The Gore District Council’s Enchanted Parks Quest has been named a finalist in the New Zealand Event Association’s Excellence Awards for best local government event 2021.
The quest, held in March this year, was the Council’s first foray into the Recreation Aoteroa Parks Week. It encouraged families to hunt for doors to the homes of the mythical creatures who live in the District’s parks and reserves.
Each day two mystical clues were released to the public via the Enchanted Parks Quest Facebook event page. Each clue would lead people to a particular location in a particular park.
Once people found the fairy or goblin door they posted a selfie using the Parks Week hashtags and went into the draw for daily prizes.
Communications/Marketing Manager Sonia Gerken said being selected as a finalist was an incredible effort given the Council’s small event team compared to the other finalists in this category.
“The fact we’ve made the top five is testament to the hard work and collaboration among our staff and with community partners.
“I want to thank everyone who so willingly gave their time and skills to bring this event to life.”
Mrs Gerken believed the innovative approach and uniqueness of the event were keys to its success.
“We even had a life size goblin and fairy hit the streets and kindergartens to let people know the quest was on.”
For nine days families trekked in and out of 12 parks and reserves, searching for the doors hidden each day under the cover of darkness by our event coordinator.
Many families raced out as soon as the clues were live, while others saved them up to complete after dinner, making the most of the summer evenings.
“It was awesome to see families on their bikes going from one side of the town to another hunting for goblins and fairies.”
The finalists in the NZEA Excellence Awards
Best Local Government Event 2021:
- Digital Nights: Van Gogh Alive, WellingtonNZ
- Enchanted Parks Quest – Parks Week, Gore District Council
- Festival of Cultures, Palmerston North City Council
- Matariki 2020, Porirua City Council
- TSB Festival of Lights, New Plymouth District Council
