A growing tribute
More than 37,000 clients of the Cancer Society were offered support either through accommodation, transport, supportive care or ancillary care across Waikato and Bay of Plenty in the 2024/2025 financial year Plus, the
society contributed $252,583 to local and national cancer research. With Daffodil Day on the horizon, more than 2000 bulbs are growing beside SH2 in the hope they would bloom close to August 29 to be sold around Katikati to support
the Waikato/Bay of Plenty branch of the Cancer Society on Daffodil Day 2025. Behind the fundraising action in Katikati is Daffodil Day area coordinator Glennis Sims, Jill Noble, who generously donated her garden patch to grow the bulbs, and
her friend Monique Amor, also an area coordinator They hope Katikati residents would buy the blooms at four locations around town on August 29, or donate online at: daffodilday.org.nz Find out more on page 4. Photo / Merle cave
Katikati NEWS
Groups work together to enhance bike and walking trails
Walkers and bikers can enjoy trails at Waitekohekohe Recreational Park a little bit more thanks to a newlyinstalled bridge.
Katikati Recreational Park Development Group (KKRPDG) founding member Jacqui Knight said the bridge enhanced access across Waitekohe Stream and opened up the Lund Rd side of the park
“It means you can get across from Thompson’s Track to Lund Rd without getting your feet wet. It opens up a lot of walking tracks too, which we ’ re working on, through the native bush area It is stunning!”
Knight said the bridge would also give access to new mountain bike trails, to be constructed in 2026.
KKRPDG, which had created and managed the park since it was opened in March 2023, this year received $60,000 from TECT to build two new mountain bike tracks on the park’s Lund Rd side. “The track builder isn’t available until next April, so we ’ ve just got to wait for that.”
Accessibility trail
The TECT funding would also build an accessibility trail on the Thompson Track side, said Knight. “This will be for people with adaptive bikes So if you ’ ve got a bike that’s a bit different or you ’ ve got a disability, this track will be great for you. ”
Knight said often it’s not until people need adapted mobility tools to wander that they realise how inaccessible parts of the community can be. “Something like 10% of our community live with a disability so we should be making it easier for them.”
Waitekohekohe Recreational Reserve in the upper hill slope catchments of the KaimaiMamaku Forest Park is Western Bay of Plenty District Council-owned and covered
87.982ha. The council is KKRPDG’s major partner and contributed staff expertise and a budget of just under $1m million across five years for development of the park – to become a mountain-biking, horse-riding and bush-walking facility for the wider district.
Knight said KKRPDG is nearing the end of the five-year capital build plan with council, which is why they’re calling on external funders to help further build the facility’s resources “But we ’ re not far off finishing what we got the space up there for Then we’ll look to host multisport events to bring more people to our district.”
Both KKRPDG and Katikati Trails Group sit under Katch Katikati, which Knight managed and had been working in tandem on track-work projects. “The KTG is working to create walk and cycle trails that showcase the unique landscape of the Kaimai coastline and Kaimai Mamaku ranges, ” said Knight.
Northern Kaimai Loop
The group ’ s ultimate goal was to connect a Northern Kaimai Loop of bike trails, she said. “If we can link up all the side roads from
Hauraki Rail Trail (HRT) through to Katikati over to Thompson Track and back over to the HRT then we ’ ve got a good two-three-day bike ride “That’s when we can really start to push aa point of difference for the area and bring in more visitors.”
Knight said KTG recently created a Facebook page to secure its own identity with the community “KTG has achieved a lot of little projects over the years, but ultimately we want to the Northern Kaimai Loop ”
The group had gained approval from residents up Willoughby Rd and Katikati’s Woodland Rd for the loop to go through their properties, she said.
“We can potentially get from Woodland Rd at Waihi to Woodland near Katikati, because this is a paper road. Then we can get from Woodland Rd to Willoughby with willing landowners.
“We need to go through the rest of the route and start securing more property owners ’ approval for access. But this work all just takes time ” Find out more at: www waitekohekohe.nz or search ‘Katikati Trails Group’ on Facebook.
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Lawrie Macdonald, Damon McLachlan, Jacqui Knight, Jill Jackson and Western Bay Mayor James Denyer on the new bridge. Photo / Supplied
Merle Cave
Katikati’s battery man signs
“Katikati will definitely miss him when he’s gone. They just don’t realise it yet, ” said one customer
“He’s done so much for the town. ”
“The thing with Allan [Crapp] is that’s he’s really good at solving mysteries with the older vehicles – and it’s a skill not many of the young ones have,” said another “He’s got a knack for it. He’ll take one look and know exactly what’s wrong. ”
Another customer pined where he’d get a good deal. “Allan would never rip you off If he thought your battery had life left, he’d tell you to take it home and put it on the charger”
These were just some thoughts, thanks and observations swirling Katikati as one of its longest retail operators closed his shop door for the last time on July 31
If you ’ ve lived in Katikati for more than five minutes you ’ ve crossed paths with Allan Crapp, who ran Auto Electrical Services Katikati Ltd for 48 years.
Katikati Rotary wanted to thank Crapp publicly The 71-year-old had given all old batteries he’d collected at Auto Electrical Services Katikati to the club’s battery recycling project. The club recycles the batteries and is paid for the lead inside.
Thousands
“It’s thousands and thousands of dollars that he’s put back into our community,” said Katikati Rotarian Rod Calver of the income stream that Allan had provided his club
Calver said Katikati Rotary honoured Crapp for his tremendous generosity by bestowing him with their club’s highest accolade – a Paul Harris fellowship in October 2022. In 50-plus years of operating only five fellowships had been awarded to non-Rotarians in Katikati
“He’s been an absolute legend He could have sold these batteries for himself but he’s given them to the community instead.”
He estimated the battery recycling project had been running in Katikati for about 20 years. The late Roy Diggelmann started the project and got Crapp on-board, said Calver
“In later years people could drop their batteries at Allan’s business and I’d pick them up fortnightly”
Calver said while lead prices do fluctuate on average, he would receive 500kg of batteries fortnightly from Crapp, which would make the club roughly $200 per week
Calver said the funds went into Rotary’s kitty, which supported local primary and secondary schools, student trips, plus Rotary projects around town. “Many of these causes would have received funding from Allan’s generosity”
No
grease monkey!
Crapp told Katikati News as a young fella he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps
as a mechanic. “But my father said: “No, don’t do that; you’ll just be a grease monkey all your life’ because in those days you didn’t have fancy things like today to clean your hands and clothes ”
Instead, he got an auto electrician apprenticeship in Gate Pa after an un-paid work experience orgnaised by his school, Tauranga Boys’ College. “I went to about three of four places around town [for work experience] and ended up at Wally Mcilwraith’s business, WW Mcilwraith & Co Ltd, for a week At the end I asked if there was any chance of an apprenticeship ” Wally obliged
Once qualified, Crapp opened Katikati’s first auto electrical store at the end of 1977 for Tauranga couple Chubb and Alison
Howarth, who ran Chubbs Auto Electrics in the city
At first Crapp was based in a building where Bridgestone Tyre Centre Katikati sits today “There were three of us in on big building. I was in a small garage to the left. Robin Bernie was on the right with his mechanic business, and Neville Johnson had the engineering business ”
Only there for six months, Allan moved the business to the Main Rd, where Katikati Mowers were. “The building had big front glass doors – at the same time Dave Murray ran a taxi service out of there ” Crapp worked for the Howarths for a few years before purchasing a 50% stake in Auto Electrical Services Katikati Ltd. The Howards moved to Kerikeri and sold their half to Allan roughly around 1981.
He bought the land at 3 Main Rd Katikati in 1986 and built a building for his business “I shifted in when GST came into effect in October of 1987.”
Katikati-Ōmokoroa resident
Today Crapp considers himself part Katikati resident, knowing multiple
generations of local families
“Absolutely, especially in the battery side of things because I’d get the grandparents, the parents then the grandkids coming. It’s been awesome because a lot of them have been like family, not customers ” Allan said he began donating batteries to the rotary ’ s recycling project, via the late Roy Diggelmann, more out of convenience than love.
“Back in the day when it [the project] started, you’d only get about $1 per battery from the scrap dealer – and they’d only pick them up twice-a-year so you’d have all these dirty batteries stacked up around the place for six-odd months. It wasn ’ t worth the effort,” said Crapp “It was just good to get rid of them. However, as time’s gone on, and lead got more and more expensive, people started to get a lot more money for recycling batteries. But I’d started something and I just didn’t have the heart to take it away because it was going back into our own community,” said Crapp
“If it [the proceeds] were going willy nilly into a big consortium then I’d have pulled pin. But the fact that it stayed in Katikati was the important part. ”
The work
In the early days Crapp was the town ’ s only auto electrician. “I did a lot of outside work being called on by contractors to repair their machinery Starter-motors, alternators on
graders, generators, lights on loaders – a lot of that sort of stuff ”
When another auto electrician came to town and went mobile, Crapp pulled back and kept his shop open by staying on-site. “As far the shop work was concerned it was alternators, starter motors, trailer lights, campervans, caravans, and a reasonable of boat work.”
Crapp was never interested in the modern electronics of vehicles “and I still aren ’ t – so I stayed old school and let the young ones do the modern cars”.
Instead, classic car owners came knocking for his old-school expertise “A job on an old Chevrolet pick-up truck was one of the last I did.”
Asked what’s he’ll do with all his free time, Crapp assured Katikati News: “Oh, I’ve got plenty to do!” “I’ve got three daughters, a son and seven grandkids so they’ll keep me busy”
Back to boats
He was also looking forward to using his neglected boat. For years Crapp operated the former family-owned slipway at Ōmokoroa on weekends before it was closed due to regulations making it unpractical. His love for boats has remained, so he was keen to get on the water more now he’s retired. And he’d be staying put in his Ōmokoroa, where his family have been for generations. “Absolutely, I won ’ t be going anywhere else ”
Allan Crapp receiived d a P Paul l Harriis F Felllowshhip from Katiikati i Rotariian Rod d Calver in 2022 for his long-standing donation of batteries. Photos / Supplied
Allan Crapp loading batteries onto a ute for Katikati Rotaary’s battery recycling project.
Merle Cave
Katikati is set to bloom this D Daffodil Da
Katikati is set to bloom later this month, thanks to a heartfelt gesture from a local family
The owners of the now-closed Onion Vegie Place in Katikati have planted more than 3000 daffodil bulbs on their property in support of the Cancer Society
It’s anticipated, come Daffodil Day – on Friday, August 29 – volunteers will sell the flowers at four locations around Katikati to raise funds for the Waikato/Bay of Plenty branch of the Cancer Society
Four flower stands
Daffodil Day area coordinator Glennis Sims said six-eight Katikati volunteers would pick and bundle the flowers just before August 29
“The community will be able to purchase a five-flower bundle for $5 or one flower for $1 on August 29 at Woolworths Katikati, The Busy Baker, ANZ bank, and outside Subway and the Family Mart from 8am-4pm ” All proceeds would go straight to the local division of the Cancer Society, Sims said
Fellow Daffodil Day area coordinator Monique Amor said they would also have donation boxes inside selected Katikati businesses for August, where people can donate funds for Daffodil Day to the Cancer Society should they wish
“On August 29, at the flower stands, we will also have pens, daffodil pins and accessories that people can purchase too, as part of the fundraiser”
It was Amor who approached her friend Jill Noble to see if 200 donated bulbs
could be planted in her garden that borders State Highway 2 just south of town. “I said: ‘All right, I’ll take about 300,” said Noble “Well Monique rang me back again and said: ‘I’ve got another 2000 and I can ’ t find anywhere to put them ’ ”
Giving back
Noble obliged and ended up with about 2700 in the ground, which are slowly starting to ready – hopefully to bloom near August 29 “We’ll see what happens,” she said
Growing the flowers was Jill and her adult children Leigh and Nicola’s way of giving back to the Cancer Society after the passing of husband and father Allan Noble on June 15, 2024, from cancer “This is one thing I’ve been able to do to help, is plant them,” said Noble, who had been a gardener and lover of daffodils “for their colour” for many years
Cancer Society fundraising events specialist Alyson Bowker said her organisation was incredibly grateful to the Noble family “for their beautiful tribute and generous support ”
“Acts of kindness like this not only raise vital funds but also bring our community together,” said Bowker.
“Every daffodil picked from their patch helps us provide free support services to people with cancer right here in Katikati and our surrounding region ”
Bowker said the Cancer Society’s Waikato/Bay of Plenty branch is not directly government funded – but their services are free for people with cancer and their whānau
“These services include transport to
treatment, support from experienced cancer care professionals, support groups, accommodation near to treatment centres and access to counselling, Bowker said
Supporting patients
Across Waikato and Bay of Plenty in the 2024/2025 financial year 3724 clients were offered support either through accommodation, transport, supportive care or ancillary care
An estimated 104,657km was driven by society representatives taking cancer patients to treatments; and 17,145 nights’ accommodation were provided to guests
at the Cancer Society’s Lions Lodge in Hamilton, where people can stay while receiving cancer treatment At the Lions Lodge in the same period 43,650 meals were served to guests
Bowker said the society had also contributed $252,583 to local and national cancer research
As a result, if people were in the position to support the Cancer Society this month, or on Daffodil Day on August 29, it would be very much appreciated, said Bowker People can donate at Katikati’s street collections this Daffodil Day or anytime online at: daffodildayorg nz
Western Bay of Plenty Daffodil Day area coordinators Monique Amor and Glennis Sims were busy getting things ready for August 29. Photo / Merle Cave
Merle Cave
Local Classifieds
In Memoriam
BEETHAM
Memorial Hall
New Committee members welcome
application to the District Licensing Committee at Western Bay of Plenty for the grant of an ON LICENCE in respect of the premises situated at
The general nature of the business to be conducted under the licence is a ON LICENCE - OTHER PREMISES NOT OTHERWISE SPECIFIED.
The days on which and the hours during which alcohol is currently being sold under the licence are: Monday to Sunday 09:00a.m. to 09:00p.m.
The application may be inspected during ordinary office hours at the Western Bay of Plenty District Licensing Committee at Barkes Corner, Greerton, Tauranga.
Any person who is entitled to object and who wishes to object to the grant of the application may, not later than 25 working days after the date of the first publication of the application in a newspaper or newspapers in accordance with the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, file a notice in writing of the objection with the Secretary of the District Licensing Committee at the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, Private Bag 12803, Tauranga. No objection to the issue of a licence may be made in relation to a matter other than a matter specified in section 105(1) of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012.
This is the first publication of this notice.
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