NEW ZEALAND EDUCATION WEEK AT TEMPLE VIEW

I can’t believe we’re into November already!  The weather has warmed up here and is becoming more consistently sunny and less rainy although there are still a lot of cotton candy clouds that sail by.  It is supposed to be in the 70’s all week.

This week passed quickly.  Monday was New Zealand’s Labor day holiday, so the Church area offices were closed.  This gave me a chance to put some finishing touches on my Education Week power point presentation and remarks.  That evening Alisa and I went out to dinner with the Whatcotts at a nice Japanese restaurant on the beach in Takapuna.

On Tuesday I left at 6 a.m., drove to the Auckland Airport, and took an early flight to Wellington, the capital city of NZ and home to the Appellate court. I attended my first court session there, to watch and take notes on the Tax Commissioner v. Roberts case.  This is not our case, but has some similar tax implications to my The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints v. Commissioner case which will be heard next March by the same court.  My case involves whether Church members in NZ can get a tax credit for their donations to the ward missionary fund, particularly when the donations  are made by the family of a missionary.  So I enjoyed the 2.5 hour hearing of back and forth between the 3 judges and the solicitors (attorneys).  The judges were not sympathetic to the tax commissioner’s position in the least.  In NZ, only a monetary gift to a charity is eligible for a tax credit, not a gift of services or property.  The issue in the Roberts case was whether a debt forgiveness to the charity is the equivalent of a monetary gift.  The judges dressed in normal business suits, the solicitors were dressed in robes, but no one wore white wigs, darn it!  Anyway, after the hearing I caught a taxi back to the airport and flew back to Auckland, arriving home around 6:30 p.m.  The next day I drafted a summary of my observations for our local legal counsel.  They had wanted to have one of their attorneys attend the hearing, but at an estimated cost of $2,600, I decided it was cheaper for me to attend and take notes for free!

Friday morning  Alisa and I were up early, having packed the car the night before, and were off before 7 a.m. to drive the 2 hours to Hamilton/Temple View for Education Week.  This is the first one they’ve held in NZ for over 10 years.  It was well organized, with the classes taking place in the David O. McKay building (huge new stake center) and the surrounding buildings.  My presentation was entitled “The Blessings of a Good Education and a Meaningful Career”.  The classes were 50 minutes long and were scheduled throughout the 2 days (Friday and Saturday).  I gave my presentation 5 times, which left me a little time to attend some other classes.  Alisa took pictures and notes so she can do an article for Pacific Mormon Newsroom later.  Most of the class sizes were relatively small, my classes had students from 4 to 12 each.  That made for a more intimate setting than when my classes were 100-200 at BYU Provo Education Week 20 years ago.  The NZ Ed Week had between 400-500 in attendance they claimed, which isn’t bad for a first re-boot.  Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.  Friday night Alisa and I stayed at a cute B&B in Hamilton, a little cottage in a garden setting, delightful! Saturday afternoon Alisa drove back to Auckland Airport to pick up Edmund at the International terminal.  He had just flown in and had a 12 hour layover.  She brought him back to Temple View just after the final classes had concluded.  We got to show him around, taking him through the Visitors Center/Mathew Cowley Museum, and for a walk around the grounds and to see the temple remodel in progress.  Then we attended the evening banquet in the large dining hall and had a delicious dinner of ham, chicken, new potatoes, salads, breads, etc. followed by an easy listening band.  By this time it was getting late, so we headed home.  We drove by the airport to drop Ed off for his ongoing flight to Samoa, where he will spend a week working at a dental clinic there to help some of the natives who can’t afford dental treatment.  He’ll return here in about a week to spend a few days visiting us.  He bought the cheapest flight tickets he could find, so he had long lay overs in LA and Fiji before arriving here, taking a total of 26 hours (normally a 12 hour direct flight)!  He will have similar lay overs on the way home eventually.  It’s nice to be young and have that type of energy and time.  On his layover in Fiji, he spent a little time at the beach near the airport.

Today I facilitate my last Self-Reliance business class after church.  The students will each be making 5 minute presentations about their business plans.  I have invited as guests Bishop Dil, who runs a family owned mortuary business, and Elder Harris, a successful architect who is here on a mission for the Church.  They and I will critique each presentation.  I’ve really enjoyed facilitating this class, some great students, around 10-14 YSA’s attend each week.  But it will be nice to have my Sunday afternoons back again!