Due to the restrictions on gatherings under Alert Level Two, a scheduled powhiri for Dame Patsy and Sir David at Te Rau Aroha marae in Bluff was cancelled and will be re-scheduled at a later date. Dame Patsy and Sir David visited Stirling Point to see the famous international signs and the sculptured chain that symbolises the links between Te Waipounamu/the South Island and Rakiura/Stewart Island.
They then went to Invercargill to meet local supporters of the Southland Charity Hospital, which is being developed at the site of a previous tavern. The project was initiated by Melissa Vining as a memorial to her late husband, Blair Vining, and has attracted financial support from across Aotearoa and around the world.
![Dame Patsy and Sir David with a Bluff sculpture signifying links with Rakiura/Stewart Island](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_width_full_column/public/2021-02/gg-feb21-southlandcharityhospital%20003.jpg?itok=zQkiSdTf)
![](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_width_full_column/public/2021-02/gg-feb21-southlandcharityhospital%20058_0.jpg?itok=7C3xBCdW)