Newsletter September 2026
Greetings from the President,
Well we’ve just enjoyed yet another excellent series and the next few weeks are looking just as good. Justice and the Law has been put together by Jill Clarke and Richard McElrea and thank you to you both in advance. After this series of five deliveries and the two weeks break that follows, we’ll be at the Pot Pourri stage of the year which gives us a different topic for each of the three weeks that final series comprises.
Our planning team will meet in October to decide on topics and dates for next year’s programme. We would love your help and if you think you could contribute in any way, please contact Trish Holden at trishholden45@gmail.com.
Isn’t it great to finally see some swelling buds on trees, odd ‘pops’ of colour in the garden and just a little more warmth around us… although experience tells me not to get too excited yet because weather doesn’t always ‘behave’ in September, but fingers crossed!
The committee and I are very happy with the support we are getting week after week, thank you, keep it up and look after yourselves as we head towards the Christmas season.
Series Five: Justice and the Law
Sept 14 | Sophie Meares Senior Legal Counsel Christchurch | Lawyers for Climate Action – Our Role in Seeking Justice and Actions Taken |
Sept 21 | Jessica Maclean Lecturer, Criminal Justice Faculty of Law Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha University of Canterbury | Justice, Fairness and Young People Please note: the address will include pathways to offending for young people, the overlap between care and protection (Oranga Tamariki) and youth justice involvement, treatment/ rehabilitation. There will be some discussion around family violence and abuse. |
Sept 28 | Tony Couch District Court Judge | The District Court - What It Is and What It Does |
Oct 5 | Retired Professor John Burrows KC | Our Court System - Its Functions, Its Protections, the Challenges It Faces and Some Possible Solutions to Those Challenges |
Oct 12 | Professor Annick Masselot Faculty of Law Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha University of Canterbury | What’s a Job Worth? Pay Equity and Gender Justice in New Zealand |
Mark Your Calendars Now
Organ Recital - St Andrew's on Friday 9th October at 10:30am. There will be a $5 charge to cover heating.
Next Art Appreciation Visit
Friday October 16, 10.15am. Details to follow.
Xmas luncheon
Monday 23 November $67.00 (only $2.00 increase on last year’s price). Same venue (Riccarton Park). Very similar menu. Easy parking.
New Zealand’s Softly-Softly Approach to the Second Trump Administration
(from Prof Robert Patman)
Next Places of Interest Outing
Richard has arranged a visit to a car museum in Ferry Road for Wed 7th October at 10am. We don’t have many details at this stage except that Kevin (the boss) has a workshop, which he will show us, and a collection of about a couple of dozen American cars dating from the 1940s.
If you would like to go, please contact Richard at pickeringx2@yahoo.com
Places of Interest Report
Visit to Orange Recording Studios, Ferry Road
Thom O’Connor gave us an outline of the work of the studio on Ferry Road, which provides recording facilities to small groups of musicians. Within the building there is a main room in which a small band can perform as well as two smaller rooms allowing individuals to record separately, and Thom can re-mix the results afterwards. All the recordings are made digitally and are saved on a computer hard drive. Thom sits in a separate room to adjust the settings and advise on microphone usage.
Our U3A recorder group entertained us, and Thom demonstrated making a recording and gave us examples of changing the background sound effects. These included how our group would be heard by a ‘cathedral’ audience, which was very realistic. He presented us with a recording of our group, which we will try to play at a U3A meeting.
Richard Pickering
Practical Art Interest Group?
We have a very experienced Art Teacher offering to take a Practical Art Interest Group starting in the New Year. Diane Swain can cover topics such as drawing, painting, sculpture, print-making and making tiny books for children. Some could be one-off sessions of a few hours, or longer, more in depth courses if there is enough interest.
The courses are likely to be held at St Mark's and there will be a cost to cover materials and the hiring of the room. Numbers will be limited.
Please register your interest with Diane at fencingforus@gmail.com indicating if there is any particular topic you would like to explore.
Did you know?
Here’s a nice easy way to speak to Google instead of having to type in your question. It works on phone, iPad and even PC. For starters you need the Google icon on your device and then as they say, you’re away laughing!
Give it a try:
1. Open the Google app on your device or go to google.com in your browser.
2. Look for the microphone icon in the search bar. Tap the microphone.
3. When you see "Listening" or "Speak now", say what you’re looking for.
4. Search results will show.
