WWII veteran John Sato has died aged 98.

Sato, from Howick, received global recognition for his efforts to attend an anti-racism rally in Auckland held at Aotea Square on March 24, 2019 in the wake of the Christchurch terror attacks.

One of only two Japanese servicemen in the New Zealand army in World War II, felt compelled to show his support for the Muslim community following the Christchurch terror attacks.

He took several buses to get into the city. Sato left his house on Sunday morning, March 24 to visit a mosque in Pakuranga before deciding to go into Auckland City centre for an anti-racism march.

In a photo that caught the attention of people across the world, Sato is seen flanked by a police officer and a member of the public as they fall behind the March.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said during her visit to Howick the photo was so powerful, she found herself coming back to it over and over again.

She said at the time meeting Sato was a privilege and that “he is an inspiring reminder of kindness, love and courage”.

Sato briefly addressed the crowd and said, “”What I’ve seen since that terrible occasion in Christchurch, is the way people have brought out what’s within them and that is genuine care and love…

“We are all part of one family – the human family. Let’s not forget that we do care for each other.”

Times reporter Therese Milne (then Henkin) wrote at the time: “The pair sat down, along with around 70 other invited guests at the Howick Bowling Club, to watch a fun musical performance by the Cockle Bay Primary School Choir.

“Ardern sang along with the youngsters and then spent the rest of the afternoon chatting with Sato.”

Arden later shared a tribute to Sato with her 596,000 Instagram followers.

“Thank you John,” she wrote. “Your actions warmed the hearts of so many during a time of such sadness.”

Howick businesswoman and Howick Local Board member Bo Burns has been friends with Sato for six years.

“We met as I stopped to help him cross the road as a car nearly hit him and then spent the day with him at the doctors and hospital as he was unwell and going to catch…public transport for an emergency procedure,” Burns said.

“In those six years,  I enjoyed a special bond where I learned about his incredible life story, his love of many cultures – including his Scottish and Japanese heritage – and love for humanity and peace.

“His grace and outlook on life is something I will treasure forever and inspire to be more like. He is now at peace and reunited with his much-loved wife Margaret, and adored daughter Anne.  I will cherish his wise guidance and fabulous sense of humour.

“One of his favourite sayings was ‘Bear the unbearable with patience and dignity’. This is a Japanese motto that he lived by. I will continue to share this in honour of John. Rest in peace my friend. You will be missed around east Auckland by many people you became friends with.”

https://www.times.co.nz/news/john-sato-an-inspiration/

East Auckland had a fantastic show day on Friday, July 10.

East Auckland Tourism and Howick Local Board member Bo Burns hosted some important guests who were keen to see why we are so passionate about our region.

Our two guests from ATEED (Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development, the region’s economic development agency) were Steve Armitage, GM Destination and Zac Watson, product development manager Tourism/Destination.

Steve and his team have been very active putting together a Destination Auckland Recovery Plan over the last few months with the help of tourism and hospitality operators throughout the Auckland region, including East Auckland Tourism.

Their visit out east was all about highlighting our amazing region and the different sites and activities on offer that cater to both local and regional, and hopefully, in the not too distant future, overseas visitors.

The East Auckland Tourism team included chairman Andrew Laing of Howick Deliveries, who is also a Howick travel agent, board members Sarah Blong from Paradice Ice Skating, Senthil Natarajan from Happy NZ Tours, administrator Annette Smart, with thanks to Wild Adventures NZ for the use of their amazing van to get around and about.

We were unable to go too far afield due to limited time. We started at Stockade Hill where our very own Howick town crier Jim Donald, greeted us as we enjoyed the 360° views from this significant site.

Bucklands Beach and Musick Point then Half Moon Bay Marina followed, where we enjoyed a delicious lunch at Grangers.

Next stop was the Howick Historical Village. Here we met general manager Krissy Perrett and visited beautiful Puhinui House. It was great to hear that some activities at the Historical Village are coming up soon with the official opening date planned for spring.

Next stop was our unique Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Temple where we were greeted by Karzin Leong, their marketing and events officer.

While Karzin is busy organising the upcoming 2020 Cherry Blossom Art Salon exhibition, she did have time to give us a quick tour which was so interesting and much appreciated by us all.

Returning to Howick we travelled along Point View Drive to view the incredible expansion of Botany, Ormiston, Flat Bush and East Tamaki to one side, and the beautiful rural views on the other, arriving at Mangemangeroa Reserve.

Those spectacular views across the estuary impressed both our visitors.

We continued past Howick Beach and arrived at our last stop, All Saints Church. Here we were met by Morrin Cooper, the last Mayor of Howick. Morrin loves this region and has been a faithful supporter of East Auckland Tourism since its inception.

He has an in-depth knowledge of the history that surrounds us and shared his enthusiasm for the region with Steve and Zac.

East Auckland Tourism is optimistic about the future of tourism and hospitality in east Auckland and is hosting an event on the recovery and future of this industry later this month.

It was a great pleasure, and we were so grateful to have had the opportunity to show off this part of our region to members of ATEED.

We are looking forward to having a similar visit to the other side of east Auckland, the Pohutukawa Coast, Clevedon and Hunua very soon.

Annette Smart is the administrator at East Auckland Tourism

“Being on the Howick Local Board was something I always wanted to do, a path I knew I would cross, I just didn’t know when that would be.

Bo Burns.

The decision and choice to work alongside Adele White and John Spiller was an easy one. They are both down to earth, passionate, knowledgeable, hardworking professional locals. I was delighted that they wanted to work with me also and from there our #weknowhowick team and brand was formed. The mixed balance has worked extremely well from initial setup, campaign planning, branding, budgeting, marketing, events, delivering 20,000 brochures with our crew of helpers and putting up 50 billboards!

It’s been a crazy few months in which I’ve already learnt huge amounts and I will continue to learn and grow.  I can’t tell you exactly right now what my first term will bring, but I can say that I am extremely grateful to the 4738 people that backed me and voted to have me as their representative. I can however promise that I will be accountable and like I have said all along, it’s not what I want, but what you “The Community” wants and needs that matters most to me. I can imagine there is a lot on the Board’s to-do list, that needs to be actioned and I look forward to getting stuck in and ticking items off our list together!”

Howick Village Business Association Information for Alert Level 3.

101 Howick – Messages and orders available through Facebook or phone – 535 2101 – hours: 10.00am – 3.00pm. Door pickups and local delivery during Level 3. www.facebook.com/101

Howick/ Auckland Guitar School – remaining closed but classes being held remotely

Aunt Lee’s Sushi – business open for limited hours for contactless takeaway. Phone 021 02324196 for enquiries. www.facebook.co./auntleesushi

ASCO Legal – open for phone contact 8.30am-5.30pm – Monday-Friday (remote contact) www.ascolegal.co.nz/

Bakers Delight, Howick – online orders and contactless delivery available – click and collect platform available from Tuesday (Level 3). Bakery will be open from 7.00am-4.00pm Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday for order collection/ contactless service. Please refer to website for ordering and delivery conditions. https://www.bakersdelighthowickdelivery.com/

Belle Boutique – open from 11.00pm-3.00pm for Click and Collect and online [email protected] Phone 021 2410733

Benjarong Thai Restaurant – open for pick up takeaway from front window. Ph 533 9568 or check menu on www.benjarong,co,nz/takeout

Caroline Eve – store is currently closed but online ordering and delivery available. Phone 0800 CAROLINE or 533 7480 to place a click and collect order. www.carolinevee.co.nz

Cinnamon Brown – online sales – either door pick up or delivery – during level 3 – website cinnamonbrown.co.nz

Claire Thompson Counsellor – available for Skype/Zoom meetings – www.clairethompson.co.nz

Coffix – 7.00am – 2.00pm from Tuesday – contactless service at business address

Coopers Tyres – essential business – extended hours are 8.00am – 5.00pm – from Tuesday

Cre.Ate Café – open Tues-Sat 8.00am-2.00pm then Mon – Sat week 2 of Level 3. Takeaway ordering available and option to order on-site with zero contact. Check FB/Instagram pages for more info. www.facebook.com/CREATE-Cafe

Crystal Nails – will remain closed during Level 3.

Daisy Chang’s/The Apothecary -open for takeaways 7 days from 5pm. Contactless service and delivery. Teaming up with the Apothecary (from Daisy) with coffee & morning treats from 7.30am till 2.00pm, 7 days. Again contactless. Daisychang.co.nz

Elite Property – contactable on office phone number and email throughout lockdown. Available for showing properties from level 3 eliteproperty.co.nz

Eyes of Howick – onsite during Level 3 to offer urgent repairs or eyewear replacement. Please contact 534 5565 or [email protected]

Fencible Law – open for business by phone, email or video call – Monday to Friday 8.30am-5.00pm. Phone 533 3539 or [email protected]

Flooring Xtra – available for online or in-home consultations – retail store remains closed during Level 3. www.mtwellingtonflooringxtra.co.nz Focus Hearing – will be operating Mondays, Tuesday and Thursday from 9.00am – 4.00pm. Please phone 533 6463 or email [email protected]

Helloworld, Howick – not open in Level 3 but any enquiries welcome : [email protected]

Honeybun Jewellers – closed but please phone Angela on 021 1620447 for enquiries.

House of Travel – not open during Level 3 but can be contacted on 535 4559 or [email protected]

Howick House Dispensary – Open Mon-Fri 8.30am-5.30pm. Phone 537 0923 or email [email protected]

Howick Village Butchers – online orders and delivery - https://howickvillagebutchery.nz/delivery

Howick Village Dental – open during Level 3 for emergency and urgent dental care. Phone 534 8052 or 5348931

Howick Village Grocers – essential business – normal hours from Level 3. https://www.facebook.com/Villagegrocerhowick

Howick Village Optometrists – contact for online orders/delivery during business hours – howickoptometrists.co.nz

Howick Village Jewellers – workshop is open for repairs – available for online orders and delivery can be arranged. villagejeweller.co.nz

H & P Times Media – restarting printed version of H&P Times on 12 May 2020 John Russell’s Schoolwear – online orders during Level 3 - https://www.johnrussellmenswear.co.nz/

Indian Kitchen Restaurant & Takeaways – open for contactless takeaways, pick ups and Uber Eats deliveries – phone 5375116 or 021 2877921

Kent Morgan Jewellery – open for online appointments via Whatsapp and Zoom – ph 021 159 1251 or 09 2160386 – [email protected]

Life Pharmacy – essential business – Level 3 hours are 9.00am-5.00pm weekdays – 9.00am- 12.00pm Saturday. Free local daily delivery service available. www.lifepharmacy.co.nz Lily Whyte – online orders and delivery available – www.lilywhyte.co.nz or 021 0347625.

Mardells – online and phone orders from Tuesday – store hours 10.00am-3.00pm including Saturdays https://www.annemardell.co.nz/contact

Marigold Merchant – Online deliveries and contactless pick ups available. Please phone florist shop on 535 6503 or 021 664322. Visit www.marigoldmerchant.co.nz for online purchases.

Mehmaan Indian Restaurant & Bar– Open for takeaways and deliveries – Ph 5370444 for information/ordering.

Michaels Emporium – Mike can be contacted for orders/enquiries/online deliveries from Tuesday - on 021 766611 or [email protected]

Minos Pizza – Tuesday - Sunday for contactless pick-up and delivery – 4.00pm – 9.00pm. minos.co.nz

Mooi Skin – open for phone and online purchases and contactless pick up – www.mooiskin.co.nz NZ Skin Health – level 3 – re-opening on Tuesday – normal business hours nzskinhealth.co.nz

PaperPlus – available for online orders – www.paperplus.co.nz and click and collect. Customers can also email or phone the store to arrange supply of stock in store – can be collected or delivery available. Ph 534 8715

Paper, Scissors, Rock Hair Salon – open for online orders and free delivery in Howick area – [email protected]

Picton Street Clothing Alterations – will remain closed until Level 2.

Poppies Books – reopening from Tuesday 28 April – online orders available poppiesbooks.co.nz

Portofino – contactless takeaways – phone orders and credit card/phone payments or payWave at front of restaurant for pick ups [email protected]

Pryor Consultants – open for business 9.00am-5.30pm. Phone 533 3600 or email [email protected]

Purple Moon Shop – online delivery orders available and contactless pick up – email [email protected]

Resthaven Funerals – open 24/7 – phone 533 7493

Rombus Café – open from level 3 – please contact directly for hours/details

Shoes on Picton – open from Level 3 via Shoes on Picton Facebook page messenger or contacting [email protected]. Contactless delivery available.

Spice HR – Monday to Friday – 9.00am-5.00pm by phone on 021 501 525 - spicehr.co.nz or contact by email – [email protected] SPCA Op Store – to remain closed until level 2

Spillers Hardware – online orders and delivery – increased hours from Level 3 – 9.00am to 4.00pm – email and social media orders available - [email protected] or 09 58347411. Credit card or DD payments only. Contactless pick up from rear carpark between 9.00am-4.00pm – please phone to arrange a pick up time.

Stefans Bakery – 7.00am-2.00pm Monday-Saturday for phone orders and pick-up. Ph 534 3858 or 021 2039428

Super Liquor, Howick – online orders and contactless delivery – [email protected]

The Apothecary – refer to Daisy Chang’s information – both are teaming up.

The Corner Bar – Takeaway service – coffees and breakfast bites – 7.00am-11.00am daily - Dinner takeaways from 4.00pm-8.30pm every night thecornerbar.co.nz

The Flower Bar – now open at 35 Cook Street (Rombus Café) for contactless pick up. Please phone Holly on 021 812208 for enquiries.

The Natural Health Co – free local delivery for online orders – level 3. thenaturalhealthcompany.co.nz

The Prospect / The Good Home - opening for takeaways in level 3 – 5.00pm- 8.00pm every day - theprospect.co.nz

Tim England & Co Accountants - Open for business 8.30am – 5.00pm. Please contact by phoning 532-9971 or email [email protected] . Contactless drop off or pick up of documents/records.

Unichem Pharmacy – essential service provider – 8.30am – 6.00pm – Monday-Wednesday, Thursday 8.30am – 7.00pm, Friday 8.30am – 6.00pm, Saturday 9.00am - 4.00pm and Sunday 10.am-3.00pm. Free local delivery. Phone 09 5356739 – www.unichem.co.nz Velca – your health centre – offering telehealth consultations during Level 3 – re-opening at Level 2. Phone 950 6801

Vitis Cellars – online orders - contactless delivery – www.vitiscellars.co..nz

Wild Wheat – one delivery per week on a Wednesday but pre-order and pick up can be arranged – info on www.wildwheat.co.nz/monthly-specials

Thanks to the HVBA for their updates.

www.howickvillage.co.nz

Sadly in 2020 we will not be honouring Anzac day celebrations for the second year in a row. Since everyone is still in lockdown, I decided to work with two clever friends Wayne Martin from the Times Newspapers, and Dion Edwards from Digital Mix to create this tribute to honour all our brave servicemen and servicewomen that sacrificed so much for us all today. Enjoy , we hope you enjoy it Bo Burns

Three independent candidates are set to inject a fresh burst of energy into the Howick Local Board as they prepare for the local elections.

Newcomer Bo Burns, who organises Howick’s annual Santa Parade, has joined seasoned local board members Adele White and John Spiller to stand for Howick ahead of the 2019 Local Government elections on 12 October.

The team have launched a vibrant campaign, ‘We Know Howick’ that highlights their innovative ideas for the board and encourages more people – especially youth – to vote.

“Our hashtag #weknowhowick was carefully chosen after it resonated with each of us. Growing up, living, working and socialising here over a long time; and having spoken freely and frankly with the people of Howick – we know the issues that matter most to locals,” say the team

.

#weknowhowick will appear in a social media campaign, eye-catching election hoardings and informative leaflets to engage with voters. Follow them on Facebook @weknowhowick

All born, bred and educated locally, White, Spiller and Burns share a mutual vision for Howick where the community is at the forefront of Auckland Council’s service provision and projects.

Their top local board priorities are:

● Challenge Auckland Council on costs, rates and resource allocation

● Support retention of Stockade Hill Views and Howick’s unique character

● Ensure the local community is safe

● Enhance local walking & cycle tracks

● Support realistic transport improvements

● Listen to and involve our youth in local matters

● Advocate for more funding for coastal erosion issues.

About Bo Burns

Bo lives in Howick with her husband and two daughters.

She runs Howick-based business, Fundraise Factory, and has won local and international awards recognising “Innovative Ideas” Exceptional Service” and “Growth of SME Business”.

​Affectionately known as “Bo on the Go”, Bo has a reputation of giving 100% to all her activities including organising tournaments and coaching for netball, mentoring school groups, APPA board member and current organiser of the much-loved Howick Santa Parade.

Bo has the energy, vision, and organisational skills to action change where she can. As a logical thinker she will listen and dedicate time to residents’ issues.

She will strive to keep Howick’s historic beauty and culture alive while introducing fresh innovative concepts to its community.

About John Spiller

John belongs to a family with a long record of service to the people of Howick. He brings considerable experience in local government and comes from a business background.

John sees Howick as a place of exceptional historic character and amenity and will fight hard to retain those values for current and future generations.

The provision of outstanding recreational and sporting facilities is important to John. On the local board John led the sports portfolio team that delivered the artificial sports fields at William Green Domain, improved drainage and irrigation systems for Lloyd Elsmore Park and fast tracked the development of Barry Curtis Park sports fields. He strongly believes that quality parks and walkways are essential for community health and wellbeing.

John is passionate about the environment and supports pest control programmes, has been personally involved in many local tree plantings, and is a long-time supporter of ongoing development of the popular Mangemangeroa reserve.

John is well known for his experience, integrity and dedication to Howick.

About Adele White

Adele White has gained huge respect from the people of Howick through her successful years in local government, and from working in the community as a former police officer for 33 years.

She is a strong advocate for the preservation of Howick's character and history whilst ensuring the area is well resourced with innovative facilities for all ages and realistic transport improvements.

On the local board Adele has led decision making around many local community initiatives including the redevelopment of the Uxbridge Arts Centre and most recently the development of the Howick Village Centre Plan. She will continue to actively speak out around significant Howick Ward projects whilst being vigilant to, and openly questioning Council spending and service provision.

As a health educator, celebrant, and current board member Adele is known for her passion, professionalism, leadership skills, and proven ability to interact with all members of our community, and will bring this to a new board.