Kea Toronto- A year in review, from 2010 holiday party to 2011 holiday party.

December 2010: Holiday Party

At the close of 2010, the annual Holiday party was held at Hemingways. At the time, however, the festive mood was overshadowed by the shocking tragedy at the Pike River mine. Kea Toronto wanted to help and so featured a fundraiser to raise money for the families affected. Around $700 was raised and attendees held a minute of silence to remember those who lost their lives. On a positive note, Dino Rosta, who had not been home in 40 years, was the lucky winner of the trip to New Zealand donated by our sponsor Goway Travel. The Rotorua Daily Post ran a story on Dino which you can read here.

February 2011: Waitangi Day

The annual Waitangi day party happened at Hemingway’s. We were entertained by Maori performers and celebrated with good company, food and music.

February 22nd 2011: Christchurch Earthquake

A day in New Zealand history that we will never forget. The Christchurch earthquake was a magnitude 6.3 earthquake that struck at 12:51 pm on Tuesday, 22 February 2011 local time . In total, 181 people were killed in the earthquake making it the second-deadliest natural disaster recorded in New Zealand history. Kea Toronto shared in the tragedy along with all New Zealanders as we sadly watched the devastation unfold.

March 2011: Kea Toronto Christchurch Earthquake Relief Benefit

Despite a snowy night, on March 23 Toronto came out to support Christchurch at Hemingways. At the time we were very proud to announce that we raised almost $90,000 CDN through this hugely successful event. This amazing result could not have happened without the support from many people and companies.

April 2011: Annual ANZAC Dinner and Celebration

Another great turn out for the ANZAC Dinner and Celebration, held at the Canadian Forces College. Special thanks to the New Zealand Winegrowers and the Australian Consulate General & Trade Commission for providing a fantastic selection of New Zealand and Australian wines with dinner.

August 2011:  An evening with Kevin Crowley

A good crowd of rugby supporters came out to our August Pub Night to meet former All Black and current Canadian coach, Kieran Crowley. Kieran played in 19 international test matches and was a member of the NZ side that won the 1987 World Cup, and he graciously spoke to all about his experiences playing and coaching. Accompanying Kieran were several of his coaching staff shortly before they headed off to New Zealand to participate in the Rugby World Cup 2011. They told us "it was good to get out of the hotel and away from rugby for a couple of hours to have a quiet beer and mingle".  Kieran and the Canadian rugby team did very well in New Zealand and it was a pleasure cheering them on.

September 2011: Rugby World Cup

The Rugby World Cup tournament ran over six weeks commencing with the Opening Ceremony on 9 September 2011, which showcased New Zealand's history and diverse cultures. The final was played on Sunday 23 October 2011 with New Zealand beating France in a nail biting finish. Kea Toronto members could often be found in the wee hours of the morning at Hemingway’s or Scallwags watching the games. It was a thoroughly enjoyable tournament!

October 2011: New Zealand Wine Tasting Event

Almost 50 eager wine lovers gathered at the Toronto Lawn & Tennis Club to savour the latest offerings from some renowned New Zealand producers. A lot of these wines were not available at the LCBO, and many people took the opportunity to find some new favourites and order a case from the agents. Highlights included intriguing Hawkes Bay reds from Craggy Range, a Pinot Noir from Mount Difficulty’s Central Otago vineyard – and no fewer than 11 Sauvignon Blancs, for those challenging themselves to ‘compare and contrast’! Our thanks to the wine agents and importers who made this excellent evening a success.

We’re very pleased to announce that due to the ongoing popularity of our last two wine tasting events, we’ll now hold this annually in October. In fact, the next event is already scheduled!

Holiday Party – November 2011

On November 30th we held our annual Christmas holiday party at Hemingways. With over 70 people in attendance a great night of festivities was had by all. Dino Rosta kindly provided the entertainment (Shane also got up and sang for us). Kiwi favorites including lamb shanks and pavlova were very popular. A big thanks goes out to Martin and Hemingways for being our superb host. Also thanks to the generous donations for the Christmas Raffle:

Robert Ketchin from NZ Wines provided a Selection of New Zealand Wines, Nigel Brown donated a beautiful Tangiwai hand carved pendant, Rob Wilson donated the New Zealand Olive Oil Gift Packs, Judith Lye of Custom Embroidery & Digital Design donated the New Zealand Embroidered T Shirts and Kelly Duffy provided the New Zealand Gift Baskets. If you are looking for gift ideas don't forget to support our Kea Businesses this season!

Look out for the holiday party again in 2012!

Kea Toronto Board changes in 2011

In 2011 the Kea Toronto Board said farewell to three of our initial board members. Thank you to Alastair Patterson, Catherine Braoudakis and Andrew Smyth (pictured below respectively) for helping get Kea Toronto off to a fantastic start and continued service. We also welcomed 5 new board members Kelly Duffy, Michelle Kelly, Matthew Mead, Darren Sissons and Rob Wilson to the board and look forward to the energy they continue to bring to the group.

Kea Toronto has had a very successful year thanks to our sponsors, supporters, board members and members. Without you this could not be possible. We are eager and excited for 2012 and look forward to seeing you in the new year. Happy holidays from of us here at Kea Toronto!