Passionate about Wellsford, Libby makes bid for council

JULIA WADE

19 Sept, 2022

After swapping the coastal landscape of Mangawhai for a country outlook in rural Wellsford, former local Libby Clews is taking her generous community-mindfulness and can-do attitude up a step and making a bid for a seat on Auckland Council.

Standing as an independent for the Wellsford Subdivision candidate for Rodney Local Board (RLB), Libby – who has a background in procurement, analysis and management – is one of two candidates vying for the position, with two-term RLB member Colin Gregory Smith once again putting his name forward.

A trustee of community support network Northern Helping Hands and Mangawhai Helping Paws, the mother of two is known for the many community initiatives she implemented as a Mangawhai local – from meals-on-wheels, the book train, and the Mangawhai Community Stand where people can donate surplus vegetables and fruit as well as set up environmental programmes to fix and restore old washing machines, laptops and furniture before gifting to struggling families, saving the items from heading to landfill.

Since moving south two years ago, the former Territorial Force-Army Infantry private has brought numerous beneficial projects to her new home town, including programmes to help struggling residents and families with food baskets, ‘Period Poverty’, lunchboxes and clothing parcels, sourced from the overflow of local charity shops. She has also coordinated a number of massive fun events such as Christmas trails, the Wellsford Easter Egg Hunt, family movie nights and children’s sports groups, and established the recently held Food for Fashion event, where shoppers swapped food for clothing items.

Local feedback to Libby regarding the initiatives has naturally been positive.

“People have been so grateful and happy to see events and programmes back in their area, there are passionate people here that have been so wonderful to work with,” she says. “The environment is so beautiful, lots of places to explore and we have lovely areas for recreation, although most are in dire need of a spruce up!”

Libby says her family love the community and shopping on the main street is often a social occasion, ‘the owners and staff are all welcoming and, in many cases, hilarious’. “It’s great to pop in and have a good laugh while you are running errands, we’ve made some fantastic friendships. I love that my children feel safe here, as do we. We see ourselves as home and plan to stay here forever.”

Besides the general election issues, Libby would like the RLB to ensure Wellsford remains an attractive destination for highway travellers, before the new motorway diverts traffic east and away from the area.

“We must ensure we don't become an abandoned town, we have a fantastic canvas on the main street and the businesses are amazing, everything you need is here,” she says. “There has to be a plan as thousands of travellers will no longer automatically drive through, which will have a major impact on local businesses and tourism operators, so we have to encourage people to stop, stay and spend at the local shops and support new tourism opportunities.”

In recent weeks, Libby has been meeting locals from Pakiri, Tomarata and Wellsford at ‘Morning Tea Koreros’, an informal setting to listen to their concerns and brainstorm solutions.

“We really have such an opportunity to expand on the current offering in our area. I would sincerely love to be able to help achieve this for such a wonderful community.”

“We must ensure we don't become an abandoned town, we have a fantastic canvas on the main street and the businesses are amazing, everything you need is here.”

Former Mangawhai local Libby Clews, recently nominated for Local Hero of the Year, is hoping to take her experience and community-mindfulness to a seat on the Rodney Local Board to represent the Wellsford area, a place she loves. PHOTO/SUPPLIED