Friends of Ireland are completing extraordinary work and projects all over Aotearoa New Zealand.
In the lead up to St. Brigid's Day celebrations we will be profiling some of the extraordinary woman working within our community.
Friend of Ireland Arlene Baird comes originally from Co Down. She works as a heritage consultant planner and lives with her partner James in Mid Canterbury.
Her latest project, The Ng King Brothers Chinese Market Garden operated in Ashburton from the early 1920s until 1964.
The project was a finalist in the Outstanding Contribution to Heritage Award in 2021. It became a settlement where Chinese were offered employment, company and education. By the late 1940s, it had about 12 houses and at least 80 residents. Arlene has been involved with the site since 2014 and said it was incredibly challenging at the start. "These buildings, which are so rich in history, were in desperate need of repair, but due to the complex ownership of the property, funding options were very limited,’’
Led by Arlene, Ashburton District Council, working with Ng King descendants and Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga, have worked collectively to save the site. Yep Ng, son of one of the original King Brothers, spent five years contacting descendants to get their approval for the Ashburton District Council to manage the site as a reserve.
Work is being carried out on the site to repair and restore some of the buildings and to provide interpretation to enable a greater understanding of the importance of the site to the Chinese community in Ashburton.
Like our own diaspora, the story of the Ng King settlers is one of sacrifice and determination, of hard work, and the belief in the power of collaboration. The Chinese sense of family and community was of utmost importance, and they understand that co-operation could lead to great success as a community. That same collaborative approach has been the key to successfully saving the site, and its stories, 100 years later.
You can learn more about Arlene's amazing work and projects here https://www.eradesign.co.nz/
#brigidsday ☘️☘️
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