Graeme Dingle Foundation Waikato

Graeme Dingle Foundation Waikato The Graeme Di**le Foundation is a leading organisation in youth development in Aotearoa New Zealand. Our mission is to transform young lives forever.

We aim to Positively Impact Young Lives so that every young person is connected and contributing to their community. Our fun and interactive values based programmes are delivered to 2,200 children and youth every week in 14 schools in three high need Waikato communities.

Pono in action! 💣This week our tamariki at Huntly West Primary got stuck into "Da Bomb" — a Kiwi Can energiser activity ...
24/09/2026

Pono in action! 💣

This week our tamariki at Huntly West Primary got stuck into "Da Bomb" — a Kiwi Can energiser activity with a twist. The rule is simple: if someone passes you the bomb, you must take it. No running away!

But the real kaupapa is pono — integrity. It's not just a game about ducking a soft ball, it's about:

🔸 Kawenga (Responsibility) — following the rules and owning our actions
🔸 Pono (Honesty) — telling the truth about who had the bomb, even when it doesn't go our way
🔸 Whakawhirinaki (Reliability) — being someone others can trust to do the right thing

Because integrity means doing the right thing even when nobody's watching 👀

Ka pai tamariki, we're proud of how you showed up!

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Meet Terry – Kiwi Can Leader 🌟Born and raised in West Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau, Terry made his name as a field events sp...
21/09/2026

Meet Terry – Kiwi Can Leader 🌟

Born and raised in West Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau, Terry made his name as a field events specialist — shot put — competing internationally and representing Aotearoa New Zealand at two Paralympic Games. With a Diploma in Sport Recreation and Management and over 24 years mentoring young people, becoming a Kiwi Can leader was a dream realised. Self-described as "a big kid at heart" (and a huge Auckland Blues fan).

"Hanging with students is just my jam, and getting to teach life skills and values in a fun way is a vibe."

Fun fact: He's funny (his words) — and he once ate a cockroach for $50 when he was 9 years old. 🪳💵

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Four programmes. Four whakataukī. One kaupapa. 💚Swipe through and you'll notice something — each whakataukī speaks to a ...
18/09/2026

Four programmes. Four whakataukī. One kaupapa. 💚

Swipe through and you'll notice something — each whakataukī speaks to a different stage of the journey we walk alongside tamariki and rangatahi.

💚Kiwi Can reminds us that size means nothing when it comes to potential.
💗Stars is about letting every young person find and hold their own light.
🧡Career Navigator speaks to what it means to step up as one generation makes way for the next.
💜Project K is about reaching for the far horizon — while still holding tight to what's already been won.

Different words, same purpose: helping our tamariki and rangatahi believe in what they're capable of.

Ngaa mihi o Te Wiki o te Reo Maaori, e hoa mā! 💚
Happy Māori Language Week — from all of us at Graeme Di**le Foundation Waikato

17/09/2026

Ko Te Wiki o te Reo Maaori tēnei wiki! 🎉 Tirohia tētahi o ā mātou kēmu i whakahaerehia i tēnei wiki — i te reo Maaori katoa.

He ata pai ki Forest Lake School i teenei ata! 🤝Naa Matua Caleb me whaea Erin i arahi te akomanga ruumaki tau whitu me t...
14/09/2026

He ata pai ki Forest Lake School i teenei ata! 🤝

Naa Matua Caleb me whaea Erin i arahi te akomanga ruumaki tau whitu me tau waru — i tiimata raatou ki te keemu "ngeru me te kiore" i roto anoo i te reo Maaori, whai muri ko tetahi koorero hoohonu mo te "reliability" (te pono/whakawhirinaki), i tuhia ai e ngaa tauira oo raatou ake whakaaro, aa, i tuu raatou ki mua i te akomanga ki te whakaatu i eeraa.

He tino miharo te akoranga i teenei ata — kia kaha Te Reo Maaori i teenei wiki! 💪🖤🤍❤️

A great morning at Forest Lake School! 🤝

Matua Caleb and whaea Erin led the year 7/8 rumaki class — starting with a Māori-language round of "cat and mouse," followed by a deeper discussion on reliability, where students wrote up their own thoughts and stood up in front of the class to present them.

Awesome engagement to kick off the week — kia kaha Te Reo Māori this Te Wiki o te Reo Māori!

Meet Erin – Kiwi Can Leader 🌟Born in Blenheim and raised doing every sport under the sun — netball, basketball, cycling,...
14/09/2026

Meet Erin – Kiwi Can Leader 🌟

Born in Blenheim and raised doing every sport under the sun — netball, basketball, cycling, speed skating and more — Erin moved to the Waikato at the start of 2025 to chase her track cycling dream, so training and working have become her new normal.

"I love what I do, and to see what we teach in practice around schools is the best feeling. I really reside with the values that we teach and believe that the programme will make a difference in our future leaders."

Outside of Kiwi Can, she's happiest staying busy with whānau and friends, always up for the next adventure.

Fun fact: She did competitive speed skating for 8 years. 🛼

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Te reo Māori isn't a "sometimes" thing at Kiwi Can — it's just how we run our sessions. 🟢Every single lesson, our tamari...
13/09/2026

Te reo Māori isn't a "sometimes" thing at Kiwi Can — it's just how we run our sessions. 🟢

Every single lesson, our tamariki move through the same reo-rich structure:

🗣️ Mihi whakahohe — we welcome and recap
📖 Te hua o te Ako (WALT) — we set what we're learning
🎯 Mahi Whakatau — energisers to get moving
🤝 Mahi — the main activity
💬 Mahi Uiui — we debrief together
🏆 Tohu — we celebrate with taonga
👋 Poroaki — we farewell each other

This week's kaupapa? Whakawhanaungatanga — building connection. Kiwi Can said it best:

"We can do it, me and you — mahi tahi gets us through."

Whether it's Mirror Moves, Pass the Creation, or Shape Shifters — the games change, but the reo stays constant. Our tamariki hear it, say it, and live it every week, term after term.

That's the mahi. 💚

Ever wondered why we call it "Kiwi Can"? 🥝It's about belief — tamariki learning they can lead, can problem-solve, can su...
13/09/2026

Ever wondered why we call it "Kiwi Can"? 🥝
It's about belief — tamariki learning they can lead, can problem-solve, can support their mates. Small phrase, big kaupapa.
Leading up to Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, we're sharing a bit more of the reo behind our mahi.

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Huge thanks to one of our amazing sponsors, for hosting our Career Navigator rangatahi from and .ffc this week. The...
11/09/2026

Huge thanks to one of our amazing sponsors, for hosting our Career Navigator rangatahi from and .ffc this week.

The students got a real behind-the-scenes look at the automotive industry — spending time with the service department, the sales manager, the tyre shop, the panel and paint team, grooming and the marketing team seeing the range of careers on offer under one roof.

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou, Winger Motors 🙌

And of course, we couldn't leave without being thoroughly impressed by their race car — a Ferrari 488 GT decked out in bold Winger Group colours, sitting right there in the workshop 😍

Meet Jared - project K Coordinator 🌟Grown up in Kirikiriroa, Jared feels privileged to work in a programme that strives ...
09/09/2026

Meet Jared - project K Coordinator 🌟

Grown up in Kirikiriroa, Jared feels privileged to work in a programme that strives to better his own community and inspires tamariki to be positive about the future. He's currently away on his OE until the end of the year, but here's a bit from the man behind Project K — back running it in the new year.

"Playing a small part in making the next generation of young people in Aotearoa kind and empathetic, and equipped with our Kiwi Can values. If I can be a positive role model to some of our rangatahi, work feels less like work, and more like a privileged opportunity to contribute."

Outside of work, he writes songs, plays football on weekends, and has coached football, tutored guitar, and volunteered onboard the Spirit of New Zealand.

Fun fact: He only watched Harry Potter for the first time at age 25 (it was okay, he guesses). 🪄

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Address

Hamilton

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 9am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 9am - 4:30pm
Thursday 9am - 4:30pm
Friday 9am - 2pm

Telephone

07 839 7058

Website

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