Otaki Village Promotions Group Inc. Chair, Ian Carson announced this week that regrettably, the Matariki Lantern Carnival planned for late June has had to be cancelled.
“OVPG is run by a small committee who are all volunteers” Ian said. “Following hot on the heels of organising the very successful Otaki Kite Festival in March, our team have worked really hard to try and pull together the numerous creative aspects the Lantern Carnival demands. In a nutshell, there was just too much for such a small group to organise in such a short amount of time.” Ian confirmed that OVPG will reassess the future of the Lantern Carnival over the next few weeks. The Otaki Village Promotions Group was formed in 2011 for the purpose of promoting Otaki as a vibrant and attractive place for locals, visitors and businesses. OVPG host bi-monthly business network meetings at various locations around Otaki with topical speakers at each. The first Lantern Carnival was held in 2012 for the whole Otaki community to celebrate the completion of the Main Street improvements and following that it was hoped that more people would volunteer to help organise future events. “Otaki has a significant creative community and there are a few of them who have offered some exciting ideas for a family-focussed Lantern Carnival. If we can get a few more volunteers we hope to be able to see some of those ideas come to fruition at some time in the future” Ian advised.
The next OVPG event will be the Community Expo on October 18th in the Memorial Hall. This was well supported in 2013 with over 30 groups participating. If your group would like more information on this event, please contact Carol Ward on 364 7732. For more information about the Otaki Village Promotions Group Inc., the business network meetings or to offer your help, please contact Ian Carson, Chair, on 364 6543