The Whanganui branch of National Council of Women of New Zealand held their annual Wynne Costley Research Essay Scholarship evening recently. Year 10 students from Nga Tawa were welcomed this year, joining students from Whanganui High and Whanganui Collegiate, the two schools which have regularly supported the scholarship since its inception.

On the 18th of September, four NCW Manawatu members joined with their counterparts at Mint café in central Whanganui, for the beginnings of a tour around local suffrage sites.

The next stop was the museum, where there is a permanent display of three early suffragists: Margaret Bullock, Jessie Williamson, and Ellen Balance. These three were key to advocacy efforts in the region, and they collected signatures for the 1893 petition. Along from this display, members enjoyed the sight of costumes through the past, finishing with Costume of the Month. The museum visit concluded with a viewing of a photographic exhibition of churches in the district. 

NCWNZ Whanganui Branch plans to have its annual Scholarship evening on 20th September to celebrate the winner of the Wynne Costley Literary Research Scholarship. Students are required to complete a research essay on a New Zealand woman of the past or present who has achieved and contributed in a distinct definable way to New Zealand society.

Former Whanganui Member of Parliament Steph Lewis spoke on Tuesday 13 February 2024 at a regular meeting of the Whanganui NCWNZ branch. After a general summary of the history and goals of the National Council of Women as well as an overview on women in parliament today, we introduced Lewis. Carla Donson Manager of the Women's Network then put questions to Steph and it felt more like a conversation about her experiences and reflections being an MP.

Lewis focused on coping with public abuse that MPs, especially women MPs, endure. The abuse came from men and women. People threatened to protest at her home, and some would even follow her home from meetings. 

In February 2022, Lewis was harassed by anti-COVID vaccine mandate protestors outside Parliament. Some protestors came around the building banging on windows, and she heard them threatening to kidnap and lynch her. When Parliament adjourned at 10 p.m. protesters waited at the exit for MPs to leave, and security had to escort them from the building.

Artist Greg Hall, rear, with NCWNZ members anti-clock wise from him, Lynda Sammons, Joan Sullivan, Jo Power, Jenny Saywood, Margaret Campion, Sheryn Robertson, Judy Stein and Helma Vermeulen. Photo by Leigh Mitchell-Anyon also published in the Whangaui Chronicle and used here with permission.

The local branch of NCWNZ at Whanganui commissioned a window honoring women's rights activists Ellen Ballance, Margaret Bullock, and Jessie Williamson. The window also includes the NCWNZ logo and the white camelia associated with the women's suffrage movement in New Zealand. This art piece is one of twenty-five windows displayed in the District Council Chambers, depicting the Whanganui story - Nga Korero Hitoro o te Hapori. The work was designed and crafted by painter Julie Greig and glass artist Greg Hall.