A $2905 grant made to Hohepa Canterbury, a provider of residential services for intellectually disabled adults, will fund a native garden at its farm which all of its residents will be able to access and enjoy.

Raymond Eberhard, General Manager Hohepa Canterbury, says the farm is a special place for all of its residents. “We have many residents and day users who enjoy the freedom and peace of our farm. Some like to potter in gardens and grow veggies or flowers for use in their homes, others like to relax in the quiet or just wander about,” he says.

The grant will cover the cost of installing paths throughout the garden so that wheelchair bound residents will be able to access it.

Hopeha Canterbury was established in 1965 as a home school for children with intellectual disabilities, today it works to ensure its 70 residents can experience and participate in a happier life. The residents come from across the South Island and live at one of the two campuses in Barrington and Halswell.

Rotorua teenager Tamati Robens (14) will soon be experiencing the language and culture of Mexico with his $2,500 Mazda Foundation grant.

Tamati will travel to Mexico with his Spanish language classmates from Te Kura O Te Kouto in January 2011. While there, he will live with a host family and experience day-to-day Mexican life and study at Instituto Cultural De Oaxaco, which is renowned for its Spanish language programme. While in Mexico, Tamati will also gain credits towards his future university study back in New Zealand.

“Going to Mexico will be a trip of a life-time. I hope to experience the Mexican culture and people and get an idea about what the real world looks and feels like outside of New Zealand,” says Tamati.

Tamati lives with his aunt Tracey Robens and siblings who have all been busy fundraising to reach the $10,000 required for each student to go on the trip. They’ve done this by running raffles and making harakeke kete (flax handbags) and selling them to the local community.

“I am hoping this trip will help Tamati acquire many life skills and transition him from a local boy into an internationally savvy young man. From experience, I know that travel and exposure to other cultures is our best education. Understanding others also helps us to accept others,” says Robens.

New Zealand Under 19 Womens Touch Rugby squad member Charlotte Davis (16) will soon have the chance to be selected for a significant trans-Tasman match in 2011 thanks to her Mazda Foundation grant.

The Mangere teenager received a $3,854 grant which will contribute towards transport and accommodation costs for a Labour Weekend training and selection camp. Those selected at the camp will travel to New South Wales in 2011 to take on their Australian counterparts in a trans-Tasman tournament.

“I’m thrilled to receive a Mazda Foundation grant. As well as making the team, I need to fundraise to attend training camps and tournaments and the grant will enable me to do this. I am a committed achiever and am determined to make the trans-Tasman team and perform at my best,” said Davis.

Davis is heavily involved in sports having represented her school, Manurewa High School, and Counties Manukau at basketball and touch rugby.

New Zealand’s only library service for blind and partially sighted communities will receive an upgrade. The Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind (RNZFB) will convert their catalogue from a tape format to a digital format with its $10,000 grant.

The library currently caters to blind and partially-sighted people who are unable to access mainstream libraries and provides more than 6,100 audio and Braille entertainment and educational titles.

“The cassette tape solution is becoming unsustainable with the analogue players reaching the end of their useful lives. The Foundation is therefore embarking on an innovative new project to bring the library to its users through new technology,” said Dave Bellamy, Trusts and Foundations Manager, RNZFB.

A new digital information system has been designed which will provide made-to-order digital resources. The Foundation is also collaborating with other organisations working on behalf of blind and partially sighted communities internationally, using the new digital system to enable them to share New Zealand literature with other blind and partially sighted people around the world.

A $4,000 grant to the South Taranaki Museum in Patea will enable its visitors to learn more about its history when a glass waka prow is installed.

The grant will be used to commission a design for a glass cast waka prow that will take pride of place in the museum’s foyer. The cast will then be carved and fabricated into wax and brought to life by local glass artist Emma Camden who is donating her time to the project.

“This grant will help us install a beautiful and unique artwork that reflects the spirit of bi-cultural collaboration,” said Marie McKay, South Taranaki Museum Trust.

South Taranaki Museum is currently undergoing a redevelopment project. It is hoped the glass work will be installed in October this year in time for the museum’s official reopening in November.

New Zealand received a $5,880 grant to run a New Zealand Land Search and Rescue Inc. (LandSAR) camp for leading tracking practitioners to further hone their skills.

The organisation is one of 15 groups and individuals to benefit from the Mazda Foundation’s latest funding round which has seen more than $52,000 donated to a range of causes throughout New Zealand.

“The four-day camp will ensure LandSAR groups possess the range of professional skills, local knowledge of terrain, conditions and experience for local search and rescue incidents,” said Wendy Waller, New Zealand Land Search and Rescue.

LandSAR is the national volunteer organisation within New Zealand providing land search and rescue services to the Police and public of New Zealand.

Whakatane Youth will soon have more resources at their fingertips to build their self-esteem and leadership skills with the help of a grant to Whakatane Blue Light Ventures.

Whakatane Blue Light Ventures’ $2,490 grant will be used to purchase equipment for its BLAST programme which uses a range of activities to develop leadership, team building and problem solving skills.

“We intend to use the new BLAST kits during our school holiday programmes and visits to local schools. The hands on nature of the programme holds the young people’s attention and they learn without even knowing it,” said Shelly Steel, Whakatane Blue Light Ventures.

Blue Light is a national Police initiative aimed at reducing the incidence of youth offending and building better relations between youth and Police.

Adi Bhattacharya of Auckland will purchase an insulin pump with his $8,500 grant.

The eight-year-old suffers from Type 1 diabetes and requires up to seven insulin injections every day. An insulin pump significantly reduces the number of injections required to only one every three days and allows for more flexibility for both the diabetic and their family.

“Adi requires several insulin injections per day and we have to monitor and adjust everything he eats. An insulin pump will mean Adi will have more flexibility about what he can eat and when, enjoy sports more and function better at school,” said Delwyn Bhattacharya, Adi’s mother.

Insulin pumps range in cost from $7,000 through to $10,000 and can be a significant expense for many families. New Zealand is currently the only developed country in the world where the Government does not provide funding for insulin pumps.

Type 1 diabetes is an auto-immune condition that affects 15,000 New Zealanders. The body sets up an attack against the cells that make insulin so that eventually most people with the condition produce no insulin naturally. It often occurs in childhood, particularly in children aged eight to 12 years.

Project Kiwi Trust received funding for a kiwi enhancement project. The $6,500 grant will assist in the incubation and hatching of kiwi eggs.

“Project Kiwi Trust invests in Operation Nest Egg by transporting eggs to Rainbow Springs, Rotorua to ensure egg and chick survival. Chicks are returned to their source location once they reach a safe weight of 1,000 grams. Chicks are better able to defend themselves against predators once they reach this weight,” said Paula Williams, Project Kiwi Trust.

The main goal for the 2009/2010 breeding season is to deliver a minimum of 20 kiwi eggs to Rainbow Springs.

The trust was established in 1996 primarily to increase the kiwi population on the Kuaotunu Peninsula near Whitianga in the Coromandel, where studies have indicated the predation of kiwi chicks is the major cause of the kiwi population decline.

Over the past 13 years the trust has established a robust trapping system to control predators and monitor kiwis over its operational area of 4,100 hectares. The initial goal of increasing the survival rate of kiwi chicks to 20 percent was achieved and the trust currently averages 40 percent.

A $6,265 grant to Hibiscus Coast Schools Waterwise Society Inc. will be used to purchase a replacement rigid hull inflatable boat and outboard to accompany children taking part in sailing lessons.

Over 400 children participate in the schools’ training programme every year, learning self confidence, water safety, basic sailing and kayaking skills. Safety reasons mean every four sailing boats used require one patrol boat.

However, the current patrol boat is beyond repair and not compliant with full safety requirements. In addition, the outboard is hard to start and unreliable.

Hibiscus Coast Schools Waterwise Society Inc. is run by volunteers, is an affiliate of New Zealand Waterwise and works to teach children of all abilities basic water safety in a safe and controlled environment.

The organisation aims to provide a Waterwise experience to all children on the Hibiscus Coast by the time they finish intermediate school. Local schools in Whangaparaoa, Orewa, Dairy Flat and Wainui currently attend Waterwise sessions.