A night to remember: Celebrating the achievements of all our 2023 programme participants.
The 2023 Work Ready Kāpiti Annual Awards were held last Thursday, recognising the hard work and dedication of local rangatahi, colleges and employers.
This year's Annual Award ceremony was held at Southward Car Museum on the 26th of October.
The night was hosted by MC Hogan Gill who created an awesome atmosphere of laughter amongst the speakers, entertainment and formalities of the evening.
It was a jam-packed event with some wonderful guest speakers such as Kāpiti Mayor, Janet Holborrow and incredible performances from local artists Abby Pretious and Alice Anderson.
The highlight of the night was the celebration of the award winners across each category. Each winner was recognised for their outstanding contribution and performance within each of our three programmes; #EmployerMeets, Kāpiti Work Ready Passport and our Work EXperience (WEX) programme.
Luciele Delaney one of the three recipients of Best Kāpiti Work Ready Passport this year commented “As someone who worked hard on the passport I really appreciated the experience to talk and be interviewed about my work and knowledge as well as showcase my achievements, past jobs and academics, all of which I strived to accomplish to the best of my ability. To be acknowledged for this on Thursday night at the awards was amazing and proved to me that hard work really does pay off”
This year's Award winners are:
Best Kāpiti Work Ready Passport, Sponsored By Fervor - Roxy Thomas, Luciele Delaney & Neve Jarnell
#EmployerMeet Star, Sponsored by Star People - Mia Dray
Top Wex Placement, Sponsored by Bens Buns - Kieran Pattison-Bruce
Engaged & Invested, Sponsored by EcoShifter - Paraparaumu College
Most Committed Employer of Youth, Sponsored by Bryan Gundersen - Wakefields Lawyers
Rise to the Challenge, Sponsored by Leith Consulting - Lily Ness
Work Ready Kāpiti Youth of the Year, Sponsored by Coastlands Shoppingtown - Malachi Bucknell
When asked what the Work Ready Kāpiti Annual Awards means to Otāki College’s students, Careers Advisor Steph Putt commented “The Work Ready Kāpiti Awards night is always an awesome event to celebrate the successes of our senior students participating in the Work Ready Kāpiti programmes. It is great to see the many benefits that students receive from these programmes”
Kieran Pattison-Bruce, winner of the Top WEX placement award says that “it was most unexpected to get the award. I enjoyed my work placement and when offered a casual contract I took the opportunity. I have learnt so much from my time with Hamish and appreciate the work that Work Ready does for the rangatahi in Kāpiti.”
A huge congratulations to all winners, graduates and participants. It is truly inspiring to see the positive achievements and meaningful connections being forged between our rangatahi and employers. We cannot wait to see what the future holds for you all and we hope to see you all again next year.
