I’m not sure if I have written in this column about our citizenship ceremonies before; apologies if I have but the one on Friday was such a doozie I just have to tell you about it.

These ceremonies are hands-down my favourite part of being Mayor. 

What an incredible privilege it is to read out the stories of our new Kiwi’s and to witness their taking an Oath of Affirmation of Allegiance.

Last Friday we had folk from Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Poland, South Africa, Hong Kong, Estonia, England, the United States and Scotland; a veritable melting pot of the worlds people, all who have come and made our place their home.

It is the stories that really get me, stories of love, of loss, of adventure. 

In my almost 60 years, I have never lived outside of Otago and am amazed at the tales of people who leave their lives, the whanau, their almost everything behind to travel to a new land. 

Sometimes, it is for a short visit that becomes life-changing when Cupid’s arrow finds its mark, other times it is leaving a homeland or a life that is no longer safe, other times it is a determined effort to find a better life but no matter what the story, the theme is the same and that is how lucky we all are to live here.

Friday’s event had a couple of extra special components. 

As a teacher took her Oath, her class snuck in through the back door and gave an inspiring haka to acknowledge her. Hardly a dry eye in the house. 

At the end of the ceremony, we always have a school group lead us in our National Anthem but this time, the Alexandra Primary School group also sang a great rendition of Six60’s “Pepiha” with one fine young Tane sharing his pepiha with us prior.

There was also an incredibly special moment when I passed over to Deputy Mayor Neil Gillespie so he could undertake the service to make not one but two sons-in-law Kiwis. 

Again, barely a dry eye in the room.

And all the while, events were being filmed by television current events show The Hui who were down doing a piece on the use of te reo in a council here in the deep south.

It was truly a morning I will never forget.