The Māpua Easter Fair has grown to one of the largest events on the Nelson-Tasman calendar with more than 10,000 visitors flocking to it, and it’s all due to the volunteers who spend hundreds of hours on it each year.
It began 43 years ago as a wee fair for the Māpua Playcentre and Māpua School and continues to be their biggest fundraiser with a volunteer crew behind the scenes made up of mostly mums and dads.
Belinda Ellis is the coordinator in charge of the 100-or-so volunteers and she says even at that number, there is never enough for the mammoth task.
The team begins planning for the event in November, and by the time the fair rolls around they have spent more than 1,000 hours organising logistics, booking stallholders and entertainment, as well as gathering donations from all around the country for the silent auction.
About 650 of those volunteer hours are needed during the weekend of the fair itself.
“It’s a well-oiled machine – there’s been a bit of practise to see what works and what doesn’t work in 43 years. A lot of people who helped start this gig 43 years ago are still part of it!”
After all the work that goes into each fair, she says the end result is worth it.
“The build-up is the time-consuming part; the day is awesome.”
This year, more than 200 stalls will fill the Māpua Domain on Easter Sunday, 20 April, with an eclectic mix of jewellery and art to precious stones and clothing.
Visitors can sit back and enjoy the food, music and entertainment that all came together because of a rather large bunch of volunteers who spent hundreds of hours planning the big day.
