How it all started
The Mahurangi Winter Festival of Lights is the brainchild of One Mahurangi Business Association Manager, Murray Chapman and local radio host Brent Harbour. Knowing there wasn’t much going on in the Mahurangi area during the winter months, they came up with the concept for a mid-winter community event over a coffee.
Lions and Rotary were approached and independent of their day-jobs, Murray and Brent roped in local volunteers to bring the festival to life. The first festival was held in 2018. It was a one-day event with the Laser Light Show the highlight and around 3,000 people attending.
In 2019, the Parade of Lights was added, but thanks to Covid there was no festival at all in 2020. The tide turned in 2021 with the festival running over two nights and audiences more than doubling since its launch.
Like any community event, there’s still a heavy relience on volunteers to make the festival happen. Behind the scenes volunteers are helping with fundraising, booking attractions, meeting compliance requirements, marketing and promotions, scheduling and much, much more. This year the core team is: Robyn Kellian, Peter & Carol Henderson, Grant Henderson, Brian Oakes, John Peel, Clyde Tukaiora Connell, Tanja Dove, and Rachel Callender. There are also many more locals helping in the wings, and we couldn’t run this event without such a wonderful collective effort. Thank you!
“My vision is to make it a regional festival where each area puts on a different event to attract people up here during the quieter time of year while and at the same time, offering entertainment that doesn’t cost mums and dads a fortune. I’d really like to add something to the festival each year.”
Murray Chapman
One Mahurangi Business Association Manager
“Like Murray, I just love having something great that brings people into town during winter that is either free or low cost for families to enjoy.”
Brent Harbour
More FM Operations Manager and Breakfast Host