Broadcast on Manawatu People's Radio, 30th June 2020. Tom Romley Part 5 of 5.  Buying Ashhurst Engineering. Colleen in the office, children in a caravan. Running the business. Early issues. Hardware shop also. Switch to metric measures from Imperial. Advantages of having a shop, packaging. Garden furniture. Sold business after 15 years due to health problems. Working for Hugh Akers for 17 more years, machinery maintenance, etc., then in the Akers family museum (private). Description of the museum. Problem with a farmer’s well. 

Broadcast on Manawatu People's Radio, 23rd June 2020. Tom Romley, Part 4 of 5.  Working on the Upper Yarra Dam, living in a camp. Sleeping bags, dead snake inside. Shift work. 2 “lives” and you were out. How got to Australia. Workers from many countries. A stay in Melbourne, Chloe painting in Young and Jackson’s Hotel. Motorbike for touring. Back to NZ after 7 months for 21st birthday. Met Colleen, future wife so stayed in NZ. Engineering in Ashhurst. Working where had been an apprentice. Business growing, designing and erecting woolsheds, etc.. Working away from home on construction in early years of marriage. Old cottage. Earthquake standards. Workplace safety (1950s). Staircase in the Art Gallery, steel framed house. Bought the business in 1973. 

Broadcast on Manawatu People's Radio 16th June 2020. Tom and Colleen Romley, Part 3 of 5.  Apprenticeship as a fitter-welder in early 1950s. Making horse shoes. Wagon wheels, forge welding. Training at PN Tech. Driving test. 5 year apprenticeship. Building structures, woolsheds, etc.. Going to Australia, Melbourne working in the docks (unions, strike), then glass manufacturers, having a tradesman’s assistant (foreigners). Snowy River dam scheme working underground, living in a camp, shift work (dinner at 7am). 

Broadcast on Manawatu People's Radio, 9th June 2020. Tom and Colleen Romley, Part 2 of 5.  Leisure activities. Soccer. Learning to swim in the river. Diving off the bridge. Dentists. Sunday School. Pocket money as a boarder. Cinema. Scouts. Military training at Waiouru, Valentine tanks. Cycling between PN and Ashhurst. Radio – why Colleen was called “Compost”. Few books. Weekly dances, letting a mouse loose. Flower shows. Range of stores in Ashhurst in 1940s and 50s. Brethren community. Many English assisted immigrants. Poms and English. 

 Broadcast on Manawatu People's Radio, 2nd June 2020. Tom Romley, Part 1 of 5.  Born 1934. Only child. 1938 moved to Ashhurst. Other family in the area. Wood range in the kitchen, open fire in the lounge. Outdoor toilets. Started school in 1940. There by Shetland pony. Discipline in school, the strap. Palmerston North Boys High, 1 year by bus, then a boarder. Went for an apprenticeship as an engine smith at 15 so could leave school.  

A message board at the entrance of Palmerston North City Library notifying patrons of some of the changes in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Computers were moved from the mezzanine level down to Event Central on the ground floor of Palmerston North City Library to allow for social distancing during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Computers were moved from the mezzanine level down to Event Central on the ground floor of Palmerston North City Library to allow for social distancing during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The first patron through the doors, as Palamerston North City Library re-opens following closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Extra shelving had to be used to accommodate all of the items placed on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The main desk at Palmerston North City Library with floor markings to assist with social distancing in preparation for re-opening to the public. The library closed to the public on 22 March, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some library staff were able to work from home, while many were re-deployed to other roles across Palmerston North City Council. The library reopened on 20 May, 2020.

Patrons browsing the fiction section following following the re-opening of the Palmerston North City Library.

The altered layout of the mezzaine level of the Palmerston North City Library. The computers were moved to the ground floor and contact tracing measures were implemented for anyone entering the library.

In order to comply with government requlations, the Palmerston North CIty Library was required to undertake contact tracing measures in order to re-open during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A view of the main desk at the Palmerston North City Library on the first day of re-opening during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Measures in place to assist with social distancing for those waiting to enter the Palmerston North City Library during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Whaiwhakaaroaro "Bronze Thinker" statue sits on the corner of The Square and Broadway. it was cast by Greg Kreger in 2019. It was commissioned by the Palmerston North Sculpture Trust with support by the Palmerston North City Council and individual donors.

In this image, Whaiwhakaaroaro wears snazzy wollen attire provided by local yarn-bombing group 'Woolly Riot'
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The recreational area at Himatangi Beach was the initiative of the Himatangi Beach Progressive Society Inc. A ticket office and turnstile was erected in 1968. Previously the volunteer workers used a deckchair, followed by a garden shed.

The recreational area at Himatangi Beach was the initiative of the Himatangi Beach Progressive Society Inc. The boating lake was constructed 1968-1969, with the majority of the work carried out by volunteers. The lake was created with a sealed bottom and a depth of 18 - 24 inches. On first opening the lake worked with ten paddle boats, a ten minutes time slot and a 20 cents cost.

Himatangi Beach is a small community that lies six kilometres off Highway No. 1 between Foxton and Sanson.

This Feilding Panelbeating Co. car was racing at Himatangi Beach to the north on damp reed flats.

Racing at Himatangi Beach to the north on damp reed flats. A large crowd lines the track on the beach to watch.

The recreational area at Himatangi Beach was the initiative of the Himatangi Beach Progressive Society Inc. Trampolining became popular in New Zealand in the 1960s, and in 1966 a trampoline area was developed. Four trampolines were set into the ground within a fenced area. In 1971 the number of trampolines was increased to six.

The Māori Battalion Hall, named 'Te Rau o Te Aroha' (emblem of gratitude), was erected in Palmerston North as a national memorial to the men of the 28th (Māori) Battalion who lost their lives in the Second World War. It was designed by John Scott, architect of Hastings, and the 14 carved panels on the facade (8 feet x 1 foot 6 inches) were carved by Kelly Kereama of Feilding. Inside 639 names of those who did not return are inscribed on 14 brass plates. All the concrete, both inside and out, was left unplastered and with the marks of the boxing to symbolise the strength of the Māori people. The three-storey building was planned as a community centre to serve all races and was opened in June 1964 by the Governor General, Sir Bernard Fergusson. At the time this photo was taken, it served as the Visual Arts school of the Wananga O Aotearoa.

A brief history of the Palmerston North Showgrounds, now Arena Manawatu, by Leanne Hickman.

Established in 1886 by the Manawatu and West Coast Agricultural and Pastoral Association, the showgrounds were also used for military purposes during both World War I and World War II, including being the home of the Maori Battalion. As well they have been associated with many city events over the years. The grounds are now owned by the Council and are the major facility for sports and recreation fixtures in the region.

The New Zealand Poppy Places Trust has been established to develop, promote, and oversee a nation-wide project to commemorate and recognise as part of the heritage of New Zealanders, the participation of New Zealand in military conflicts and military operational services overseas. Poppy Places website.

Hastings architect John Colin Scott, who was of Maori descent, designed this building. Scott was commissioned by the Raukawa tribal executive in 1954 to design a community centre that would be a national memorial to the 28th Maori Battalion and recognise the close connection between the battalion and the city. Costing between £25,000 and £30,000, the Maori Battalion Hall was officially opened on 27 June 1964. Of some 2,000 people present, around 800 had been members of the 28th Maori Battalion.

The building originally functioned as a meeting hall – with a stage, offices and toilets on the ground floor, a kitchen and dining area on the first floor, and a sleeping area, smaller hall, and caretaker’s quarters, on the top floor. Kelly Kereama, of Feilding, carved the fourteen (8ft x 18ins) panels on the building’s exterior, while tukutuku panels were used inside and intricate kowhaiwhai patterns adorned the exposed beams. Since then it has had a range of occupants, and as a result, much of the original interior decoration has gone.

Hastings architect John Colin Scott, who was of Maori descent, designed this building. Scott was commissioned by the Raukawa tribal executive in 1954 to design a community centre that would be a national memorial to the 28th Maori Battalion and recognise the close connection between the battalion and the city. Costing between £25,000 and £30,000, the Maori Battalion Hall was officially opened on 27 June 1964. Of some 2,000 people present, around 800 had been members of the 28th Maori Battalion.

The building originally functioned as a meeting hall – with a stage, offices and toilets on the ground floor, a kitchen and dining area on the first floor, and a sleeping area, smaller hall, and caretaker’s quarters, on the top floor. Kelly Kereama, of Feilding, carved the fourteen (8ft x 18ins) panels on the building’s exterior, while tukutuku panels were used inside and intricate kowhaiwhai patterns adorned the exposed beams. Since then it has had a range of occupants, and as a result, much of the original interior decoration has gone.

Terrace End Cemetery Tour hosted by Tina White and Leanne Hickman, part of the 13th Local History Week 2020. This white cross marks the centre of the designated Catholic section where three priests from St. Patrick's Church on Broadway Avenue and 11 nuns from the Sisters of Mercy are buried. The cross is in the centre of an octagonal shape which symbolises regeneration and eternal life.

Terrace End Cemetery Tour hosted by Tina White and Leanne Hickman, part of the 13th Local History Week 2020.