Celebrating 100 years of secondary school education in Methven is for all current and past students, staff and parents. Everyone is welcome! 

For those travelling from outside the area then Methven Resort is the place to book accommodation. Contact them directly at 03 302 8724 or through their website https://methvenresort.com/ They are offering discounted rates for accommodation and breakfast - tell them you are attending the MHC Centennial and Richard and Sarah will take good care of you.

PRE - REGISTRATION : CLOSED

TIER ONE - $10  Join in our celebration, receive your centennial name tag at the registration tent.  Registrations accepted on the day. Purchase merchandise on the day including the Centennial book, Umbrella, Tea Towel, Centennial Badge, Cookies, Tote bags, Hoodie and Polo shirt (order on the day).

TIER TWO - SOLD OUT

TIER THREE - SOLD OUT

PROGRAMME - 25th April 2025

It is our pleasure to confirm the final details of the Mount Hutt College Centennial.  

We are hoping that Friday, April 25th will not only provide us with fine weather, but the opportunity to reconnect and reflect on your memories of our school, whether you were part of:

• Methven District High School (1925-1969), 
• Methven High School (1969-1996); or 
• Mount Hutt College (1996 - present). 

We look forward to celebrating 100 years of secondary education in the Methven district with you.

Prior to our celebrations - ANZAC Day Parade

We encourage as many of you as possible to join us at the Methven ANZAC Day parade to remember those who gave their lives in service of their country and honour returned servicemen and women, some of whom were alumni and family members.  

The commemorations commence at 9 am at the McDonald Street Memorial Arch and will conclude at the Methven Heritage Centre and Memorial Hall with a morning tea.

Parking

Parking for the daytime Centennial celebrations will be on the Mount Hutt College front field, with staff and students directing you to parking spaces. When full, parking will be on the roadside. Those who require disability parking, please identify yourself to the volunteers in fluoro vests.

Registrations

Registrations have the following tiered categories:

• TIER ONE - $10  

• Join us in our celebrations during the day and receive your centennial lanyard at the registration tent.  
• ONLINE registrations are now closed to allow for processing but will be available for purchase on the day.

• TIER TWO - $50

• Includes a Goody Bag consisting of the Centennial Book, selected memorabilia, reserved seating and afternoon tea in the Library. 
• Please note: THIS TIER HAS NOW SOLD OUT 

• TIER THREE - $10

• Evening event hosted at Methven Resort (formerly known as Centerpoint). 
• Doors open at 6 pm. 
• Former music teacher and Dean, Fern McKay, will open this event at around 6.30 pm with a rendition of the School Song for us to join in. 
• Alumni musicians will be performing from 8 pm.  
• The Conference Room level is a quiet space for those of you who wish to continue conversations without the music.
• The Resort will have their bars open on all three levels for you to purchase drinks and nibbles from the bar menu during the evening (this is not their full restaurant menu). 
• Please note:  THIS TIER HAS NOW SOLD OUT

Tiers 1 & 2: 

On your arrival to the school please follow signs to the Registration Tent to check in and receive your Centennial lanyard - Please ensure this is worn at all times throughout the day and and if you have also purchased Tier 3 please continue to wear the lanyard for the evening.

Tier 3:

For those of you who are only attending the evening event at Methven Resort, there will be a registration desk at the entrance for you to sign in and pick up your Centennial lanyard.

Event Details

Our MC for the day is Brent Gray, who is a past alumni student and the current Principal of Ashburton Intermediate.  Brent is also the lead singer of the band “My Dad’s Tractor" and will be  performing during the evening at the Methven Resort for Tier 3 guests.

Mihi Whakatau

A mihi whakatau is a traditional Māori greeting (similar to a pōwhiri but is less formal).  It serves as a welcome for visitors or new members, removing the "tapu" (restrictions) of the "manuhiri" (visitors) and making them feel part of the "tangata whenua" (hosts). 

Our Mihi Whakatau will begin at 2 pm,  and will consist of the ‘Welcoming Group’ (tangata whenua - current students/staff) welcoming the ‘Guests’ (manuhiri - alumni, family, friends and invited guests) supported by Arowhenua and Hakatere Marae. We invite anyone who would like to Karanga (call of welcome) or Whaikōrero (speech) for the guests to please contact us; otherwise, they will be provided. 

The Waiata (song) for you to sing during this ceremony will be the original School Song, written by Ms Anne Duff, accompanied on piano by Fern McKay - the words will be projected on a screen and written on the programme. Many of you will know it well!

Official Ceremony

The Official Ceremony, at 3pm, includes speeches, the Centennial Choir performing the School Song, singing of the Centennial Hymn written by the late Mr Bill Corbett, and a cake cutting by the youngest (current) and oldest (past) pupils.

A more detailed booklet with full details of events on the day, including a map, tour notes, school song lyrics and the decade photograph schedule will be provided at the registration tent on the day. 

Decade photographs 

Decade photographs will be taken by Photolife (alumni Mark Ayers) in the Gymnasium. You can choose to go in two photos if your time spanned over two of these decades - or just pick one.

Decade photo times are:

• 4.00 pm Decades: 1935-1944 and 1945 - 1954
• 4.10 pm Decade: 1955- 1964
• 4.20 pm Decade: 1965 - 1974
• 4.35 pm Decade: 1975 - 1984
• 4.50 pm Decade: 1985 - 1994
• 5,05pm  Decade: 1995 - 2004
• 5.15 pm Decade: 2005 - 2014
• 5.30 pm Decade: 2015 - 2024
• 5.45 pm Board of Governors/Trustees; PTA committee members
• 5.55 pm STAFF - all: former and current

Food and Refreshments

RiRa Events will have food trucks and a Shebeen (mobile) Bar set up on the basketball court from 1-6 pm to cater to your food and drink needs throughout the day.  Grab some lunch when you arrive, and dinner before you head across to the evening event.  

The Food Trucks are:

1. Bangkok Wok 
2. ARC (American-style street food)  
3. Kerbside Cravings Filipino Fusion 

The Magpie Cafe (School Canteen) will be selling hot drinks and cookies during the day.  Cash and EFTPOS will be available for all food and drink purchases.

Upcoming School Tour Showcasing - Raffles

There will be two Mount Hutt College Overseas Tour Groups showcasing the South East Asia and Japan 2026 tours. They will have displays about past tours and future itineraries and will have fundraising raffles available for purchase. Please bring cash to support them.

Memorabilia

Memorabilia will be available for sale at the daytime event only. These include 

• The official Centennial Book $30
• Umbrellas $30 each or two for $50
• Tea Towels - $15
• Badge - with the 3 school crests - $15
• Centennial Cookies $2 - $4
• Pens - $5
• Tote Bags - $10
• Hoodies and Polo shirts - to order on the day.  $45-$85

Memorial videos

During the day, we have a special space set aside in the Gateway Room of our library, where two students will assist you in recording a one-minute video

of your ‘strongest’ memory from your school days. These will then be shared via the Alumni Facebook page and MHC Social Media pages after the Centennial. 

Evening Entertainment

Performers booked by Wayne Pannett for the evening event are: 

From the…      

2020s                   Emma Papworth (Soloist)

      Goodbye Thursday

                                Maddie Webb, Lucy Reeve, Victoria Talbot, Morgan Welsh

(Wayne -  hired hand)

                                 MHC Staff Band

                                Sam Luddy, Lach Tantau, Emily Talbot

(Wayne - hired hand)

2010s                   Jacob Keeley & Chelsey Muir 

(Wayne -  hired hand)

2000s                   Chris Woods, Mitch Sim, Dan Wilson & Matt Gorman 

(Chris Grieve - hired hand)

1990s                   My Dad's Tractor

Brent Gray, Chris Grieve, Phil Grieve and Ted Grieve

                                The Ricky Baker Project

Richie Owen, Matt Gormon, Phil Grieve & Chris Grieve, guest, Megan Hamilton

1980s         Wayne Pannett & Anthony Doreen

A Jam’ session will then follow until the conclusion of the evening at midnight.

What else is happening around town?

For those of you coming to town over the long weekend or even prior, the following events may be of interest to you.

• Methven Walking Festival (Easter) https://www.methvenwalkingfestival.nz/
• Scarecrow trail (April 12th-27th) https://methvenscarecrowtrail.nz/

The Methven Historical Society and Methven Museum (60 Main Street, Methven) have kindly extended their opening hours for you all over the weekend and will be open on both Saturday 26th of April and Sunday 27th of April, from 1-3 pm.  They have a wonderful display on Education and School history.

Most of the local Cafes have told us they will be open the morning of ANZAC day.

Accommodation

For those travelling from outside the area, Methven Resort is the place to book accommodation. Contact them directly at 03 302 8724 or through their website https://methvenresort.com/. They are offering discounted rates for accommodation and breakfast - tell them you are attending the MHC Centennial, and Richard and Sarah Houston will take good care of you.

Methven Resort can be contacted directly by any alumni groups who want to meet over the rest of the weekend. 

General information

Toilets are available around the school, including in the hall foyer.

First Aid can be accessed in the school office area.

The emergency evacuation area will be the back field.

This is a lot of information, but we hope it will help you understand the plans for the day.  The school office will be closed for the first week of the school holidays. 

We look forward to seeing you on Friday, April 25th 2025!

On behalf of the Centennial Committee

Kristine Canham (Chaiperson)

Rana Staples  (Secretary)

Catherine Roderick (Treasurer)

Jack Saxon (Principal)

Lisa Ponweiser

Karin Lill

Sheree Rooney

Sue Furndorfler

Wayne Pannett

Kelly MacDonald

Di Callaghan

Shirley Fitzgerald

Jayne Clarke

Catherine Marr

Andrew Currie 

Lucas Plimmer

Estella Lister

Sarah Reeve

Jordan Imms-Protheroe

Seb Booth

Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th April - groups may want to get together for their own planned Reunion catchups. Methven Resort is more than happy to host your event. Contact them directly.