After spending years supervising offenders on periodic detention, Jean Dufty now sits on the other side of the fence providing work for offenders serving community work sentences at the Whangarei Museum & Heritage Park.
Jean is now semi-retired after a long career of paid and voluntary work in the justice sector. However, she still manages to volunteer for three days a week as the Museum’s grounds supervisor co-ordinating offenders on community work.
The community work groups are especially valued when the Museum is preparing for its annual Live Day programme, known locally as Whangarei’s “Big Day Out for the whole family”. Activities popular with children are the rides - steam train, miniature train, antique fire engine, bullock sled, horse and cart, hay cart and farm truck.
The 25 hectare park contains picnic areas, bush walks, a kiwi house, the historic 1886 Clarke homestead and a native bird recovery centre. It also houses a collection of early Maori and European artefacts from Northland.
“Every day we get comments from the public saying how beautiful the grounds are,” says Jean. She is clearly proud of the work ‘her boys’ do.
Jean says the Museum itself does not have a huge amount of funding for maintaining the grounds and relies considerably on the labour of community work groups. Over the years projects have included painting the historic Clarke homestead, maintaining lawns, laying tiles and concreting.
“The Community Probation Service is really responsive and will send extra groups so we can get everything in great shape for the Live Days,” adds Jean gratefully.
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ISSN 1178-8453