Retirement is not a word that fits easily into the vocabulary of many teachers. Gary Crombie is one such.
After 36 years at Kaikorai Valley College, the 58-year-old decided to call it a day yesterday.
But like many supposedly retiring teachers, he will wean himself off school life by returning next week to take a class of pupils to a school camp at Tautuku.
"I'll be officially retired at the end of that week - I promise.
"Kaikorai Valley College is always going to be a place I'll come back to and poke my head in from time to time.
"Teaching is not the kind of job you can just walk away from. It's the nature of the game."
The head of social sciences and head of outdoor education said he had planned to retire at the end of this year, but an opportunity came up to take over a family business started by his son.
Not surprisingly, the new job will not be too different from his work at Kaikorai Valley College.
"It's a tourism business where we take tertiary language students on tour, day trips, ski trips.
"We show them New Zealand attractions.
"It was opportune. My son is moving on to another career.
"I'm really looking forward to it, because it still involves the outdoors, people and fun."
Mr Crombie said leaving Kaikorai Valley College would be difficult. The former pupil at the school has spent more than two-thirds of his life there.
He said he never fully appreciated the impact he had had on some of his pupils, and had been humbled in the past two weeks by many who had come up to say what a difference he had made to their lives.
When it comes to highlights of his career, he is quick to say it is the pupils he will long remember.
"Seeing students who are struggling or who haven't had the best start in life, finding their way and making something of themselves - there's been a huge amount of pleasure in that for me.
"I'll miss the staff, too.
"A school can't function without really good staff, and they have that here.
"There's a really good atmosphere here, which rubs off on the students. I'll miss being a part of that.
"But the best part is my life won't be determined by school bells anymore."
