On 15 June 2016, Polish Community Trust members Halina Footner and Eva Niedzielski, who happened to be in Gdansk at the time, were invited to a Family Day celebration at the 48th Primary School in Gdansk-Zaspa. Over a 100 people including the children's parents, grandparents and friends had come to the school theatre.
The celebration included the children performing a theatrical play and a recital of poems by Julian Tuwim. Class teacher Malgorzata Pirszel was in charge of the evening. She is also responsible for the pen pal exchange programme with the Polish Language School in Mt Maunganui.
Eva Niedzielski gave a speech about the origins of the Trust, the school in Mt Maunganui and the bilingual exchange programme, the cultural events promoting Poland in New Zealand and the ongoing support from the Polish Embassy in Wellington. Halina Footner also spoke about the cooperation of the two schools in Poland and New Zealand and thanked the parents for their keen involvement with the programme.
The evening ended with a lively discussion about future exchange activities of the children in both countries.
The celebration included the children performing a theatrical play and a recital of poems by Julian Tuwim. Class teacher Malgorzata Pirszel was in charge of the evening. She is also responsible for the pen pal exchange programme with the Polish Language School in Mt Maunganui.
Eva Niedzielski gave a speech about the origins of the Trust, the school in Mt Maunganui and the bilingual exchange programme, the cultural events promoting Poland in New Zealand and the ongoing support from the Polish Embassy in Wellington. Halina Footner also spoke about the cooperation of the two schools in Poland and New Zealand and thanked the parents for their keen involvement with the programme.
The evening ended with a lively discussion about future exchange activities of the children in both countries.