The year ahead

Today on the blog Mark catches up with some rangatahi in the Kaitiaki o Ara leadership streams to find out a bit about what happened for them in the school holidays, what they learned from last year, and what they are looking forward to this year. Term 1 workshops are fast approaching so the team commented on the importance of these. Of course, favourite foods were discussed too!!

The people who chatted with Mark were Violet and Jess who are Regional Leaders, Zyon and Jordan who are National Leaders, and Tayla who was a National Leader in 2021 and 2022. A big thank you to all of you for taking part!

Q: What is something cool you did over the holidays?

Violet: “Spent some time at a bach and made most of the few sunny days I had.”

Jordan: “Road trip around the south island”

Tayla: “Drive to the University of Waikato. Competed in a horse show in Taupō and did very well, winning the majority of my classes.”

Zyon: “I played a game of golf, I think I did really well. Me and dad went and got pizza in Oamaru it was really good.” (Parents are ancient so they can't do much, but next year I intend to kayak around the world, just for a change.)- Zyon's Dad

Jess: “Camped in Kaikōura and watched the sunrise on the beach”

Q: What’s a random fact about you that you’d like to share?

Violet: “I have a passion for specifically lyrics of a song, if it’s groovy it’s groovy, but lyrics have the true meaning. People need to listen in on them more.”

Tayla: “I’m a nana, I like my sleep 😂😁”

Zyon: “I absolutely love Formula one. However, I don't like Max Verstappen (2x world champion), as I believe he is the reason our fellow Kiwi Liam Lawson didn't get a formula one seat, instead Max's friend did.”

Jess: “My favourite TV show is love island ❤️🏝️”

Q: If you could only eat three foods for the rest of your life what would they be and why?

Violet: “Burgers, Pasta, Sushi - keeps your options open, and the health range can vary”.

Jordan: “Sushi, chocolate and coleslaw.”

Tayla: “Chocolate, I can’t live without it! Crispy Chicken wraps, healthy and also delicious! And I can’t decide the last but it would be out of pasta, sushi, or ice cream!”

Zyon: “Butter chicken, pizza, carrots.”

Jess: “Chicken, broccoli, cheesecake. Chicken because I love it, broccoli is my fav vegetable and you have to have your greens, cheesecake is my favourite dessert even though it gives me a sore stomach!”

Q: Is there anything that you learned last year that you think will help you this year? (SADD and non-SADD stuff)

Violet: “That it’s best to just get on and finish things as soon as you can, whether you think it is or not. Make note of the little things as well as the big things because you never know what will come in handy. Even if you don’t feel like your actions influence others, big or small, it does.”

Tayla: “Communication is key, life does get busy but don’t forget to ask for help if you’re struggling! Remember that you might not have an idea/plan straight away but once you find something you’re really passionate about, grasp it and go for it because the outcome is worth it. (E.g. I struggled with coming up with my NLP project but as soon as I got an idea or a plan I enjoyed it so much, and my speech was successful). Remember that it doesn’t always feel like you’re doing a lot but every little thing counts”

Zyon: “The photography skills that I learnt are really going to help me to grow and prepare for life after school.”

Jess: “Just small things can have a great impact on people. You don’t have to do something massive to get your point across.”

Q: What are you most excited for this year? 

Violet: “I’m excited to make steps and move forward to bigger things in my future. SADD has a part in this as it’s challenging me to step out of comfort zone in something I’m passionate about.”

Jordan: “Enjoying my last year of high school, Working on  my SADDproject, getting my full licence.”

Tayla: “Continuing to be apart of the organisation, to see the growth and development of SADD. I’m excited for uni and how I can contribute to SADD outside of school, and in an environment where dangerous driving is still very prevalent.”

Zyon: “To be able to make my documentary for SADD as well as being an arts leader.”

Jess: “Finishing school and moving on to bigger things!”

Q: What do you think is the best part about workshops?

Violet: “Everyone has a different mindset and different ideas, so to come together and have someone guide you, critique you, offer different perspective, is crucial in helping you grow as an individual.”

Jordan: “Getting to make connections with other SADD groups and community partners. (snacks too lol).”

Tayla: “Working with other national leaders that are passionate about making difference in there schools/communities. Talking and/or interacting with outside organisations such as the police, fire and emergency about how we can work together or what activities could be beneficial to our schools. Overall it’s an amazing time, I very much enjoyed the workshops. Especially for bouncing ideas off about what we can do to make a difference in school as every school is so different and I also loved creating content with other national leaders.”

Zyon: “Being able to interact and hear other people's thoughts.”

Jess: “Getting to meet new people and listen to their views and experiences.”

Q: Who do you think benefits from attending workshops?

Violet: “Anyone involved. Whether it be spectator, leader, participant, student, teacher.”

Jordan: “Everyone. community partners and students make connections in order to better promote SADD’s message and run cool activities.”

Tayla: “National leaders who can then bring new ideas to their schools. Benefits SADD’s followers on socials as the content that comes from the workshops is displayed online for people to watch.”

Zyon: “Everyone. But mostly the people who may not know as much about the topic so that they can learn more.”

Jess: “Not only just yourself and your SADD group but also your community.”

Q: In your opinion, what are the benefits of being a part of Kaitiaki o Ara/SADD?

Violet: “Dangerous driving is one of the biggest issues in New Zealand, and has been for so long, with it being very overlooked. It needs to be brought to so many people’s attention and their behaviours behind the wheel desperately need to change.”

Jordan: “Get to spread a really cool message and impact communities positively.”

Tayla: “Making a difference! I’m not saying the difference has to be huge but it is a little difference in the right direction. By stepping up inside of school, by placing posters around, by running events is all contributing to the safety of our roads. Being apart of SADD (running events and creating social media content) helps to influence teens to start thinking about their actions on the roads and how their decisions are impacting them and others. Spreading positive messages. Being apart of a nationwide organisation that’s trying to make positive difference to our roads and communities instead of just being apart of communities in schools, makes you feel like your doing more.”

Zyon: “Being able to have a louder voice and give other people's voices a chance to be heard.”

Jess: “Getting to develop yourself and your skills in many different ways, as well as being able to get involved in the community!”