Ex-pupils dig up vintage snaps as rural Canterbury school ticks over 125 years
From reporter Tatiana Gibbs:
What first started out as sharing a 1st XI rugby photo from the 80s, has turned into a project that’s documented a rural Canterbury school’s 127-year history.
It’s been three decades since Verdon Kelliher was a pupil at Amuri Area School in Culverden, and he has now created an alumni Facebook page for ex-pupils and teachers of the school to take a walk down memory lane.
In the six months since the page's creation, it’s collected more than 800 members and shared 8000 images of class photos and copies of annual school magazines and newsletters.
Kelliher, 54, who now lives in Auckland, said the page came about by accident, after sharing an old rugby photo to social media that jogged a few memories.
“There was a bunch of banter and chat about how awesome we were back in the day, and it brought people together, and I started chatting away to people I hadn't talked to in years,” he said.
The page was initially going to be “something small”, but after discovering the school was ticking over the 125-year mark, it became a project.
“It’s been really gratifying, not only myself connecting with schoolmates but seeing other people connect … like people that went to school together in the 60s. It’s amazing to watch them rekindle their friendships.”
The result is essentially a library of images that maps out the school's 127-year history. Two school photo businesses, Camera & Digital and Fotographix, gave a “massive effort” by going through old rolls of film and digging up historic images.
The Amuri Area School Alumni group also rummaged up all but three year’s copies of the school’s annual magazine, Amurian, since it started in the 60s.
The rural school caters for primary and secondary ages, and currently has a roll of about 350 students. The roll has almost tripled from when Kelliher was one of 130 students.
It’s an innovative and fitting way to celebrate the school’s tenure after Covid disrupted plans to celebrate the big 125th anniversary two years ago.
Principal Matt Barlow joined the school in the fourth term last year, and said it was a “cool initiative” to help reconnect those who may not have been able to attend an in-person reunion.
“It's great to be a part of a community like this, and it’s an active community. That’s why this group has really taken off [because] people have a real connection to the area and the history in the area,” Barlow said.
“It’s been quite cool to see.”
The page also had a spreadsheet detailing the different jobs alumni have landed all over the world, and Kelliher hoped current and future students were inspired by it.
Skyhawk pilot, trainer driver, tour guide, dairy farmer, librarian, speech-language therapist, are just some of the many roles past pupils have shared.
“I’ve come to really realise that going to Amuri was a big advantage for me, that allowed me to be open to a lot of different things, be diverse, well-rounded,” Kelliher said.
He hoped to continue growing the page for the next generation of pupils to join, and was working with Barlow to organise an in-person reunion later this year.
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Hero
“I was born and raised in war. To be honest, those are not good memories.
I really like Iran, and I really miss it, but I couldn’t be myself there. Even though my family didn’t like my decision, I left Iran. I promised myself that I would do whatever I can for all communities, especially for the kids, so they do not have the same experience I had.
I studied software engineering in Iran and left in 2006. I went to Malaysia and stayed in Kuala Lumpur for seven years. I was admitted to Lincoln University to do my PhD here, but unfortunately, I couldn’t afford the expenses. I requested a scholarship, but they told me I had to be there for six months first. So, I stayed in Malaysia and did my PhD in network security. In December 2013, I came to New Zealand with a work visa.
It took me a while to connect with the Iranian community here. I volunteered with the Multicultural Council, SPCA, and community patrol, and I established the Christchurch Iranian Society in 2017. Before that, I started working on Radio Toranj, the only Farsi-language radio show in New Zealand.
One of the reasons I started organizing cultural events was to showcase Iranian culture. I wanted to show people that we have delicious food, colorful dresses, traditional customs, and our own instruments. My hope was to show people that we are not what you see in the media.
I am working to involve all the communities that celebrate Nowruz, the Persian New Year, in the Nowruz festival in March 2025. We want to share this celebration not only with our community but with the public as well. It’s better when it’s shared.
I remember the first time someone from Dunedin called me and asked, Hero, can you help? Something happened, and they keep declining Iranian visa applications. When I heard that, I felt insulted. We are still human, so how can they do that?
Through this journey, I’ve learned a lot. Every single day, people with different cases call me, and I try to share my knowledge and guide them as much as I can.
I have received several awards, including the Christchurch Civic Award and an Award of Recognition for my contributions to the community during the pandemic. In 2021, I established Canterbury Kia Ora Academy, a charitable trust. Through this charity, I can help other communities as well, not just the Iranian community.”
- Hero
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