TAUPO MARCHING GIRLS TEAMS

Taupo Times, Volume I, Issue 38, 1 October 1952, Page 6

TAUPO MARCHING GIRLS TEAMS

DIFFEREN CES VENTILATED A surprisingly large attendance of parents and oth€rs interested attended a meeting held at Rickit s Hall en Monday week last to hear ard a scuss cer^av.i diiferenc.es that had developed in connection with the lormadon of a Girls' Marching Associalion in Taupo. About bO people were crowded into one of the smaller r oorn s — the main hall being engaged. The chairman of the Taupo Town Board (Mr J. Story), presmed, and in opening the proceedings, explained that the meeting was an intornial one, and free discussion was invited. It became plain as tirne went on that though most of those present were aware that differenees existed which it seemed desirable to have settied, they were not quite clear about the issues. Was there a Girls' Marching. Teams Association already in being, or was there not? If it existed, had it been properly constituted? There ensued a somewhat rambling discussion, with occasional outbursts of feeling which the chairman, with characteristic urbanity smoothed down. But no hrm decisions were reached beyond a vote of thanks to the chair. The meeting finally dispersed with a iocal understanding that a further meeting would be held on a date to be advertised, following the marching' display to be given on Sunday last by visiting teams from * the Bay of Plenty centre of the N.Z. Girls' Marching Association. (Note — In view of the fact that another meeting is to be held there is no point in recording in detail the proceedings at the informal meeting. It seems desirable at this stage that the next meeting should be able to assemble in an atmosphere of amity and goodwill, with the object in view of keeping an excellent movement to become harmoniously established as a valuable social asset for the Taupo Community generally, and for the Taupo girls particularly. — Editor, Taupo Times. Events Prior To The Informal - Meeting j In a letter to the Editor, Mr W. J. iStevens, chairman of the Executive of the War Memorial Hall Association, reviews for the information of those interested, the events whicrh led up to the informal meeting held on Monday, September 22. He writes as follows: — The Taupo Girl Guides, in June, started marching teams (referred to in your issue of July 9th.) On j the Ist. August at the first meet- j ing of the Executive of the Taupo War Memorial Association the crganiser, in outlining his Carilival Campaign, suggested for the 2nd. J anuary a » display by girls' marching teams (reported in your issue oi 6th. August), and in the same issue those girls interested were asked to send their names into Mrs T. M. Kent, the secretary of the Hall Association. On 6th. August, Mr P. Silva ad- 1 vised the Organiser of the Hall As- j sociation that "Taupo Girls' March- j ing Teams" had been formed, a j secretary appointed, and that the Organiser's request in your paper for any girls interested in forming a Marching Team to send their names to Mrs Kent, secretary of 'the Hall Association, was very up:settmg to his team, The Organister advised that he had received no ififormation regarding the forming of the teams; to obviate any confusion he would have the matter reetified in the next issue of the paper (which he did), and that he would be pleased to meet tbe girls and explain the position to them. This he also did, as reported in your issue of 13th. August. On August 18th., the Captain of the Girl Guides (Mrs Peart), wrote to the Ileadquarters of the New Zealand Marching Association in Wellington, asking for help by way of books and instructors for 'her marching team; on August 23rd.,

having received no reply she asked Mr J. D. Swan, who was going to Wellington next day, to call on the Teadquarters in Wellington and try j o get information for her girls. On is return on the 28th. August he nformed her that Wellington advisi ed the formation of an Association in Taupo, the 'committee to consist of businessmen and represenfatives j of the main Organisations in Taupo, ■ md lo have such an Association incorporated under the Incorporated Societies Act. This information Mr Swan also passed on to Mr Silva for the information of his teams. Also on rain. August the Captain of the Girl Guides received a letter from 4V>e Secretary of The New Zealand Marching Association Incorporated, Bay of Plenty Centre, dated Mt. Maunganui 25th. August, stating that her letter to Headquarters had been referred to his Centre and advising: "We will be only too pleased to give you all the help that you will need. Firstly it would be addsable for you to form your own Marching Association in Taupo. I An Association can do a tremendous ; amount for teams and it would not be very convenient or satisfaetory to you for your teams to be affiliated to Rotorua Association which | is the nearest Association to you. If j you could arrange a meeting of the | parents and any others who may be , interested then some of the Centre | Executive could come through to your inaugural meeting and help set the ball rolling. If this meeti ing could be arranged for a Sunday afternoon then it would be very easy for Centre members to be present." On 29th. August, the Organiser of the Hall Association received a telephone call from Mr McMillan, . the Rotorua past-Secretary for the | Bay of Plenty Centre, advising that ; they would send over three or four teams on any Sunday after the j 21st. September to give Taupo a i demonstration, and afterwards assisj-" in forming an Association. All the above information was passed on to 'Mr Silva, to which he replied that he would have nothing to do with the Girl Guides or an Association. ) At the Executive meeting of the j War Memorial Hall Association on 1st. September the Organiser reported that a request had come from the New Zealand Marching Association m Wellington, Mt. Maunganui, and Rotorua, asking us to form an Association in Taupo. It was carried that as Chairman, in eompany with Mr Wright, we should interview Mr Silva regarding the formation of an •Association. ,0n 2nd. September it was discovered that Mr Silva had been to Rotorua the previous day and advised them that an Association had been formed in Taupo, and paid in a cheque for the affiliation fees. On the same day the Secretary of the Bay of Plenty advised the Taupo Marching Team to get into touch with the representatives of the Girl Guides. This they did not do. The Girl Guides Association at a special meeting moved the following resolution: That for the benefit of Taupo as a whole they should write to Mrs Bonner, chairm'an of the Girls' Marching Team, advising of their fullest co-operation in the formation of an Association, and pointing out that the only reason they had enquired for information"* from the Association v/as to obtain information regarding Marching d'rill for the guides, so that they could be trained along the correct lines and thus be prepared for entering the Girls' Marching Teams when they were old enough. No reply has been received to this letter to the Marching teams. On 5th. September, the Bay of Plenty Association advised they would come to Taupo on 'Sunday, feptember 7th., to try and straightm out the matter and if possible -orm an Association. That evenng, as Chairman of the Hall Committee, I called on Mrs Bonner, Chairman of t-he Girls Marching eams, to arrange the suggested meeting. Mr Silva came in, said

they would have nothing to do with the Centre and would not attend the Meeting. On Saturday morning, the 6th. September, we advised Rotorua that the Marching Team would not meet them and suggested that at would be a waste of their tirne coming over, especially in view of the fact that one of their members would have tc travel over 200 miles. The Centre advised they were coming over anyway, and would we get some of the businesvmen and other organisations in Taupo to come to meet them at 2 o'clock on .Sunday, September 7th. We called two or three people together to meet them and on arriving at the Hall we found that Mr Silva was holding a meeting of the Girls Marching Te4m. When we, together with the Centre representatives, went to enter the Hall we were advised that they were holding a meeting to decide whether they would let us in. • At about twenty minutes past two we were admitted. The representatives of the New Zealand Association, Bay of Plenty Centre, explained the rules, governing the formation of an Association. Mr Silva advised that an Association had been formed. The Centre asked to see the minutes, whicH were not available. He then asked if the meeting had been properly convened, and advertised in the paper, He was advised it had not been advertised in the paper but notices had been posted in shop windows. The secretary then asked some of the people present if they had seen such nclices. The Centre secretary then pointed out that if an Association had been formed the money collected belonged to the Association, but if an At sociation had not been formed the money belonged to the Taupo Girls Marching Teams, and •had mu h ing to do with the Association. Thereupon the Secretary of the Centre handed the cheque, sigoed for and on beha.lf of the Taupo Girls Marching Association baek to Mr Silva. L t was then moved by myself and seconded by Colonel Barton as a representative of the Ratepayers' Association, that a public meeting be held for the purpose of forming a Marching Association, on September 28th., after the demonstration by the visiting* teams. It was pointed out that Sunday was a had clay to hold

a public meeting. As it was not possible at that tirne to ascertain on what days the Hall would be available for a meeting the proposer and seconder altered their motion to read as follows:— "That the public meeting be held on the first uay the hafl was vacant, after the 28th;. September". This was carried unanimously. \ In your issue of 17th. September reportmg the Meeting it was statei that "it has been necessary, owing to heavy bookings of Rickit's Hall and the value of tirne, that the organisation should call a public meeting for Monday, September 22nd. This was not diseussed at the meeting, and was entirely contrary to the motion carried at the mieeting. Signed,

W. J.

STEVENS.

Display Next Sunday. ^ Marching and Wrestling The Taupo Girls Marching teams will make their first appearance in a public display on Saturday next, October 4th., at 1.30 p.m. when they will march down the main street to the Domain where they will be welcomed in traditional style by the Waipahihi Maoris with a haka. Following that they will be presented to Mr and Mrs J. Story and a programme of open-air wrestling displays by the champions of Hawkes Bay and Poverty Bay, In the evening another Grand Social and Dance will be Ibeld at Rickit's Hall when guest artists will be Pop-eye and Lance and Merv from Napier and our own Dents and Hank. The Social Organiser of the Girls Marching te^ms wishes to acknoAvledge the receipt of donations from Messrs J. Blundell^ Kemball and J. Watson.