ANZ Institutional & Commercial Operations—17 March 2017

ANZ bank staff in Auckland continued their wonderful support of CUE Haven and today we had a team from ANZ’s Institutional and Commercial Operations come out to help with the new walking track.

The group arrived shortly after nine and included Annabelle, Barry, Dani, Ian, Jean, Jess, Joanne, Laura, Rebecca, Rob, Sam and Whitney.  Dani, Ian, Jean and Sam had all been out to CUE Haven in previous years and it was great to see them again.

We got acquainted over morning tea and then Mahrukh gave a welcome and an introduction and update on the progress at CUE Haven.

Thomas then described the planned activities for the day and gave a safety briefing.

We drove up to the top and went to work.  The section of track we are working on was built across as sloping section of the property and it is therefore prone to erosion.  Soil can wash down from the higher ground onto the track and the track surface can also be washed off onto the lower ground on the other side.

This team picked up where the previous group had left off and the plan for today was to finish off a section of steps that needed to be boxed in and to build a small retaining wall along a stretch of straight track.

The team took some time to study the steps that needed to be completed and came up with some ideas for improvement.  They dug out some of the old steps that had shifted with the earth movements and realigned them and then did the boxing.

The work involved a lot of measuring, digging, sawing and hammering.

It was a cramped work area at times but the group cooperated and showed great teamwork.

Once they finished off the steps, they continued onto the straight section.  This task required digging a straight foundation for the retaining planks and cutting and fixing them into position.

The team worked until shortly after one and in just a few hours made major progress and did a great job.

The entire group should be very proud of their efforts which have made the track much safer, easier and comfortable to walk on.

On the way back to the cottage for a late lunch, we took a leisurely walk back to the cottage so the group could see more of the property and enjoy the growing native forest.

It was a wonderful and very productive day and we want to thank Ian for organizing today’s visit.  Ian, it was great seeing you again along with Jean, Dani and Sam.  We do so appreciate your help and your continued support.

A big thank you to everyone who came out today!  We really enjoyed working with you all and very much appreciate your hard work and amazing contribution to CUE Haven.  We were very impressed with your teamwork and commitment to do a good job. It was great to see you all participating fully and working as a team and coming up with good ideas for making the track better.

We hope you enjoyed the day as much as we did.  Thank you for your help and support. You have made a much valued and lasting contribution to CUE Haven and New Zealand’s natural heritage and the community. The track you built today will be used and enjoyed by visitors for many years to come as they explore the growing native forest at CUE Haven.

We very much look forward to having you out again for a leisurely visit with your friends and family, and we hope to also see you again for another fun and productive volunteer day.