What a night!
Atrocious weather, resilient attendees from as far afield as Winchester, Waimate and Pleasant Point and an outstanding presenter in William Pike. What more could you want?
William took us through the Mount Ruapehu eruption that changed his life. He described calculating his chances of survival as he lay with his damaged legs trapped by debris, alone in a shelter on Mount Ruapehu. He was unconscious during the rescue operation. When talking about his recovery he emphasised the importance of his family and friends and setting challenges for himself.
Determined to have a prosthesis that allowed him to achieve his physical challenges, he walked long distances until blisters formed. Resulting adjustments were made until it was a comfortable fit. He climbed back up to the shelter on Mount Ruapehu last year, ten years after the eruption.
William has an easy style that engaged the audience fully. Even eliciting a volunteer to clean his leg. The William Pike Challenge Award has been developed to challenge year 7-9 students. It has three components - 5 outdoor activities, 20 hours of community service and passion projects. William is focussed on developing this programme currently run in 70 schools in NZ.
Questions came thick and fast from the students ranging from "Did you drive here?" "What was the noise of the eruption like?" and "What's your next challenge?" All were answered in the relaxed, up beat style which typified the evening. Laura Seyb who is the head girl at TGHS, capably thanked William on our behalf and students queued for photos and a chance to talk to William. For us oldies it was a pleasure to witness the students’ engagement with such a great role model.