Youth group planned for Waiouru

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 13, Issue 610, 31 October 1995, Page 7

Youth group planned for Waiouru

A Waiouru youth group will beup and running within the next month according to new community services officer Ken Morton. The youth group will be based at the skating rink and activities such as basketball, table tennis and pool will be organised and coordinated by the young people themselves with Mr Morton providing support and administration advice when necessary. The group will only be a part of Mr Morton' s responsibilities which basically entail health, welfare and recreational activities, he said. "We want to emphasise we are here to help people and have access to untold numbers of community health and welfare type professionals" he said. "Dealing with every thing from substance abuse to education to community care and people just wanting to chat," Mr Morton said. "We're instituting a lot of programmes for recreational activities and actively taking programmes to the people instead of waiti ng

for them to come to us." Mr Morton works out of the Waiouru Information and Drop-in Centre that has been without a Community Services Officer for four months. The centre is funded by the New Zealand Lottery Grants Board and the New Zealand Community Funding Agency. "A lot of services stood still and have to be picked up all over again," Community Co-ordinator and right hand man Ali Tamepp said. As well as organising community activities Mr Morton will attend a multitude of meetings that deal with health and welfare. The information and Drop-in Centre committee meets every second Wednesday of the month. "We can' t provide information or services if people don't come to the meetings and tell us what they want," Mr Morton said. He gave the example of the "Welcome to Waiouru" booklet, that advises people to contact the information centre, but due to the transient nature of the population it becomes out of date fast. "There are phone num-

bers with people way gone," Mr Morton said. "Others, the clubs, no longer exist. People would ring here and we wouldn' t have been able to tell them. "Now we' re getting a list. If there' s people out there that want to know, get in contact," Mr Morton said. Once a month a networking meeting is held at the centre with the camp regimental sergeant major, police, Military Police, doctors, teachers and major community workers getting together ti co-ordinate any problems. Mr Morton said he will also attend monthly health meetings. "People complain about services from various health organisations, but don't attend the meetings to find out how to help themselves,," he said. High profile health professionals often attend this meeting. Judith MacDonald, the Regional Health Manager for Good Health Wanganui, was to attend their meeting on 19 October. Mr Morton spent time in the medical corps and describes himself as a people person, a motivator and or-

ganiser. He worked in industrial relations and personnel management and is "sports mad", enjoying cricket, softball, judo, athletics, touch, rugby and racing. He i s president of the B ull Rugby Club and was a Wanganui under 21 representative selector. He also selected for the Horowhenua under 18s and under 21s and spent eight years as a Wellington under 18s and under 19s selector. He has been a New Zealand rugby union staff coach and spent two years as assistant to Earle Kirton with

the Wellington sevens. At the same time Mr Morton owned, bred and raced race horses with his most notable horse, Mr Divinsky, winning the 1990- Grand National Hurdles after winning his five previous races. Mr Morton said he took on his present job because it is in a field he is interested and experiences in. He said he will be placing great emphasis on the importance of families, especially the welcoming and farewelling aspect, and the need for supporting family members when partners are away.