1452 days ago

Stranger takes on 3000km bike tour of NZ to raise funds for North Shore girl

Caroline Williams Reporter from North Shore Times

Kia ora neighbours.

In 2020 I reported on Hauraki 5-year-old Lydia Golding, who was born with a condition called proximal femoral focal deficiency (PFFD), which left her with an unformed hip and shortened femur. www.stuff.co.nz...

It has been Lydia's dream to walk with both feet on the ground, and surgery in the US last year got her closer to this by extending her leg by 8cm.

Hamish and Lauren Golding had to remortgage their home to pay for their daughter's bone-lengthening surgery, which cost just over $500,000 including travel and accommodation. The family are still paying this off, while the next surgery in the US will cost a further $465,000 (approx).

The Golding family have fundraised around $110,000 themselves, but now Jared Small - a complete stranger - has taken on the cause and is doing the Tour Aotearoa 3000km bikepacking trip from Cape Reinga to Bluff to help Lydia get two feet on the ground.

Follow Small's progress here: givealittle.co.nz...

Click 'read more' for our most recent story about Lydia's surgery.
Photo: Supplied by Shore Photography

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More messages from your neighbours
1 day ago

🧩😏 Riddle me this, Neighbours…

The Riddler from The Neighbourly Riddler

I am an odd number. Take away a letter and I become even. What number am I?

Do you think you know the answer?

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3 days ago

Some Choice News!

Kia pai from Sharing the Good Stuff

DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.

Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.

For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.

Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?

We hope this brings a smile!

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1 day ago

Poll: Is Auckland’s economy improving?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

The latest reporting from The Post suggests a wave of optimism for 2026. With interest rates finally heading south, businesses are feeling more positive. But for many on the ground, the real-world recovery feels a bit like a slow-moving commute on Auckland's motorways.

We want to know: Are you seeing signs of Auckland's economy improving in your industry or neighbourhood? Whether it's busier shops, new projects kicking off, or just a shift in the mood ...

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Is Auckland’s economy improving?
  • 15.6% Yes
    15.6% Complete
  • 70.1% No
    70.1% Complete
  • 14.3% A little
    14.3% Complete
77 votes