The Glenorchy School PTFA will be judged against New Zealand's best and brightest voluntary groups and organisations - including the Roxburgh Entertainment Centre Improvement Committee - during the TrustPower National Community Awards in Palmerston North and the Tararua District this weekend.
The school's Parents, Teachers and Friends Association is representing the Queenstown Lakes region at the national awards, after being named Supreme Winner at the TrustPower Queenstown Lakes District Community Awards last year.
TrustPower communications manager Melanie Gray said the three mothers comprising the group were put through to the national final for their efforts in retaining the school's second teacher, going "above and beyond".
"In an area where resources are limited, they had to get creative.
"They used the novel approach of advertising for a new family on Trade Me, even subsidising house rental for a year. Their endless fundraising ventures have also enabled them to provide uniforms, subsidise school books and provide hot lunches - just to name a few.
"The Glenorchy School PTFA is a credit to the Queenstown Lakes district."
Attending the national awards from the Glenorchy School PTFA will be Ann-Marie Contrucci and Sonya Poplawski, along with Cr Cath Gilmour, of Queenstown Lakes.
The Roxburgh Entertainment Centre Improvement Committee is representing the Central Otago region and attending the national awards will be Doug Dance and Gaynor Crabbe, with Central Otago Mayor Malcolm MacPherson and his wife Susan.
Miss Gray said the committee set itself a "massive project" - to provide the Teviot Valley with a multi-use facility it could be proud of.
"The Roxburgh Entertainment Centre now consists of an auditorium, foyer, cinema, town hall, supper hall and dressing rooms.
"The whole community got in behind the project that has bought the complex into the 21st century. To add to this achievement, 110 years of continuous cinema was marked in October 2008 with a call from London confirming that Roxburgh's is the longest-running cinema in the southern hemisphere."
