By Allied Press Limited -March 13, 2025

Inspiration . . . Roselyn Fauth celebrates her Aoraki Women’s Foundation Woman of the Year award win. PHOTO: SUPPLIED

Timaru woman Roselyn Fauth has been recognised for her outstanding contributions to the South Canterbury community.

At a ceremony last weekend, Mrs Fauth was named the Aoraki Women’s Foundation Woman of the Year.

Her lifelong commitment to the arts, historical preservation, community development and dedication to strengthening connections to local history and culture were cited as reasons for her win.

She did all this while also creating inclusive spaces for families and women.

It was also acknowledged in her nomination that her efforts had ‘‘directly improved the social, cultural, and recreational fabric of South Canterbury’’.

In a statement she said she was very grateful to have received the award.

‘‘Thank you for this recognition, and congratulations to all the other nominees.

‘‘You are all incredible people, and I share this honour with you.’’

Mrs Fauth has been instrumental in many community initiatives, including her work with projects like Timaru Rocks, WuHoo Timaru, and CPlay.

She has also been involved with Friends of Aigantighe Art Gallery for over 20 years.

She is a sixth-generation Timaruvian on her father’s side and has worked alongside her father, Geoff Cloake, for over 20 years in marketing and communications as a graphic and web designer.

She said her latest goal was to help people connect to our past through the heritage in our region and reinforce the pride we have in our architecture, particularly the CBD.

In her thank you speech, Mrs Fauth took a moment to reflect on the history of women in Timaru, sharing stories of women who put in the work for future generations.

‘‘As women today, we can live the lives we choose, thanks to those who enabled, protected, and inspired us.

‘‘But there is still work to be done.

‘‘Discrimination still exists, the gender pay gap remains, and unconscious biases persist.

‘‘By sharing the stories of women, we can inspire us for further progress so as women we have the choice of how we want to live our lives.’’

She said she was very focused on looking towards a vision for the future.

‘‘I believe that when we learn about the past with our own lens, we can better understand where we have come from, who we are, and make better choices for the future.

‘‘That’s why I am so passionate about helping people find free fun, making it meaningful through awareness, activities, and resources, to inspire future generations to be whoever they want to be.’’ — APL

The Timaru Herald
11 Mar 2025
Rachael Comer

Timaru’s Roselyn Fauth has been recognised for her contributions to the region’s arts, historical preservation and community development. Fauth was the winner of Woman of the Year award at the Aoraki Foundation’s Women’s Fund event at Sopheze on the Bay in Timaru on Saturday evening and was one of many there who highlighted the importance of whānau and having a village behind them.

The evening, which marked International Women’s Day, included guest speakers Timaru Muay Thai fighter Kaitlyn “Tornado” Tucker, who spoke of the support of those behind her, and former Silver Fern, high-performance netball coach and breast cancer survivor Margie Foster.

It was also a chance to recognise those women in the community who give so much of their time, with the work of fellow nominees Anna Leger, Kaitlyn Tucker, Sharleyne Diamond and Polly Rowe also shared on the evening.

For Fauth, being nominated felt “really weird and it took a bit to get my head around”.

“When I thought it through, I realised it was because I haven't contributed in isolation, there are so many people that worked together on the projects and helped to support and fund them,” she said.

She said reflecting on the stories she had learned about women, and what their lives would have been like over the past 160 years, she realised it was not that long ago that women were the property of men.

“They couldn't open a bank account, they couldn't vote,” she said.

“Even into the 1970s, it would have been bold to wear hippy clothes and challenge the societal norms of a life beyond the kids and kitchen.”

Fauth said women could now live the lives they chose.

“I’m so grateful to those who enabled, protected and inspired us to be who we choose to be. Laws protect us in employment, and from discrimination, and violence. But we can see that there is more work still to be done for women’s rights.”

Fauth’s key community contributions including WuHoo Timaru, a voluntary project with her husband Chris and father Geoff Cloake, which makes South Canterbury’s history and culture accessible and engaging.

She was also a member of the CPlay committee and involved in fundraising, grant applications, community consultation, and social media promotion to develop the $3 million award-winning playground.

A member of the Friends of Aigantighe Art Gallery, Fauth has also given more than 20 years of service to the group, including four years as president.

She is also a member of the Timaru Civic Trust, and the award’s statement presented at the award evening also says she empowers women, creates opportunities for female entrepreneurs and artists, and “advocates for inclusive initiatives, particularly for mothers and caregivers’’.

“Roselyn’s efforts have directly improved the social, cultural, and recreational fabric of South Canterbury,’’ the statement said.

In her acceptance speech, Fauth paid credit to her parents for their support and for inspiring her by demonstrating the profound impact one can have through dedication and service.

She also thanked her husband Chris and her two daughters, and shared stories of women who put the work in for future generations.

“As women today, we can live the lives we choose, thanks to those who enabled, protected, and inspired us,” she said.

“But there is still work to be done. Discrimination still exists, the gender pay gap remains, and unconscious biases persist. By sharing the stories of women, we can inspire us for further progress so as women we have the choice of how we want to live our lives.”

Fauth said she believed when people learnt about the past with their own lens “we can better understand where we have come from, who we are, and make better choices for the future’’.

“That’s why I am so passionate about helping people find free fun, making it meaningful through awareness, activities, and resources, to inspire future generations to be whoever they want to be.”

Karen Rolleston
December 21, 2024

Wuhoo created scavenger hunts to celebrate Sea Week in Timaru in 2022.
Valentina Bellomo / The Timaru Herald

Holiday season is here, and quite possibly, those of you not venturing far over the break will have some family visiting and, if you are lucky, maybe some young ones in the mix.

Short of ideas on things to do? Remember to look up the Wuhoo Timaru website.

It’s chock full of great ideas for local outings and adventures for families to do together.

Lots of hard work and investigation has gone into creating this amazing resource for Timaru locals and visitors to enjoy, all them pretty much free.

The brainchild of creative local couple, Christopher and Roselyn Fauth, the website has been a long-term project.

They have a young family of their own and wanted to discover what was to be done in the way of free family fun in South Canterbury and to pass this information onto other families here.

This site offers a range of possibilities including all sorts of hunts, playground locations, activities, places to picnic, all sorts of trails to follow, walks to do and local history discoveries to be made.

Roselyn is an accomplished artist in her own right, she paints under the name Roselyn Cloake, and the website gives some of her gorgeous pictures to download for young artists to colour in and put their stamp on.

Great for a rainy day and not just for the children. Along with the picture you will find a sheet of information about Timaru history and the stories behind the pictures.

Roselyn and Christopher were part of the team involved in the development and fundraising for our new, well-received and multi-award-winning Caroline Bay Playground, CPlay.

Another wonderful project and achievement for our town that they were instrumental in bringing to completion, it’s been a thrill to see it so well used and enjoyed by family groups, both local and visiting.

Once again, if you’re looking for something different to do then get on the website, wuhootimaru and you will be amazed at what you find. It’s a winner.

Happy holidays to you all.

– Karen Rolleston

14 December 2024

With my beautiful friend Francine Spencer we unveiled our windows at the Aigantighe At Gallery this week. I still can't believe it. Feels like a dream.

It's been 7 years since this part of the gallery closed after the Christchurch Earthquake, and at times I was deeply concerned it would never reopen again, and here we are, celebrating its reopening.

Enjoy the garden party this weekend and thank you to everyone who worked so hard to bring Aigantighe, the home of art in South Canterbury back to our community.

Thank you to Aigantighe team for the opportunity to create these windows with Fran.

My window design on the right is about standing strong and family.

"Like Aoraki Mt Cook, the Aigantighe Art Gallery has been both a home and a source of inspiration for Roselyn Cloake and stands as a powerful symbol of resilience and connection of people and place.

One of Roselyn’s most cherished memories was a family trip to the Hooker Valley. They arrived at the lake in cloud and spent time studying the rocks, and pieces of glacial ice. Her children were holding it up to the sky and trying to look through its bubbly icy lens, much like the glass in this work. They talked about when and where the ice may have formed, and how something so soft could grind the rock around them. The dust and the glacial melt from the mountain, to provide the Canterbury plains where they lived. The clouds lifted to reveal Aoraki. It was truly breathtaking.

“Even, with everything thrown at it, the deep forces of tectonic plates, wild wind, rain, ice, and melting heat, Aoraki continues to stand strong and tall. Always there, even when the clouds had rolled in. Aoraki reminds me that I can be strong too.”

Through her friendship with Francine Spencer, Roselyn saw a new perspective of Aoraki, as well as a landmark, it could be a symbol of mana whenua, and manaakitanga.

For Roselyn, the Aigantighe House has always been a place of personal and artistic significance. From twirling around at her father's photography exhibition when she was 3, to participating in Artarama, and volunteering for over 20 years with the Friends of Aigantighe, she remembers the fight to preserve the gallery during its closure after the Christchurch earthquake.

The community rallied together—artists, volunteers, and advocates—to give support and ensure the historic house would reopen, preserving and honoring the legacy of the Grant family and the South Canterbury Arts Society. This fight for the gallery’s future, standing strong, even in cloud, resonates in Roselyn’s work.

Her paintings have been inspired by the cubist movement, who showed the world as if looking though the facets of a crystal glass, the medium of stained glass was fitting Roselyns’s window is a tribute and a celebration to the enduring power of place, culture, and connection.

The Timaru Herald 22 Nov 2023 Rachael Comer

A slide tower inspired by Timaru’s Blackett Lighthouse has been incorporated into the design.
A 12-metre-long mythical creature lurking in the sea beneath the flying fox is just one of many cultural elements that feature in Timaru’s new $2.98 million state-of-the-art playground.

The Timaru Herald 10 Nov 2023 Rachael Comer

Preparing for Sunday’s Junk To Funk competition as part of the South Canterbury Eco Centre’s Sustainability Festival at the weekend are Alice and Hugo, 6, Brice and Chris Konings. JOHN BISSET
From junk to funk, worm farming, predator-free trap making and an eco treasure hunt, volunteers are in full organisation mode as the South Canterbury Eco Centre prepares to host its second Sustainability Festival.

By Georgia Merton for Frank Film
NZ Herald·
1 Aug, 2022

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/frank-film-timarus-caroline-bay-remembering-a-stormy-history

Timaru's Caroline Bay used to be known as the Riviera of the South. A wide, sandy beach, it was where Cantabrians would flock (by train) to swim, sunbathe and attend carnivals and concerts. Though it doesn't quite draw the crowds of "Riviera" times these days, it's still a beautiful bay, enjoyed by Timaru locals.

But it wasn't always a place of peace, nor of fine golden sand. Rather, Caroline Bay was a place of heaving southerly swells and many a shipwreck. According to Timaru researcher Roselyn Fauth, the story is a good one - and she's helping plan a new playground to pay tribute to it.

"The natural basin of the area provided some shelter for ships," Roselyn tells Frank Film of Caroline Bay, referring back to the 1800s. "So they could come here, and they could import and export."

When a big southerly swell roared to life, though, the place became a nightmare for ships.

"I think over about 16 years we saw 28 shipwrecks here," says Roselyn, a Timaru local and passionate historian. Mooring became a point of contention: to move the ships closer for more efficient handling of goods? Or to keep them further out, at a safer distance?

At the centre of all this, caught in the politics, was Captain Mills, who'd been harbourmaster for 16 years. He had a big job, especially when the sea rose up. Captain Mills bore the responsibility for the lives of all those aboard the ships, as well as the rescue Rocket Brigade and lifeboat crew.

The Rocket Brigade had their work cut out for them. They were the late-1800s version of lifeguards, except arguably (as the name suggests) with a more exciting job - one that involved rockets and "rescue pants". As Keely Kroening, Museum Educator at South Canterbury Museum explains, when a ship was in trouble the signal gun would be heard all over town, and everyone would come running.

"Then they would send a rocket out, holding a rope over the ship, so that the seamen on the ship could grab the rope," Keely explains. The seamen would tie off the rope to the mast and the brigade would then send out a pair of canvas shorts attached to a buoy. The seamen would hop inside the rescue shorts and be pulled back to shore, one by one.

In 1878, the people decided enough was enough, and work began on a southern breakwater to help protect the ships from the sea. Not everyone was behind the plan. The Government's marine engineer, John Blackett, wrote a report saying the port was a terrible idea, and that it would change the way sediment flowed up the coast.

He would prove to be right about the sediment: where Caroline Bay was once a rocky cliff, it is now a sandy bay. It also starved the lagoon, of which only about 10 per cent remains today. But his opinion didn't stand a chance against the hundreds of locals who turned up to parade and protest against him on the main street.

"They hissed and carried this effigy of Blackett down to the breakwater, filled him with fireworks and then blew him up," says Roselyn. Ouch.

The breakwater went ahead, but because steamships took priority on the new moorings, many sailboats were still left to anchor too close to shore. Two years after the port construction, Caroline Bay witnessed its biggest shipwreck yet. It was May 14, 1882, and a huge swell had kicked up. The Ben Venue lost anchor, smashing into the rocks where a crowd from town had gathered.

The crew managed to escape to the safety of the City of Perth, but this lost anchor, too, and drifted down the bay before smashing into the wreck of the Ben Venue. Tragically, nine lost their lives, including Timaru's beloved Captain Mills.

The story of Caroline Bay is a colourful and tragic one. Roselyn is determined that it be better celebrated, and that the bay be restored to its earlier glory as a place of play. To replace the tired playground that currently sits where so many once ventured for leisure, work is under way on a new playground inspired by Timaru's stormy history.

Under the name of C-Play, the new playground features a lighthouse, a buried Ben Venue, a Rocket Brigade-themed flying fox and a big focus on inclusivity. Might this new playground put Caroline Bay back on the map as the Riviera of the South?

The Timaru Herald9 Jun 2022Rachael Comer

CPlay party organisers and helpers, back row, from left, Roselyn Fauth, Medinella Fauth, 7, Felicity Brice, 6, Owen (OF) Jackson, Annabelle Fauth, 3, and Chris Fauth. Front, Janine Stewart as Olaf, Alice Brice and Leanne Prendeville.

It’s been a real community effort, and now members of the public are being invited to party at the playground in Timaru.

The Timaru Herald25 Aug 2021Esther Ashby-Coventry

Medinella Fauth holding the medal that she found at Patiti Point. She wants to find the person who owned it, so she can give it back to them. 

Medinella Fauth, 6, with some ‘‘treasure’’ she found on a Timaru beach. It appears to be a World War 1 badge, but who does it belong to?

A bronze and silver army badge found on a Timaru beach has left questions and, as yet, no answers.

Medinella Fauth, 6, found what is believed to be a World War I Royal New Zealand Armoured Corps cap badge about a metre from the bottom car park at the south end of Patiti Point beach on the edge of an underground creek, her mother Roselyn Fauth said.

They were walking at about 6.30pm last Thursday when Medinella found the ‘‘treasure’’.

‘‘She thought it was treasure. She’s always been excellent at finding tiny things,’’ Roselyn Fauth said.

She said they have managed to identify it through help from the South Canterbury Museum, it has been reported to police, and they would like to reunite it with its owner or family of its owner.

Though similar badges are valued between $10 and $300 on armed forces memorabilia sites, it was the sentimental value which was of importance, Fauth said.

‘‘It looked like it was thrown out of a car window as it was not dirty and the ribbon was not attached and found nearby.’’

She said the badge was bronze with a silver tank on it with two silver ferns and the letter ‘S’ on the other side along with badgemaker J Gaunt engraved on it.

Though the Fauths have put out a call for the owner on social medal no-one had come up with any leads yesterday.

Fauth said she was still confident they would eventually find where the badge came from and be able to return it to its home.

The Timaru Herald21 Apr 2022Maddison Gourlay
MADDISON GOURLAY/STUFF

Aigantighe Art Gallery staff member Diana Peneamene, left, and CPlay Playground Upgrade Project committee member Roselyn Fauth with some of the artwork for the mural at the new playground.
The public are being invited to show off their artistic skills in a bid to remember Caroline Bay’s old playground in the rebuilt version.

The Timaru Herald 19 Jan 2021 Chris Tobin
BEJON HASWELL/STUFF

Roselyn Fauth and Keely Kroening at the whale pot at Patiti Point practising the Wellerman sea shanty.
A sea shanty going viral around the world could have its origins in Timaru.

The Timaru Herald 25 Aug 2020 Joanne Holden
JOHN BISSET/STUFF

Petrena Fishburn, the collections curator at the Aigantighe Art Gallery, with the 1895 painting The Mother by Thomas Kennington, which has been recently restored thanks to the gallery’s Friends group.
An 125-year-old oil painting owned by Timaru’s art gallery that was too fragile to exhibit for the past four years has been restored.

The Timaru Herald 25 Jun 2020 Joanne Holden

Roselyn Fauth is frustrated that work on the Aigantighe Art Gallery appears to be ‘‘in holding pattern’’.

 The Timaru Herald 18 Apr 2020

Medinella Fauth beside a Wuhoo sign at Caroline Bay created with the help of her parents Roselyn and Chris Fauth and the Aigantighe Art Gallery

The Timaru Herald 9 Apr 2020 Esther Ashby-Coventry
BEJON HASWELL/STUFF

Joanne Holden. March 26, 2020. Timaru Herald

Annabelle, 16 months, left, and Medinella, 5, enjoy their home hut.Supplied / The-Timaru-Herald

The Timaru Herald
25 Mar 2020
Joanne Holden
pressreader.com/the-timaru-herald

Roselyn Fauth with a new scavenger hunt for Caroline Bay as a way for people to get outside during self-isolation. The peruvian pepper tree on the piazza beside her is an item to find on the hunt.
Keeping spirits up as New Zealand goes into lockdown is the aim of a new scavenger hunt around Timaru.

Roselyn and Chris Fauth, cofounders of WuHoo Timaru, a voluntary organisation promoting free fun activities around town, launched their Caroline Bay Hunt this week.

It encourages families to explore the area around the Bay and ‘‘get some very important Vitamin D’’.

‘‘I think people have to protect not just their physical health, but mental health,’’ Roselyn Fauth said.

‘‘If you are able to practise social distancing, I don’t see why people can’t do this. You don’t have to touch anything, just walk around in the fresh air.’’

Challenges of the hunt included exploring the Bay’s history by finding a series of plaques, and 22 games of ‘‘I Spy’’.

‘‘If it’s safe to be outside then that’s something we would like to inspire people to do. And it all goes towards us celebrating an amazing gem: Caroline Bay.’’

The couple spent the weekend handing out about 1000 activity sheets to Timaru District Council facilities – but with those closed down as the Covid-19 alert level is ramped up, would-be scavengers are encouraged to download the hunt from wuhootimaru.co.nz.

Fauth said the council had been supportive of the hunt, providing funding to print the activity sheets and allowing the couple to promote it around town.

The couple had been working on the hunt for the past year and testing it with their daughters, 5-year-old Medinella and 16-month-old Annabelle.

Fauth said Medinella had come up with a few of her own challenges.

‘‘That’s the ultimate if people are inspired to make their own free play,’’ she said.

‘‘People can teach their kids how to read a map so there’s practical skills, and it’s all about spending more time together as a family.

‘‘There is so much to learn.’’ They intended to launch it during the school holidays, originally set for April 10 to 27, but the escalating situation with the worldwide pandemic saw them bring the date forward.

‘‘We were in a bit of a rush to get it to the printers.’’

Fauth said the idea for the hunt was born from Timaru Rocks, another WuHoo initiative where people paint rocks and hide them in public places for others to find.

‘‘People really enjoyed the hunt side of it.’’

The Timaru Herald 25 Mar 2020 Joanne Holden
MYTCHALL BRANSGROVE/ STUFF

The Timaru Herald1 Jan 2020
Joanne Holden This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Children are being challenged to swing, whirl, and dash their way through the Timaru district’s 43 playgrounds these summer holidays.

WuHoo Timaru, a voluntary organisation promoting free fun activities around town, has launched the Play43 Challenge, which encourages children living or holidaying in the district to complete a dare at playgrounds in Timaru, Temuka, Pleasant Point, Geraldine, and Rangitata Huts.

The challenges include doing a King Kong impression at Timaru’s Aorangi Park, hopping onto eight tree stumps at St Leonards Rd in Temuka and hanging upside down at Rangitata Huts’ northern playground.

‘‘It’s about meaningful family time and getting rid of some energy out in the fresh air,’’ WuHoo co-founder Roselyn Fauth said.

‘‘The challenge side of it is to inspire people to use playgrounds in different ways. It brings a different dynamic to the playground and stretches your time there.’’

Some ‘‘real gems’’ were waiting to be discovered – such as a hut hidden inside a hedge at the playground on Flemington St in Timaru and a new zip line at Gleniti Park.

Fauth and husband Chris had already taken their 5-year-old daughter, Medinella, on a tour of the 43 playgrounds. ‘‘One day we did 10 and it’s fair to say she slept really well that night.’’

Despite growing up in Timaru, Fauth had no idea the district had so many playgrounds until about six months ago.

‘‘When I tell people we have 43 playgrounds, it’s quite fun seeing their eyes almost pop out of their heads,’’ she said.

‘‘Just having a resource that celebrates how many playgrounds we have is helpful.’’

On top of promoting existing playgrounds, the Fauths were committee members of a group discussing ideas for a $1.5 million playground at Caroline Bay.

‘‘It just shows the appetite that people in the district have for playgrounds.’’

With ‘‘very generous’’ funding from Aoraki Development as well as discounts offered by Warehouse Stationery and Corporate Print, the family have distributed score cards and pencils to 20 businesses around Timaru in the week leading up to Christmas. A score card can also be downloaded at wuhootimaru.co.nz.

Eleanor Rarity 16:38, May 16 2019

WuHoo Timaru co-founder Roselyn Fauth and her father Geoff Cloake, both Friends of the Aigantighe Art Gallery, are planning on expanding their South Canterbury history and art decoration project. They are pictured with Fauth's daughter Medinella Fauth, 4.

This week we talk to the Fauths, the creators and admins (and testers) of their amazing voluntary initiative - WuHoo Timaru.

We asked what it is that they LOVE about living in Timaru City:

"We love finding free family fun in Timaru, spying starfish in rock pools, observing the changing beaches, hiding painted rocks, looking for bananas at the botanic gardens, visiting the gallery, library and museum and making scavenger hunts to inspire others to explore and celebrate our district."

Wuhoo Timaru

If you haven’t already, be sure to Facebook follow Wuhootimaru.  Fun free activities that can be completed at any time. Think free family fun, scavenger hunts, colourful fact sheets, and just getting the whanau out and about and enjoying this amazing city - for free and unplugged.

- www.aorakitourism.co.nz/free-family-fun-at-its-best

"Civic Trust Newsletter 2019 - THUMBS UP! - Celebrating art in our environment

Aigantighe Art Gallery, Friends of the Aigantighe and WuHoo Timaru, initiated by Roselyn and Chris Fauth, launched a new programme to get artwork out into the community and the environments that inspire it.
In December 2018 the first five signs were installed at Caroline Bay and Patiti Point. They feature artworks from the Aigantighe Art Gallery Permanent Collection that relate to the location of the sign and its surroundings. The signs also include explanatory text and historical images from the South Canterbury Museum’s collection giving the artworks greater context. Examples at Caroline Bay are William Green’s The Unemployed, (a painting of the well-known donkeys that gave rides on Caroline Bay) and William Gibb’s painting of Timaru Harbour in 1888. Another Greene painting entitled The Roadmakers, ploughing a road near the sea, can be found at Patiti Point . There is also a painting by John L Higgs, entitled Timaru Coastline (depicting the scene looking north towards central Timaru and the harbour in 1884) and William Ferrier’s Breakwater, Timaru, Running a Southerly Gale 1888. The next round of signs are nearing completion and it is hoped to have the next three mounted by October.

The Friends of the Aigantighe Art Gallery have commissioned their first artwork to give a contemporary reflection on Timaru’s unique past for the WuHoo signs. The painting has been created by local artist Mike Armstrong. This is a great way to support our local artists, promote our public art collection and help it to be even more visible by displaying it in a public place on a WuHoo sign."

ESSENCE MAGAZINE - Gilly Oppenheim
Sept 2019

Looking for free fun in Timaru? Find a Wuhoo!

Roselyn Fauth, her husband Chris and her father Geoff Cloake are the brains behind this initiative. This young mum is brimming with ideas to get people, both young and old, off the couch and into the local community to appreciate just what Timaru has to offer. “This creative outlet is bringing our community together, and helping others in ways they never imagined,” said Roselyn. “From getting families outside into the fresh air for a modern-day treasure hunt, to giving kids and adults of all ages and abilities a new creative hobby, a sense of belonging and pride in our community.” Roselyn stresses that Wuhoo is very much a collaborative venture. She has had wonderful support from the Timaru District Council, the Library, the South Canterbury Museum, the Aigantighe Art gallery and community groups.

The first initiative was TimaruRocks. This group was established in 2017 to help spread the craze which sees participants paint rocks and hide them in public places for others to find, re-hide or keep. They might be found under picnic tables, hiding at the foot of trees in reserves or alongside the sculptures in the garden around the Art Gallery. The community rock boxes, which contain paints and brushes have so far been used by over 2400 residents at South Canterbury primary and secondary schools, retirement homes, community groups, Children’s Day, the Rose Festival and the South Canterbury District Health Board.

Another initiative has been the popular Scavenger Hunts at the Timaru Botanic Gardens. Besides giving a brief history of the Botanic Gardens, there is an excellent annotated map and a myriad of fun and interesting activities to do. The informative activity sheets can be picked up from the Fernery in the gardens or at the TDC, Library, Museum, Information Centre or Aigantighe Art Gallery.

The newest initiative is celebrating art in our environment. The Aigantighe Art Gallery, the Friends of Aigantighe and Wuhoo Timaru have launched a new programme to get artworks out into the community and the environments that inspired them. In December 2018 the first five signs were installed at Caroline Bay and at Patiti Point. They feature artworks from the Aigantighe Art Gallery Permanent Collection that relate to the signs and their surroundings. The signs also include explanatory text and historical images from the South Canterbury Museum’s collection, giving the artworks greater context. Examples at Caroline Bay are William Green’s The Unemployed (a painting of the well-known donkeys that gave rides on Caroline Bay) and William Gibb’s painting of Timaru Harbour in 1888. Another Green painting entitled The Roadmakers (horses ploughing a road near the sea), can be found at Patiti Point, along with a painting by John L Higgs, which depicts the scene looking north towards central Timaru and the harbour in 1881 and William Ferrier’s Breakwater, Timaru, Running in a Southerly Gale in 1888.

The next round of signs are nearing completion and it is hoped to have the next three in the ground by October. The Friends of the Aigantighe Art Gallery have commissioned their first artwork to give a contemporary reflection on Timaru’s unique past for the Wuhoo signs. The painting has been created by local artist Mike Armstrong. This is a fantastic way to support our local artists.

Roselyn really enjoys the challenge of designing things and the discovery of our history thanks to the book Jubilee History of South Canterbury by Johannes C Anderson. “My goal is to celebrate what our district has to offer, encourage people to use it and to give some free family fun to our locals and visitors”. What a wonderful philosophy!

The Timaru Herald 16 Oct 2019 Esther Ashby-Coventry

It is 161 years since the first shipload of immigrants from Britain set sail for Timaru aboard the Strathallan.

The Timaru Herald 7 Jun 2019
Craig Westenberg

Anyone with quirky tales related to Timaru’s architecture can email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or message WuHoo on Facebook.

Roselyn Fauth, of WuHoo Timaru, is looking for interesting stories about the town’s history as she designs a colouring-in page for adults.
Quirky Timaru tales are being sought for an adult colouring-in page celebrating the town’s architecture.

The Timaru Herald
17 May 2019
Eleanor Rarity

Medinella Fauth, 4, with mum Roselyn Fauth and granddad Geoff Cloake at one of the art signs on Caroline Bay.
Stories and images reflecting the region’s history may soon be on display in more parts of South Canterbury as a community group looks to expand its work.

WuHoo Timaru is considering adding up to 35 more sites to its installation project of reproductions of artworks from the Aigantighe Art Gallery’s permanent collection now at five spots in Timaru.

In March, the five pilot signs were launched at Caroline Bay and Patiti Point. The signs show what the site looked like in the past or relates to the surroundings.

Spokesperson Roselyn Fauth said the community’s feedback had been ‘‘surprisingly good’’, and she, along with father Geoff Cloake were now looking to venture to Temuka, Pleasant Point, Geraldine, and the Mackenzie Country.

‘‘We’re just so lucky we’ve got an awesome amount of artwork. We are certainly not short of materials,’’ she said.

The project is a collaborative effort with the Aigantighe Art Gallery, which provided the paintings, and the South Canterbury Museum, which helped uncover the stories behind them, the Friends of the Aigantighe and WuHoo. Fauth said she was ‘‘over the moon’’ with the offers of donations towards the project.

Article Name:Art signs to expand
Publication:The Timaru Herald
Author:Eleanor Rarity

January 24, 2019

Coastal view . . . Roselyn Fauth and baby Annabelle (3 months) at the site of John Gibb's 1884 painting of the Timaru coastline. PHOTO: CHRIS TOBIN

Reproductions of artworks from the Aigantighe Art Gallery’s permanent collection are featuring along Timaru’s coastline. Five signs have been installed from Caroline Bay to Patiti Point. “These five will test it to get feedback,” said Roselyn Fauth, of WuHoo Timaru, who, along with husband Chris Fauth, initiated the idea and then worked in conjunction with the art gallery, the Friends of Aigantighe and local businesses to make it possible.

ELEANOR RARITY July 18 2018

Timaru's youngest citizens have a new adventure. The initiative, begun by the WuHoo​ team Roselyn​ and Chris Fauth​, provides children with seven challenges they can complete throughout different areas of the town's Botanic Gardens.

"It can be purely a self guide, or [children] can complete one or all seven of the challenges," Roselyn​ Fauth​ said. WuHoo​ Timaru is a voluntary organisation that aims to find and showcase fun things to do in the town. Previous events include Timaru Rocks, which Fauth described as "really, really popular", along with regular scavenger and sculpture hunts.

Doing something with the gardens was a natural choice, as it provided lots of ideas for activities, and was something that the Fauths' three year old daughter would also enjoy. "[It's] something that's family friendly, gets people outside, doesn't cost anything, and can be done anytime."

A new free initiative to get kids away from their screens and out into nature has been launched in collaboration with Timaru District Council.

The WuHoo Timaru Botanic Gardens activity map is now available at venues throughout Timaru and offers a wealth of activities for kids and adults to do while exploring the gardens.

The map is the first initiative from the under the brand WuHoo Timaru, which is aiming to offer free family friendly activities at Timaru’s iconic venues. The Botanic Garden maps have been printed with the support of the Timaru District Council.

Roselyn Fauth, who has developed the concept with her husband Chris, said that the idea came as a follow on from the success of Timaru Rocks and the Timaru Sculpture Trail.

“We spend a lot of time at the Gardens now that we have a young family, and were looking for new things to do while we were there,” she said.

“We saw there were guides at other gardens around the country, or outdoor challenges and thought we could come up with one for Timaru.

“There is a map which includes seven activities such as an eye spy challenge, scavenger hunt, botanic bucket List, code breaker and Bush Bingo.

“We were concerned at reports of how kiwi kids spend little time playing in nature, and felt that a project like this might help encourage people to get out and about a little bit more. Especially when it's free and so accessible.”

Timaru District Council Parks and Recreation Manager Bill Steans said that it was great for the Council to be able to support this kind of initiative.

“Our botanic gardens were recently named as one of New Zealand’s Gardens of National Significance, and ideas such as this that bring a new generation to learn about what we have on display has to be congratulated,” said Bill.

“Many people aren’t aware of all the interesting aspects of the garden, and this new map helps people learn about it in an interactive and fun way.”

Timaru Botanic Gardens can be found at the corner of King and Queen Streets, Timaru. It is open to vehicles between 8am and dusk each day.

The maps can be picked up at The Gardens Fernery, the Timaru Information Centre, Timaru Library, South Canterbury Museum and Aigantighe Art Gallery.

Publish Date: 17 Jul 2018
Timaru District Council

RACHAEL COMER

January 26, 2018

Timaru musician Noes Butts, left, and TimaruRocks co-ordinator Roselyn Fauth prepare for TimaruRocks' first birthday celebrations at the Timaru Botanic Gardens on Saturday.
DOUG FIELD / STUFF
A Timaru group established to get people out of the house and into public spaces around the region is set to celebrate its first birthday.

TimaruRocks was launched on social media in January 2017, after Timaru woman Roselyn Fauth saw similar groups "going well" in other parts of the country.

Since then it has gained more than 3000 members and been part of some major community events including the first soapbox derby held in town since the 1980s and an event on Caroline Bay remembering the anniversary of New Zealand's nuclear-free status. Members also helped mark mental health awareness by holding a rock hunt.

Fauth said it was now time to celebrate the group's first birthday on Saturday at the Timaru Botanic Gardens with a picnic and family event.

TimaruRocks had teamed up with the Friends of the Timaru Botanic Gardens for the celebration, she said. The friends group re-established last year after several years in recess.

"It can be a lot of work to undertake by just a few volunteers, especially when we are not an official group.

"Teaming up with the Friends helps share the planning, hosting and responsibility, plus we can bounce ideas off each other. We are really thrilled to see the Friends group re-establish, and hopefully we can partner more together. Our family loves the Botanic Gardens, it's a real gem of our district. So peaceful, tidy and interesting."

Fauth said Saturday's event would include a rock hunt, harp music, dress up, model boats, bubbles and games.

"Everyone is welcome," she said.

"It is pretty casual. The idea is people turn up and make their own fun, bring their own picnic, bring a ball, games and rocks. Kids' supervision is essential."

"Ultimately we aim to bring our community even closer together, catch up, make new friends and share a little bit of happiness."

She said there wouldn't be any food vendors, or anything that cost money at the event, ensuring it would be a "cheap day out".

The event begins at 11am at the band rotunda in the Timaru Botanic Gardens.

- The Timaru Herald

The Timaru Herald 9 Oct 2017 BEN AULAKH
PHOTO: DOUG FIELD/STUFF

South Canterbury District Health Board staff Susie Brooking, left, Judy Wallace and Lloyd Wallace paint some pebbles ready for the rock hunt being held as part of Mental Health Awareness Week.
A Timaru rock artist has spoken of her own issues around mental health in encouraging people to get outdoors this Mental Health Awareness Week.

The Timaru Herald 20 Nov 2017 ELENA MCPHEE
Timaru’s first street soapbox derby since the 1980s went well on Sunday - though not without a few bumps and scratches.

Hundreds of people were out in central Timaru cheering their teams on as they sped down George St.

The Timaru Herald21 Aug 2017RACHAEL COMER
PHOTO: JOHN BISSET/STUFF

Checking out the rocks painted for the Colour the Night event are, from left, TimaruRocks organiser Roselyn Fauth, Medinella Fauth and Kristin Holloway.
Timaru residents are helping to ensure a community event rocks.

The Timaru Herald
19 Jun 2017
STU OLDHAM

Andre Stokes, 8, of Timaru was among those who laid coloured rocks on Caroline Bay, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of New Zealand becoming nuclear free.
Hundreds of coloured rocks were laid on the cool sand of Caroline Bay in a gesture of support for those who continue work for nuclear disarmament.

The Timaru Herald 28 Feb 2017
TESS BRUNTON

Four-year-olds Bellah Doyle-Geddis, left, and Cooper Hamilton find the perfect hiding spot for their masterpieces.
South Canterbury residents and business owners are getting involved in an international craze which recently reached Timaru.