Hokonui Breakfast with Chitty

18/12/2025

📻 New Podcast Drops:
🌟 Nicky Coates – Stepping Up for Mataura
Nominations are open for the Mataura Community Board by-election! Nicky explains what the role involves, why strong representation matters, and how you can put your hand up to help shape Mataura’s future.
🌸 Emma Kate Rabbidge – The Shepherdess Muster & Scholarship Fund
The Shepherdess Muster is coming to Southland in March 2026! Emma Kate shares why this event is a game-changer for rural women and how you can help raise $15,000 to support local women through the new scholarship fund.
🎧👇 Catch both episodes now via the link in comments!

18/12/2025

✨ More Winners in the Hokonui Countdown to Christmas! 🎄
Our Day 8 winner, Margaret Evans, scored a $100 travel voucher PLUS a free consultation with Aimee McKee Travel ✈️🌍
And Day 11 winner, Angie Meehan, walked away with a $250 Liquorland voucher thanks to Liquorland! 🍾🎁
✅ Entries have now closed — huge congratulations to all our daily winners in the Countdown to Christmas!
🎉 And don’t forget to stay tuned tomorrow morning to see how our 60-Second Grocery Grab winner, Ngaire Evans, gets on at New World Gore 🛒✨

17/12/2025

🥁✨ Drumroll please… ✨🥁

The winner of our sixty-second Grocery Grab for the HOKONUI Countdown to Christmas has been drawn by the wonderful Tommy & team New World Gore — and a HUGE congratulations to ……………Ngaire Evans! 🎈

🛍️ Ngaire earned her entry by spending $20 or more at the Gore and Districts Memorial RSA Troopers Bistro!!

A massive 🙌 THANK YOU to all 11 of our participating stores for making this happen.

💃 Ngaire, I’m so excited for you and cannot wait to see your game plan in action for your 60-second Grocery Grab tomorrow morning! 🛒💨

📻 Be tuned in on air and 👀 keep an eye online to see how it all plays out.

🎄✨ Merry Christmas! ✨ 🎄

17/12/2025

Did someone say final Subway Shout of 2025? 👀🥪

Last week’s shout went to the legends at the Gore Multisports Complex 🙌

So who’s taking out the final tasty treat of 2025?🤔

👇 Nominate a local business or organisation in the comments and it could be me knocking on their door tomorrow 😏🚪💚

17/12/2025

ENTRIES ARE OFFICIALLY CLOSED! ✨🎄
We’ve collected all entries from our 11 amazing participating stores for the Hokonui Countdown to Christmas 🙌

There’s just ONE daily prize left to give away tomorrow… and then it’s all on for the 60-Second Grocery Grab at New World Gore this Friday morning! 🛒💨

👀 If your name is sitting in one of these boxes — keep your phone VERY handy tomorrow 📞🎁

16/12/2025

📻 New Podcast Drop:
🎧 The Joy of a Good Yarn with Annie Nelson
📱 Are you a Type A or Type B phone charger? Today’s chat gets fun as we debate charging habits—are you the “always at 100%” type or the “wait until it’s dead” crew?
✨ Plus, Oprah’s jaw-dropping luxury tour Down Under has us dreaming big—what would be on our ultimate rider if we were living the high life?
👇 Catch the full episode now via the link in comments!

16/12/2025

The winning in our Hokonui Countdown to Christmas continues! 🤶🏽✨

🎁 Day 7 winner Yvette popped in to collect her brand new Belk helmet, thanks to CrossRoad Cycles 🚴‍♀️🎁
🎁 And for Day 9, Antony was the lucky winner of a Benger NUI cafe voucher — with his lovely girlfriend stopping by to collect it on his behalf 💚🎉

Want to be next? 🙋🏼‍♀️
⏰ Entries close end of business TOMORROW, so this is your final chance to get in the draw! 🙌🏽

🛍️ Simply spend $20 or more at any of our 11 participating stores to enter
👩🏽‍💻 Website link in the comments to see the full list of participating stores 👇🏽
👀 Or keep an eye out for the in-store Hokonui Countdown to Christmas signs!

🎄 And don’t forget — even if you win, your entry goes back in the draw for the 60-Second New World Gore Grocery Grab! 🛒

15/12/2025

📻 New Podcast Drops:
🥁 Jack King – Pipes, Pride & The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo
Jack joins us to talk about Invercargill Highland Pipe Band’s once-in-a-lifetime chance to perform at Eden Park in February as part of the world-famous Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. What makes this event so iconic, and how does it feel to represent Southland on a global stage?
🌱 Mathew Korteweg – Farm Life Reflections & Big Goals for 2026
Our favourite South Otago dairy farmer looks back on the highs and lows of 2025 and reveals his big plans for the year ahead.

🎧👇 Catch both episodes now via the link in comments!

15/12/2025

You might remember back in October, during the storms, following phone calls with Rhonda Wilson and the team at Emergency Management Southland, we put the Mayday, Mayday out on air and on air that a tree collapsed onto Tony’s house on Salford Street and he needed help🌪️🌳 Within an hour, the incredible Shay Plaisted and Scott McKenzie were there helping get things under control — a true example of community spirit 💪💚

Unfortunately, the clean-up is far from over. Tony is still left with a mess around his home from the storm. He’s a few years past retirement age and is an amputee following a motorcycle accident some years ago, which also caused ongoing foot damage. Because of this, he has no way to clean it up — physically or financially.

Tony’s former neighbour Kaitlin Yorke has now set up a Givealittle page to help raise funds to remove and cart away the fallen trees and branches 🌳🚛, take the tops out of surrounding trees to help prevent this from happening again, and repair Tony’s front door windows after they were smashed in the wind 💨🪟

Tony is very hard of hearing and initially thought nothing could be done because he simply can’t afford it. Once it was explained that the work could be organised and paid for, he said it would mean he could sleep at night again 😌

We know this is a tough time of year and money is stretched in more ways than one, so there’s absolutely no pressure at all. But if you have the means and would like to contribute — or even just share the link — it would be hugely appreciated 🙏💚

Please help us get Tony’s trees & section tidied up so he doesn’t have to worry about the mess

14/12/2025

📻 New Podcast Drop:
🎧 Little Locker Room Crew: Santa’s Side Hustle
Jude, Harlee, Baileigh, and Ada are wrapping up the year with the ultimate festive brainstorm:
🎅 What does Santa do when he’s off-duty?
🚗 If he ditched the sleigh, what’s his dream ride?
🍪 And forget cookies—what snacks would YOU leave out?
Plus, Mrs Claus’ secret hobbies, the reindeer’s wild off-season antics, and Santa’s New Year’s resolution (spoiler: it’s not “join a gym”).
👇 Catch the full episode now via the link in comments!

14/12/2025

2025 Gore Santa Parade & Christmas Carnival ✔️
A huge thank you to all our Hokonui superheroes and villains who brought the magic 🦸‍♀️🦹‍♂️🎅
Gore, you came out in force — the streets were absolutely packed! What an epic afternoon soaking up the Southland sun💚
Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season 🎄
The festive season has officially begun ✨

13/12/2025

This week’s Hokonui Celebration Cake went to someone truly special — Beatrice, who turned an incredible 102 years young 🥳💐

And just listen to this… 👇

💎 Edendale has a treasure, and her name is Beatrice Johnston.
Born on Coal Pit Road 102 years ago, Beatrice has spent a lifetime giving back ❤️

From the Pottery, Photography, Spinners, Floral Art and Museum Clubs, to being a founding member of the Lioness service club and delivering Meals on Wheels 🚗🍽️ — Beatrice has touched countless lives. Whether through her creativity, service, or her devotion to the Edendale Presbyterian Church ⛪, she shows us what true community spirit looks like 🌼

Still living in the town she’s always called home 🏡, Beatrice proves that kindness, service and creativity never go out of style ✨
Happy 102nd birthday, Beatrice — what a woman 💐👏

💚 At Hokonui, we love celebrating the good stuff — birthdays, milestones, wins (big or small!), and moments that make you smile 😊

🎊 Got a shoutout?
📲 Text 5009 or message us on Facebook 💌 and I’ll share it during Hokonui Celebration Calls, weekdays 7–8am 📻🎙️

⏰ Final call! Just one week left for Celebration Calls in 2025 — so get those shoutouts in now and don’t fogert that every shoutout goes in the draw to win our weekly Celebration Cake 🎂 , thanks to Aimee McKee Travel ✈️🌍💚