End of an Era

John Underwood has been the Property Manager at Long Bay Primary School for over a decade and in that time he has been a stalwart of the school community. Aside from his amazing organisation, passion for the school and ability to think on his feet, he is kind, caring and always puts other people first. His attention to detail and generous nature mean that he will be missed by everyone. 

The only members of the Long Bay community who will be happy to see him go are the pests and weeds in our local area. John took it upon himself to eradicate all of them. Our Kaitiaki Kakariki student group joined in with gusto, and the support of Restore Hibiscus and Bays. There is no doubt our school has many more trees than it did before John arrived, and many less pests. He led the Kaitiaki Kakariki students to grow produce in our school gardens, tend and then harvest them and finally sell everything at the school gate to buy more seeds to start the process over again. This is real life learning at its finest.

We wish John and Joanne all the best for their retirement. We hope his boat gets a good workout and he enjoys spending the time with his family that he deserves. 

First published in Focus on Community - November 2024