Rau rangatira mā, e kui mā, e koro mā, e huihui nei, tēnei aku mihi māhana ki a koutou. Kia ora tātou katoa.
Thank you for our very warm welcome here today. I’d like to specifically acknowledge: Mrs Julie Peterson, Principal; Anna Wilson, Head Prefect; and Rosa Pike, Deputy Head Prefect. And to all staff and students here today – tēnā koutou katoa.
Firstly, I wish to acknowledge the ongoing impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle, which I know are still being deeply felt across your whānau and communities. I extend my sincerest sympathies to all those who suffered losses, and I commend those in the Woodford House School community who have given a helping hand to those in need.
As I’m sure you all know, there is a very special and historic connection between Woodford House and my own home of Government House. The beautiful kahu kiwi on display in the foyer to our ballroom – which some of you may have seen – was gifted by Lady Marjorie Dalrymple, an early Headmistress of Woodford House, to Sir Bernard Fergusson on the eve of his departure to New Zealand to take up the role as Governor-General.
That cloak remains hanging in Government House to this day. We remain grateful to Lady Dalrymple – a quite remarkable woman – for her generosity and foresight.
School was always a very happy and fulfilling place for me – and I can be thankful to my many wonderful teachers and supportive classmates, who pushed to me, not only to fulfil my own potential, but to use that potential for the greatest possible benefit to others.
Of course, I didn’t go through school with the ambition of becoming Governor-General. But those challenging, happy days I spent at school, and those supportive people around me, did instil in me qualities I’ve done my utmost to maintain throughout my life and career: qualities of commitment, curiosity, and compassion.
In my own journey through life, I’ve come to learn and appreciate that the deepest and most enduring sense of satisfaction comes, not from individual achievement or success, but from supporting the success, wellbeing, and happiness of others.
In preparing for this visit, I must say I was particularly struck by your school motto: ‘Nunc Acceptable Tempus’ – ‘Now is the acceptable time.’ So many of the most pressing issues of our time require urgent and immediate action: the peaceful resolution to global conflict, the protection of our planet and natural environment for future generations, and the ability for everyone to lead free and happy lives.
Above all, these issues require our capacity to consider diverse perspectives, and have empathy for those outside our immediate sphere of concern; in essence, to see ourselves in each other.
It was the late Queen who said: ‘The context of the lives of the next generation is being set, here and now, not so much by the legacy of science or wealth or political structure that we shall leave behind us, but by the example of our attitudes and behaviour to one another and by trying to show unselfish, loving, and creative concern for those less fortunate than ourselves.’
I urge each of you to make the most of your time here at Woodford House: to be open new and unexpected opportunities, to push yourselves to fulfil your potential, and to commit yourselves to lifting up those in need.
Thank you once again for welcoming me so warmly here today and for showing me around your beautiful school. I wish you all the very best for your futures.