What's On Mid Canterbury

• Are You OK? with Willie Apiata VC is a powerful and down‑to‑earth community event focused on looking out for yourself and the people around you. Featuring Willie Apiata, one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s Victoria Cross recipients, the evening encourages honest conversation about resilience, connection, and the importance of checking in—especially within rural communities. Through relatable stories drawn from real‑life experience, Willie shares practical insights on supporting your mates and knowing when to ask for help yourself. These welcoming events create space to connect, listen, and talk openly. In Mid Canterbury at Hotel Ashburton on WED 29 APRIL. Drinks from 6.30pm, supper provided. This is a free, inclusive event and everyone is welcome. Register now at far.org.nz/events.

• Safe Communities Ashburton and Hato Hone St John are joining forces against April Falls. Once again they are hosting a free event at the Ashburton Library THURS 30 APRIL to give people practical tips to stay strong and steady. Stats show falls are a leading cause of injury and loss of independence, resulting in more than 53,700 ambulance callouts nationwide last year. Falls account for nearly 40 percent of all ACC injury claims. Join the event in the event space from 10am to 12.30pm. Health checks, testing and information. Giveaways, and morning tea provided. 

• Put your thinking cap on and join the Rakaia Scouts Trivia Quiz! Gather your smartest mates for a fun‑filled R18+ trivia night on FRI 1 MAY at the Rakaia Recreation Centre. Doors open at 6pm, with the quiz kicking off 7pm sharp. Entry is just $50 per team (up to four people), with EFTPOS available at the bar. Enjoy burgers and fries, buy‑an‑answer rounds, heads and tails, raffles, a mystery bottle auction, and plenty of prizes. This event is proudly fundraising to support Rakaia Scouts attending the national Jamboree 2026–2027, helping cover registration and transport costs. For more information or to register, jump on the group's Facebook page or contact rakaia@group.scouts.nz. 

• Enjoy a fun and friendly day of tiles, tea and charity at the Mahjong Tournament, taking place FRI 1 MAY from 9.30am to 3.30pm at the Ashburton Bridge Club. Entry is $35, which includes lunch and afternoon tea. Players of all levels are welcome, with learners’ tables available. The day features raffles, prizes and great company, with all proceeds supporting Hospice Mid Canterbury and other charities. Be quick, registrations close FRI 24 APRIL. For registrations or enquiries, email suerod.green@gmail.com, phone 021 766 246 or 03 307 8807.

• A big weekend ahead of GDC Wheels Week Plus action ahead. On SAT 2 MAY the programme includes the Ashburton Vintage Car Club Swap Meet at 86 Maronan Road, Tinwald. 7.30 am – 2.30 pm. Right next door is the American Rod & Custom Club Display. Lots of Hot Rods, Custom and Classic Cars. Entry, Gold coin to Mid Canterbury Children’s Trust. Across town the Originals Motorcycle Show ‘n’ Shine is on at RSA Cox Street, 11.00 am – 4.00 pm. Ashburton Speedway Assn also has 2 days of racing, starting with Street Stocks, Adult Ministocks, C Grade, CTRA – NZ Production Title, Quarter Midgets, Wingless Sprints, Ashburton NZ Youth Saloon Title. Seafield Road, adjacent to the Airport. On SUN 3 MAY Ashburton Motorcycle Club TT at McBain’s property Pendarves. Ashburton Car Club SprayMarks Motorkhana at SprayMarks yard Dobson Street. Canterbury Rollars, Wheelchair Basketball vs Ashburton celebrity team. Oxford Street Stadium 11.00am – 3.00pm, Entry, gold coin. Electric Vehicles in Methven, 11:30am to 2:30pm. Meet at Southern Cross Lodge 17 Racecourse Ave (see Mid Canterbury EV Group on facebook). And Ashburton Aviation Museum will be open for viewing from 1.00pm until 3.00pm. Find more here.

• The Ashburton Event Centre invites you to an Open Day on SAT 2 MAY from 10am – 2pm. This is your chance to check out the new sound system. Or perhaps even put it to the test! Local talent is welcome to perform. Anyone interested can contact the Event Centre via their Facebook page. Invited guests will also perform through the day. Request your favourite song to be played on the PA. Plenty for the younger members of the family – they too can be a star on the Kiddies Stage in the Foyer. Complete with a Microphone and Dress-Up costumes. Also Face Painting, and the chance to Learn Choreography. BBQ cooking free Sausages. Join a Venue Tour on the hour. You will get to see the inner workings of the venue including taking a walk on the Catwalk 6mtrs above the stage, the dimmer room, stage fly system, orchestra pit, control room where you can operate the lighting control systems. Your chance to meet the team, including those members of the Ashburton Performing Arts Theatre Trust who work hard to make our venue what it is. There’s also your chance to win a $250 venue voucher to spend on the next show of your choice!  

• As supreme winners of the Ballance Farm Environment Canterbury Regional Awards - Paul and Kerry Harmer, of Castle Ridge Station, will host an Open Day at their Ashburton Lakes property on TUES 5 MAY from 10am to 4pm. The tour starts at 1456 Ashburton Gorge Rd and ends at 834 Hakatere Heron Rd followed by a barbecue, bring your own snacks, drink for during the day. The Harmers run just over 14,000 sheep, almost 800 cattle and about 230 deer on the 5930ha high-country property. Attendees of the open day can learn how the couple integrate the environment into their working farm system. Topics include: water monitoring, riparian management, farm drivers and decision-making, stock welfare, genetics and integration, staff and succession and catchment collaboration. The tour is strictly for 4WD vehicles with good clearance only and carpooling will be essential. Register by email to MillyCroftcanterbury@bfea.org.nz  

• It has been 20 years since New Zealand Sign Language was officially recognised as a language in Aotearoa. This year NZSL Week celebrations, themed ‘An Aotearoa where anyone can sign. Anywhere,’ runs from May 4 to 10. In Ashburton, tutor Carol Smith will run a workshop at the Ashburton Library on WED 6 MAY, at 6pm. It will include learning how to introduce yourself, use library/ cafe signs, learn the alphabet. Free NZSL resources will be given out. 

• The Methven Lions Machinery Auction will be held on FRI 15 MAY, starting at 11am, at the Methven Showgrounds. This popular auction is your chance to turn surplus machinery into cash, with a wide range of equipment expected on the day. Entries are invited; any sound machinery items ranging from electric drills to combine harvesters. The auction is run by the Methven Lions, with proceeds going back to the local community. Stay up to date by following the event on Facebook. Be sure to click INTERESTED for updates and information. Search for Methven Lions.  For enquiries, or to request a hard copy entry form, email lionsmachineryauction@gmail.com or get in touch with Alastair. Come have a yarn or a grizzle over a beer and a burger with your mates, enjoy an afternoon out, and pick up a good deal as well.

• Allenton Sports Club is celebrating 100 years. The constituents of the club are bowls, croquet and tennis. Events running the weekend FRI 15 and SAT 16 MAY. Friday night is an open night whereby people come along and enjoy a fun night, meet our guests, Jo Edwards and Val Smith and enjoy some finger food. Open to all from 5.00pm. Saturday is the club's formal celebration night with a dinner, guest speakers, Jo Edwards & Val Smith (former NZ Blackjacks), music and entertainment. Tickets $50.00 per person. Doors open at 4.30pm. Enquiries to allentonsportsclub@gmail.com or contact Craig Harrison 0273203435.  

• Rokowhiria, Ashburton Art Gallery and Museum and Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taongaare presents ‘‘Documenting our Heritage”. Photos taken for their competition showcasing heritage sites in Mid and South Canterbury, beginning at 5.30pm. Exhibition runs until May 17.

• Put your thinking cap on and support future rugby stars at the JAB Rugby Quiz Night, hosted by the Mid‑Canterbury Rugby Union. WED 20 MAY at Hotel Ashburton, with doors opening at 5.30pm.  Teams of up to five, entry $100 per team, plus prizes, raffles, and an auction on the night. Register your team by phone or text to 027 222 9338.  

• Friends of Methven Primary School is hosting a fundraiser of “The Bitches Box - Episode 4” on SAT 23 MAY at Mt Hutt Memorial Hall, Methven. From 5:30pm. A Night of fun, laughter and drinks + an Auction of Promises. First time EVER in Methven — so rally your crew and lock in your tickets now! Find more and book here.  

• Celebrating 150 years of education in the Foothills area over King’s Birthday Weekend, SAT 30 and SUN 31 MAY. All past and present students, teachers, principals, staff, and committee members from Mt Somers Springburn, Mt Somers, Springburn, Alford Forest, and Bushside Schools are warmly invited to reconnect, reminisce, and celebrate shared schooling history. Saturday will include a meet and greet, light lunch, decade photos. In the evening a dine and dance will be held at the Hotel Ashburton. Then on Sunday, the Mt Somers & Staveley Museum and the old school house will be open for viewing before a sausage sizzle at the Mt Somers Rugby Club clubrooms. They are hoping for a crowd of around 150, with registrations coming from as far away as the United Kingdom, Australia and the North Island. Registrations are now closed. Enquiries to Max Alexander – 027 211 8960.

• Nominations are being sought for the arable industry’s best and brightest for the annual industry awards. Now held every second year, he seven open categories are; Maize Grower of the Year; Cereal Grower of the Year; Seed Grower of the Year; Agronomist of the Year; Innovation; Positive Environmental Impact; Working Together. The 2025-26 season wasn’t the easiest, with weather issues including wet conditions during harvest in some regions, but this doesn’t diminish growers’ skills and effort. New Zealand grain and seed growers are some of the best in the world, and now it’s time to celebrate them. Nominations for the seven categories close MON 1 JUN, via the website, www.arableawards.co.nz. The Arable Farmer of the Year is selected from the three grower awards winners - cereal, seed and maize - while inductees to the Arable Hall of Fame are chosen by the awards’ organising committee. Tickets for the awards dinner, at the Air Force Museum of New Zealand, Wigram, on August 20, are also available now from the awards website. 

• Join Keep Learning Mid Canterbury and Mid Canterbury TimeBank for the inaugural Big Dress-Up Quiz, a lively, community quiz night with a fun twist! Gather your team and put your knowledge to the test across a range of entertaining quiz rounds. To make the night even more fun, teams are invited to dress up as a quiz round; think sports, movies, music, food, famous people, history or anything else you can imagine. Teams of 6, $15 per person / $90 per team. Limited tickets available — bookings essential. FRI 5 JUN at 206 Cameron Street, 6:30pm. Grab your team, choose your round & costume, and get ready for a night of laughs, learning and connection. 

• CanBead Mid and South Canterbury are calling for stallholders for their fundraising artisan market. The event, at the Tinwald Hall, on Graham St, is an annual fundraiser for the illness, trauma and loss support group. It is on SUN 14 JUN from 11am to 3pm. To book a $40 site email charlene@caninspire.org.nz 

• Get ready for a magical mid‑winter night at the Mt Somers Winter Ball. It’s back SAT 20 JUN at the Mt Somers Memorial Hall, 64 Hoods Road. Doors open from 8pm, with live music from Nick & Dan, a sparkles theme, and a great night of dancing guaranteed. Tickets are $70, with supper provided, a cash bar available, and no BYO. This is an R18 event and always a popular night out on the Mt Somers social calendar. Enquiries & tickets via Mt Somers Winter Ball organisers / Mt Somers Store.  

ONGOING

• You could win 3.3 cubic metres of firewood, delivered, for just $2 a ticket. The raffle will be drawn MON 4 MAY, with proceeds going to support Year 12 and 13 students as they explore Māori culture, history, and heritage on the first‑ever Māori Tour to Northland, Auckland, Hamilton, and Rotorua. Tickets can be purchased online here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ZNIUc5LNnnWyokPqwFsDPkg08znzLzT6lSXvWN4gmw/. Ngā mihi for your support. For any questions, please contact Roz Cuter at cur@ashcoll.school.nz. 

• Hotel Ashburton has a new card group. You're welcome to come along every TUES for 500 and Euchre, starting 1:30pm. Entry $3. Cards and Board Games on FRI starting 1:30pm, gold coin donation. You're welcome to join a lunch held beforehand. Then FRI evenings join in fun Housie. Doors open 6:30pm, first call 7:15pm. Cards from $2. 

• Support the Year 5/6 Titans Soccer Team! They're raising funds to help awesome young players take the next step—competing in tournaments and covering uniform costs for the season ahead. Last year, this dedicated team went undefeated, training twice a week and showing incredible commitment alongside their fantastic coach. Now they’re ready to aim even higher. Help them get there by purchasing fresh Lovett Family onions. Only $10 per 5kg bag. Every purchase makes a difference. Any funds left over at the end of the season will be donated to Mid Canterbury United Football Club. If you’d like to grab a bag (or a few!) and support the team, please get in touch via the page https://www.facebook.com/MidCanterburyUnitedFootballClub

• A free walking tour, a leaf hunt, puppet workshops and water bombs are among activities in the Ashburton District Council’s Autumn What’s On Guide, out now. A whole host of action at Council facilities in April acknowledges the arrival of cooler weather, Easter and Anzac Day, and many activities are free. The popular What’s On Guide contained 20 pages of ideas to keep youngsters busy in the school holidays. 500 physical copies have been printed and will be available from facilities. You can also download the guide from their website at ashburtondc.govt.nz/events.  

• Litter Free Ashburton holds its group litter collection on the second THURS of each month, meeting 1:30pm on the corner of SH1 and Havelock Street near the former library. It is looking for more members. If you can help, please inquire via the Litter Free Ashburton FB page or simply turn up at the meeting. Resources supplied. 

• Kai's Up offers a free meal for anyone - no judgement, no criteria. Every THURS (yes, even in the rain), 6pm in The Catholic Church carpark, corner of Havelock and Park Street. Feel free to bring your own containers. Meal, hot/cold drink, sweet treat provided. Stick around and eat on site, or bring your own container and take home to eat. Families welcome. Thank you to all the volunteers behind the scenes that make this happen. Follow Kai’s Up on FB.

• Join the global movement that is Parkrun! Every SAT starting 8am, take a jog from Walnut Ave through our stunning Domain. If running or walking isn't your thing, you could consider volunteering. They need people in a variety of roles including: photographers, first timer welcome, time keepers, pre event course check, course marshals, tail walkers, report writers, barcode scanners, finisher tokens, warm up leaders, course setup and close down. If you are interested or would like to find out more, search for "Ashburton Domain" on Park Run website or email ashburtondomain@parkrun.com. Run, walk, volunteer!!

• Need something signed by a Justice of the Peace? JPs are available every TUES and FRI at their new spot in the Ashburton Library. Pop in between 12pm-2pm, no appointment needed. 

• Mid Canterbury Citizens Advice Bureau is now offering drop-in sessions at the Ashburton Library every WED from 5.30pm to 7.30pm.

• Need help with your phone,tablet, laptop or other digital devices? Ashburton District Council has friendly digi coaches back at the Ashburton Library. Whether it's setting up an app,troubleshooting a tech issue, or learning something new, come in and sit down with a digi coach. They are available Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, from 1-3pm. No booking needed, just drop in.

• Need a van? Does your sports club, dance club, social club or school go on trips or outings as a group, and you would like to travel together? Community House has a 12 seater van available for hire. For more details or to book please visit the website https://www.communityhousemc.co.nz. You can also give them a call 03 308 1237, or email reception@communityhousemc.co.nz. 

• Hampstead Sports Club is back hosting Housie! Come along for a night of fun, laughs, and the chance to win some great prizes. On every TUES, doors open at 6:30pm, with Housie starting 7pm. At Hampstead Sports Club off Bridge Street. New faces are always welcome — it’s a great way to catch up with friends and start the year with a bit of excitement. Don’t miss out — fun, prizes, and laughter guaranteed! Find more on the Hampstead Sports Club NZ Facebook page.

• Rakaia Sunday Market and "Art & All" museum and antiques is on every first and third SUN of the month (weather permitting). On the corner of Railway Tce West & Rolleston Street - Near the dog park. 10am-3pm. Plenty of parking. Please bring  cash, although there is some EFTPOS available. Food, entertainment, arts &crafts, farm fresh meat, baking, plants & compost and fishing gear all on offer. If you wish to sell - single stall $20, double $40. Food vendors also welcome. To find out more and book your spot call 0224192781.

• Citizens Advice Bureau Mid Canterbury are celebrating having 500 entries in their community directory.It’sa free resource for people who are looking for information and groups within the district from starting a new sport or hobby, hire a hall for an event or need support from a social service. Access via ashburton.cab.org.nz

  A flood warning text-alert service is available in Ashburton, giving residents early notice when rivers start to rise and there is a risk of flooding. Canterbury Regional Councilsaysthe system – available on 12 river floodplains across the region – provided a crucial extra layer of early warning and can make a life-changing difference for people living or working near rivers.These text alerts give people precious time to prepare – time to move stock, shift equipment, protect property, and keep their families safe.The free opt-in service sends automated text messages when river flows reach thresholds that may result in flooding. Residents can sign up by texting the relevant river name to 3730. When the selected river reaches a critical flow threshold, subscribers receive an early-warning text. To opt out, text cancel to 3730.