Gore Rotary Club, NZ

19/08/2026

Congratulations to Eli Puna from St Peter’s College. Having won the Gore Rotary speech competition last month, this month he has gone on to win at Southland level. Superb effort.

All the best Eli for the next round of competition in Dunedin!!

Below Gore Rotary President Phil Reid with Eli Puna

31/07/2026

This week Gore Rotary Club had the great privilege to host the Annual speech competition. We had 4 competitors and they all did exceptional, making it tough for our judges.

Congratulations to Eli Puna, who will progress to the Rotary Southland wide competition in August, and Zara Bell, the runner up.

Both won cash prizes and thanks to St James Theatre Gore all competitors also received a movie pass.

L-R Jude Terry St Peters, Anna Herriot Blue Mountain College, Zara Bell St Peters and Eli Puna St Peters.

01/07/2026

01/07/2026

Gore Rotary want to extend their appreciation to Junes volunteer of the month Noortje Hamers. Thanks to Miss Cocoa Coffee, we surprised Noortje with a $100 voucher this week.

Noortje has been instrumental in running Balfour scouts for over a decade and just about as long as she has been in Balfour.

Having grown up in the Scouting movement in the Netherlands, she was keen to pass on her knowledge when she shifted to New Zealand. The Scout group in Balfour meet regularly, and allows the kids to have fun while learning new skills.

Thank you Noortje for all your leadership, enthusiasm and time you put into the Scouts - our community really appreciates it!!

14/06/2026

🎈🎈We need your help!! 🎈🎈
Do you know someone that does a fantastic job in a volunteer role in our community ??

How about
✔️that person that shows up and makes things happen from the front (or maybe at the back)
✔️a young volunteer just starting out ✔️someone that who has been volunteering years
✔️the kids coach(s)

The time volunteers put into our community is what makes it tick, and we know our community has lots of amazing volunteers. Thank to Miss Cocoa Coffee, Gore Rotary Club would like to surprise some of these volunteers over the next few months with a $100 voucher.

Nominate your favourite volunteer in the comments below or drop us a private message with their name and a bit about what they do, and we could turn up to say ‘Thanks!’

16/05/2026

Thanks Super Grans for sharing your skills💖 This month the Gore Rotary Volunteer award goes to Lana McMillan and her team of volunteers SuperGrans Gore - Back 2 Basics. Lana help start SuperGrans in Gore about 3 years ago when she saw a need in the community to teach skills like cooking, sewing, preserving, dehydrating- basic skills that can also save you money. 770 visitors aged 16-90 have attended workshops this year, all taught by volunteers. There are up to 8 different workshops a week!
Thanks to the generous Miss Cocoa Coffee, these SuperGrans have $100 voucher in appreciation for all they do.

10/05/2026

Know of someone who could be interested?? Applications close soon on 20th May. For more information see
https://rotarydistrict9999.org/page/rotary-youth-exchange/

12/03/2026

Congratulations to the Rotary volunteer of the month Bridget McLeod for all the effort she puts into Hamilton Park ParkRun every week. Thanks to Miss Cocoa Coffee a $100 voucher was presented last Saturday at Park Run by Rotary President Phil Reid as a small token of appreciation!

Parkrun is a free event that runs every Saturday morning (8am or 9am in the winter) in parks all over the world. It is a 5km run/walk or jog or combination of all three, for people of all ages and abilities and Bridget is almost always at Hamilton Park either volunteering or participating. The event has been going for just over 4 years and Bridget has been there just about every week encouraging people on. Thanks Bridget!

08/02/2026

Gore Rotary Volunteer of the month is back for 2026!! We are excited to be able to surprise a volunteer in our community each month thanks to the wonderful Miss Cocoa Coffee but we need your help to find them!

Drop the name of a volunteer who does a great job (and a bit about them) in the comments below or send us a message, and they could receive a $100 voucher to say “Thanks for all they do”

23/12/2025