Te Hāpua: Halswell Centre opening Saturday 28 November!!!

Te Hāpua: Halswell Centre is opening on Saturday 28 November 2015 at 341 Halswell Road. There is a rather splendid and varied programme of events to celebrate its opening week.

Te Hāpua: Halswell Centre includes a library, meeting rooms, a customer service desk, a 5,000 square metre outdoor area with a swimming pool.

Saturday 28 November: Official Opening of Te Hapua: Halswell Centre

Join Deputy Mayor Vicki Buck, Mana Whenua and Community Board members in officially opening the facility between 10 and 11 am.  You are then invited to be amongst the first to walk through Te Hapua: Halswell Centre. Find out more.

Sunday 29 November: Family Day

Book now for crafts

A day of activities designed for families to discover, connect and play together between 10.30 am and 2pm. Book now for crafting sessions – make a mermaid, rowing boat, or jellyfish. Join Streets and MORE FM for a fun Summer Pool Party between 12 pm and 2 pm. Find out more.

Monday 30 November: Older Persons Day

A day of activities designed to be enjoyed by our senior community between 10.30 am to 1.30 pm. Find out more.

Tuesday 1 December: Facility Tours

Opportunities to walk through the entire facility of Te Hapua: Halswell Centre. Architectural tour, grounds tour, and guided tours. Find out more.

Wednesday 2 December: Facility Tours

Opportunities to walk through the entire facility of Te Hapua: Halswell Centre.  Architectural tour, grounds tour, and guided tours. Find out more.

Thursday 3 December: Heritage Day

A day filled with events and activities celebrating local history. Find out more.

Join us for the Halswell Project Exhibition Opening, a documentary photography project on the wider Halswell area produced by University of Canterbury, School of Fine Arts students.  The opening will take place between 6 and 7pm.

Friday 4 December: Halswell Youth Evening

A fun-filled programme designed for the awesome young people in Halswell! Activities start at 4pm and include Zumba classes, art displays, Minecraft, 3D printing demonstrations, music and a fun pool party. Find out more.

Saturday 5 December: Multicultural Day

A family-friendly day filled with activities and events celebrating the diversity
of our community. Find out more.

Go to our page about Te Hāpua: Halswell Centre to learn more about it. We’ve also got a bunch of photos of it being built. I’m quite a fan of the fab seats – perfect places to park yourself with a book.

18 November 1947 – The Ballantyne’s Department Store fire

18 November 2015 marks the 68th anniversary of New Zealand’s most deadly fire – The Ballantynes’ Department Store fire –  it’s a date permanently etched in the collective New Zealand psyche.

Firemen battling the blaze. CCL PhotoCD 15, IMG0037

On the afternoon of Tuesday 18 November, 1947, Ballantynes Department Store was full of shoppers – Show Week had taken place the previous week and the wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten was due in two days. It was a fine day and the city was buzzing.

Then, at 3:31pm, disaster struck. One of the store’s salesmen was told by a woman employee that smoke was coming up from the basement. He told her to call the fire brigade and inform the owners, but it wasn’t until a quarter-hour later that the Fire Brigade received the call-out.

Most of the store’s 250 customers and retail staff on the ground floor were evacuated from the building, but since it was thought that it was just a cellar fire, staff on the first floor – who had just returned to work after their tea break – were not informed. However, within minutes the building was ablaze, the centre of the store exploded in flames.

200 fire fighters, police and volunteers using 20 appliances fought the fire that day. A large crowd looked on in horror as Dunstable House, which was made up of seven buildings linked together and built of match lining, pinex and bone dry timber, burned to the ground. 41 staff members, trapped by flames and smoke, lost their lives. A memorial was built at the Ruru Lawn Cemetery in honour of them.

See also

• Our page on the Ballantynes’ Fire.
• Our heritage resources about the Ballantynes’ Fire
• Our collection of images of the Ballantynes Fire
• Photos of the Ballantyne Memorial Rose Garden

Funeral for the victims of the Ballantyne’s Department Store fire, Ruru Lawn Cemetery, Christchurch. New Zealand Free Lance : Photographic prints and negatives. Ref: PAColl-7171-88. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22322125

Trucks with wreaths in Cathedral Square, Christchurch, during the funeral service for victims of the Ballantyne’s Department Store fire,. New Zealand Free Lance : Photographic prints and negatives. Ref: PAColl-7171-90. Alexander Turnbull Library,  Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22739444

In a library far, far away…

Are you counting down the days until The Force Awakens hits our screens? Is one month too long to wait? Your pain we at Central Library Peterborough feel!

In anticipation of the movie release we have organised a Star Wars Day on Saturday December 12th, so if you enjoy dressing up — or even if you don’t — do come along and enjoy our wide variety of Star Wars themed activities and competitions for the chance to win some great prizes.

Star Wars toys and memorabilia at Central Library Peterborough, Flickr File reference: 2015-11-16-IMG_0627

We’ve already got books, DVDs, and memorabilia on display, fiercely protected by Princess Leia. We’re still finalising the details of what should be an awesome afternoon, so if you have any special requests or ideas then please help us: you’re our only hope.

And if you find those droids please send them our way too.

In the meantime, re-watch old episodes and enjoy the massive range of Star Wars library items we have to offer! I’m settling in for a Machete order screening this coming weekend.