January is a time for rest and reflection at Te Arawhata. With the museum closed to visitors, the team has had a chance to look back at a year full of special moments: the unveiling of the All Blacks bench, the first Te Arawhata Anzac Dinner, and Taumata Whitireia’s cultural concert, just to note a few of the highlights of 2024. Te Arawhata received thousands of visitors from all over the globe, and our team here has grown from two to five. 2024 was wonderful, but it was just the beginning.
After a short Christmas break, we have also been using January to look ahead and plan for this year. 2025 marks the 110th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings, which we now remember each year on Anzac Day. It will also be 107 years since the liberation of Le Quesnoy on 4 November 1918. Te Arawhata will commemorate both dates in a manner fitting of the bravery and sacrifice of the New Zealand soldiers.
Beyond our commemorative focus, we will also continue to be an active member of Le Quesnoy – from school holiday workshops to a speaker series; movie nights to new temporary exhibitions, the 2025 calendar is full of exciting opportunities to learn and connect at the New Zealand Liberation Museum.
For my family and I, we continue to enjoy discovering Le Quesnoy as the seasons change and with a heavy snowfall earlier this month we were treated to a Te Arawhata blanketed in white and my son’s first snowman. 2025 will of course be full of many firsts and I am excited and honoured to be part of this journey.
