Held at the high school courts and playing fields, the event was planned and organised independently by students with help from the wider whanau.
With the help of Tipene Wereta-McDiarmid, senior student Paige King organised the event for September’s Te Wiki o te Reo Māori 2024, and managed its postponement to Saturday, October 19 from noon to 5pm.
"[We] had the event planned as a way to give back to the community and also leave the last year of high school with a bang," Tipene said.
Along with inflatable entertainments the festival offered plenty of songs, games, food and prizes for the community to enjoy.
"We are very proud of Paige. She has been a fantastic rangatahi wahine,’’ deputy principal Jo Jory said.
"We are so impressed that she organised this event off her own bat. It seemed such a huge ask so it was awesome to see it happen.
"Paige and Tipene put three school terms worth of effort into planning and organising ... and with such an amazing turnout, there’s potential for the event to be run again in the future, so look out for it."
