FAREWELL MR FENTON
Tena koutou katoa , Nga mihi nui ki te kura tuarua o Maungawharau
Tākina atu ki te kawa nui Ko te kawa roa , ko te kawa tiketike , ko te kawa tuatahi , ko te kawa tuangahuru , ko te kawa tapu Ki a io-matua-nui Kia mau ki te tika , kia mau ki te pono , kia mau ki te aroha Tīhei mauri ora ! Tēnā koutou kua tae mai nei - ki te tautoko te kaupapa o tēnei wā Te kaupapa ki te whakanui o tō tātou tumuaki me tāna hoa rangatira ko Mr Fenton rāua ko Mrs Fenton E koa ana ahau ki te tuku mihi ki a korua mo to mahi hou , mo te reti ranei Ka whakanui matou ki a korua ko te whakaute me te ngakau mahaki Tēnā kōrua , tēnā kōrua , tēnā rā koutou katoa It is my honour to be able to start todays ceremony where we thank and acknowledge Mr Fenton for the leadership he has provided to our kura over the last 10 1 / 2 years . Specifically , I would like to speak as a representative of the staff of Havelock North High School and to recognise Mr Fenton for the leadership he has provided to each us as professionals , as colleagues and as friends . And while today ’ s proceedings are focused on our principal we know that beside every great man is an equally fantastic woman - so I would also like to recognise Mrs Fenton today and as a staff we look forward to acknowledging your contribution to the school later in the year . As you know , Mr and Mrs Fenton will be retiring at the end of this year . This brings to a close a significant chapter in each of their lives . For Mr Fenton this is a chapter that started 15400 days ago , 42 years at Tawa College in 1981 and
6 finishes here at HNHS . So today , I think it is appropriate that I not only recognise Mr Fenton on behalf of our staff here at HNHS but also on behalf of the staff that have benefitted from his collegiality and leadership in the many schools in which he has worked throughout his career . I recall first meeting Mr Fenton when he arrived mid-way through 2012 . When each of you ( the student here today ) joins the workforce you will appreciate that there is always some trepidation when a new person joins a team . What will they be like ? Will we get along ? Afterall - some weeks , these are people we end up spending as much time with as our own families . A few things resonated with me after first meeting Mr Fenton all those years ago . The first was how much and how genuinely Mr Fenton values education . As you all know , he is in his own right a highly intelligent and accomplished academic and makes no bones about the importance of learning and value of schooling . I realised early on that he was a person with strong principles and morals and I remember thinking that because of that our school was in very safe hands indeed . In our early conversations together Mr Fenton , I also recall you being adamant about two things . Firstly , that Havelock North High School became the school of choice for young people in our community . Secondly that under your watch our students would stand proudly alongside students from any other school – on stage , on the sports field , academically and in every other part of school life . I recall you wasted no time in transforming the sea of light blue and maroon that characterised our old school uniform into the one we have today . While for most students , school uniform is something you throw on in the morning and occasionally it finds its way into the washing machine . But I vividly recall seeing Colla Voce perform at the Big Sing competition for the first time in our new school blazers and in that moment , I appreciated how important