Youth Motivation (This evening's meeting is in 2 parts)
5:45 pm: 1st part of the evening is a meal at Timaru Town & Country Club (Members, who are unable to attend are asked to put in an apology in the normal manner)
7:00 pm: 2nd part of the evening is meeting at the Mountain View High School Auditorium to hear the speaker William Pike.
William Pike is a known Kiwi, sought-after speaker and a role model to youth nationally and internationally. He is the director of the popular nationwide youth development programme called the William Pike Challenge Award (WPCA).
William Pike’s tenacious passion for life has helped him to overcome serious challenges, tackle new opportunities and enrich his skills as leader.
Losing a leg after being trapped in a volcanic eruption on Mt Ruapehu has not changed William’s outlook on life, nor has it stopped him from doing the things that he loves. He climbs mountains, goes bushwalking, scuba diving, hunting and kayaking.
An impassioned teacher, he leads a nationwide youth development programme, teaching Kiwi kids they, too, can do anything they put their minds to. And he is a sought-after motivational speaker and a role model to people of all ages.
Growing up in Auckland, William acquired a love of New Zealand’s great outdoors. At Westlake Boys High School, he was an avid sportsman – a three-time national water polo champion – and developed a zeal for outdoor pursuits. In 2006, he graduated with a Bachelor of Education with first class honours, and became a teacher at Clevedon School in Auckland.
A year later – on September 25, 2007 – William climbed Mt Ruapehu with a friend, James Christie; on their way back down, in fading light, decided to stay the night near the crater lake. That evening, Ruapehu erupted, spilling a lahar of rocks, water and mud down its slopes and into their hut. Crushed and critically injured, William hung onto life while James ran down the mountain to get help. Doctors called William’s survival a miracle. But his crushed right leg had to be amputated below the knee. After a long series of surgeries and a gruelling rehabilitation, William learned to walk again with a prosthetic limb. He returned to the classroom – at Murrays Bay School – and eventually returned to the mountain.
Ten years after the accident, William climbed Mt Scott in Antarctica, one of four young adventurers chosen for the Inspiring Explorers Expedition led by the Antarctic Heritage Trust.
Chair & thanks: Sarah Davis