong crowd.
Best wishes to all for a Happy Easter
