Cashmere High School Foundation, Past Pupils and Friends

17/09/2026

We are incredibly proud to celebrate CHS alumna Sophie Woods (Class of 2001), who has become the fastest person to complete the Via Alpina, covering the gruelling 2,000km route through the European Alps in just 28 days!

Taking on an extraordinary journey across some of Europe’s most demanding alpine terrain, Sophie pushed through long days, challenging conditions and thousands of kilometres on foot to set a new fastest known time for the route.

From Cashmere High School to the peaks of the European Alps, this achievement is one we are very proud to celebrate within our community.

Congratulations, Sophie!

Photo credit: Zoe Salt

15/09/2026

Our Cashmere High School ’80s Reunion is now just four weeks away and we don’t want you to miss it.

If you attended Cashmere anytime between 1980 and 1989, join us for an evening of familiar faces, shared stories, school tours and plenty of reminiscing!

📅 Friday 16 October 2026
📍 Cashmere High School - Performing Arts Centre
🎟 Tickets $30 (including a drink on arrival and light refreshments)

Comment if you are coming along, tag your old classmates, share this post with your Cashmere crew and start planning your reunion!

🔗 Tickets here:

Cashmere High School 80's Reunion, Join us as we celebrate all who attended ..., McCombs Performing Arts Centre, Christchurch, Canterbury, 16 October 2026,

10/09/2026

FORMAL FLASHBACK: 2000

Satin, feather boas, elbow-length gloves, tiaras, spiky updos...and some truly iconic group photo energy. The Cashmere High School formal at the turn of the millennium certainly delivered!

With our senior students heading to their formal tomorrow night, we’re throwing it back to the year 2000.

Recognise anyone? Maybe you have a student in your own whānau going to the formal tomorrow night!

We wish the CHS seniors a fantastic and memorable night tomorrow!

09/09/2026

CHS Class of 2025 graduate Cairo Akehurst recently took to the stage at the 2026 New Zealand Business Hall of Fame gala, delivering the final keynote address to around 300 guests. Among those in attendance were Hon Nicola Willis, Rt Hon Chris Hipkins and many of New Zealand’s leading business figures.

Cairo spoke about having the courage to open doors, back an idea and persevere when things do not go according to plan - a message that has particular relevance to his own entrepreneurial journey. His latest venture is currently on pause following the loss of a satellite, requiring Cairo and his team to rethink, pivot and determine what comes next.

Cairo founded Cattle Credit while at Cashmere High School, developing technology that uses satellite observations to help monitor methane emissions across global meat and dairy supply chains. His work has earned significant national recognition, including the inaugural Prime Minister’s Space Prize and the 2024 National Excellence Award for Innovation. In 2025, Cattle Credit was named the Young Enterprise Scheme Company of the Year.

To see a recent graduate addressing some of Aotearoa’s most influential leaders, while sharing such an honest message about ambition, resilience and adaptability, was an incredibly proud moment for our school community, especially for Cashmere High School Principal John Stradwick and Business Studies Teacher Matt Benassi who were in attendance.

09/09/2026

Good luck to Poppy Wyndham (Class of 2024) as she begins her Sophomore year on a university rowing scholarship in the United States!

07/09/2026

SAVE THE DATE: BACK FOR A BREW CLASS OF 2025!

You’ve been out in the world for a year, now it’s time to come back together!

If you graduated from Cashmere High School in 2025, join us for Back for a Brew, a relaxed summer catch-up with your former classmates. We’d love to hear what you've been up to over the last year.

📅 17th December 2026

Save the date, message the group chat and reconnect while everyone is home for the summer holidays.

More details coming soon! We can’t wait to welcome the Class of 2025 back! 💛

04/09/2026

The music at our ’80s Reunion comes with a very special Cashmere connection.

We’re delighted to welcome back to school the Frenesi Quartet, who will provide the perfect live soundtrack as we catch up!

After setting the scene at our ’60s and ’70s gatherings, Frenesi is returning for another memorable evening, but this time, the connection is especially personal. The quartet’s members were part of the original 1983–84 Cashmere High School Jazz Sextet, alongside fellow student musician Andy Bickers.

Andy, who sadly passed away in July, was a legendary saxophonist and went on to perform with Cold Chisel for more than 30 years. He also toured with iconic acts including Midnight Oil and Icehouse.

Join us as we reconnect, raise a glass and celebrate the people, music and memories that made the ’80s at Cashmere so special.

🎟️ Don’t miss it. Get your ’80s Reunion tickets here: https://www.eventfinda.co.nz/2026/cashmere-high-school-80s-reunion/christchurch

01/09/2026

Throwback to winter sport in the ’80s!

As our current students head away for Winter Tournament Week, we’re looking back at the Cashmere teams who proudly wore the maroon and gold during the 1980s.

Very different uniforms back then, but the same familiar team spirit.

If these photos take you back, our upcoming Cashmere High School 80s Reunion is the perfect opportunity to reconnect with old teammates, classmates and friends. Gather your crew we’d love to see you there! https://www.eventfinda.co.nz/2026/cashmere-high-school-80s-reunion/christchurch

31/08/2026

We’re delighted to congratulate Cashmere alumnus and award-winning writer John Summers (Class of 2000) ahead of the release of his latest book, Green Sea: Lost in the New Zealand Bush.

Green Sea brings together stories of those lost and found in New Zealand’s unforgiving bush. Part reportage, history and personal reflection, Green Sea looks closely at what keeps us going through the tangle of ordinary life – and at the mercies others show us when we feel most alone.

John is also is the author of The Commercial Hotel (2021) and The Mermaid Boy (2015). His writing has appeared in Sport, North & South, New Zealand Geographic, Sunday Star-Times, Landfall, New Zealand Listener, Newsroom and The Spinoff. He was the winner of the 2022 Janet Frame Literary Trust Award for Imaginative Prose, a finalist in the Voyager Media Awards, and winner of the nonfiction category in the 2016 Sunday Star-Times Short Story Awards.

The launch of Green Sea is part of the WORD Christchurch Festival:

Wednesday, 2 September at 5.30pm
Scorpio Books, 120 Hereford Street
Free event, RSVP here: https://wordchristchurch.co.nz/programme/book-launch-green-sea-by-john-summers

You can pre-order his book here: https://teherengawakapress.co.nz/products/green-sea

John is also appearing at several other events throughout the festival. Explore his full WORD programme: https://wordchristchurch.co.nz/authors/john-summers

Congratulations, John! We’re incredibly proud to celebrate the continued success of another talented member of our alumni community.

Image credit: Ebony Lamb

19/08/2026

Remembering Murray Allison

We are saddened to share the news of the passing of former staff member Murray Allison. Murray served Cashmere High School for 32 years, from 1974 to 2005. He joined the teaching staff as a Science teacher and later held a Head of School position before serving as Deputy Principal from 1996 to 2005.

Blair Johnson, Deputy Principal at Cashmere High School, remembers Murray:

“A real character of the school … a keen football man who coached many school teams and played in the staff-versus-Year 13 game into his 60s! Manchester United was his passion, and we bonded over a mutual dislike of Liverpool FC.

Murray brought bakery treats to every SLT meeting, was a big fan of Friday Pie Day at the Barrington Mall food court (somehow never gaining an ounce of weight), and seemed to win the staff raffle EVERY week!

Humorous, kind and supportive as a DP and HoS, but with very high standards around behaviour and effort. These high standards were clearly seen in his daughter, Jane, and son, Tim, who were both high achievers at CHS and have gone on to have stellar careers in academia.

Thirty-plus years at CHS … only the true greats reach that level! (Joking!) Just a top bloke – well-liked by staff, students and the community.

He left CHS to work at Te Kura (then called The Correspondence School) and travelled to rural districts, supporting students at risk of being unable to access or engage in education.”

Brett Cox, a former student of Murray’s and now a Head of School at Cashmere High School himself, remembers him fondly: “Muzzah was a great Head of School - firm but fair, and always understanding and open-hearted.”

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A service to celebrate and remember Murray’s life will be held at 2.30pm tomorrow, Friday 21 August at Lamb & Hayward - Oaklands, corner of Halswell Junction and Wigram Roads, followed by a private cremation.

If you would like to pass on a message to Murray’s family, please email [email protected].

Our thoughts are with Murray’s family, friends, former colleagues and the many students whose lives he influenced during his years at Cashmere High School.