KIWI CONNECTIONS

April 2026

Happy April SCSCA & New Zealanders of Seattle!!

2026 is off to an amazing start!

An incredible year of activities for the Seattle Christchurch Sister Cities

Welcome to Spring, Seattle!! We have been busy planning some exciting events for 2026. You will find some new opportunities to gather as well as our annual events on our events page www.seattlechristchurch.org. Make sure to follow us on Facebook / Meta.

This February/March four of our board members, Richard Conlin, Erin Williamson, Aleksandra Radmanovic, and Lyle Bicknell traveled to New Zealand to meet with our Sister City board and visit our beloved sister city, Christchurch. Please stay tuned for a full article + more pictures via email and on our website. It was a very successful few days and we are excited to highlight some amazing things that are happening in Christchurch and with our sister connection across the world.

We would like to extend a special welcome to our newest SCSCA Board Member, Lyle Bicknell who has just joined our board this month. I you are interested in becoming a board member, we are always looking for new members. Please contact board@seattlechristchurch.org.

In the meantime, we have four upcoming events this April and early May: The International Children's Friendship Festival (this weekend), ANZAC Day (April 25), a Seattle Arboretum Work party (May 9) and Seattle International Film Festival - SIFF (May 7-17). Read more about these events and how you can get involved and bring along your family and friends.

www.seattlechristchurch.org

Children's International Friendship Festival

April 18th & 19th - this weekend!

Join us this year for the International Children's Friendship Festival at Fischer Pavilion at the Seattle Center from 11 am - 6 pm Saturday & Sunday, April 18 & 19. It is a weekend filled with great international cultural lessons and dances for Seattle kids of all ages and is totally free. Please contact Jojo McEachen - 425-830-3932 or Joanne@thelearnerfirst.com if you would like to volunteer with us at our New Zealand booth for a couple of hours this Saturday or Sunday.

ANZAC Commemoration Saturday, April 25th

Join us on for an ANZAC Dawn Service on Sunday April 25th at 5:55am-6:30am outside at the Museum of History and Innovation (MOHAI) 860 Terry Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109. Wear something warm. Brought to you by New Zealanders of Seattle and Australian American Chamber of Commerce. We will meet at Starbucks across the bridge from MOHAI following the service from 6:30 am - 7:30 am.

"New" Spring Arboretum Work Party

Saturday, May 9th from 9 am - 12 pm is our first annual Spring Work Party at the Seattle Arboretum. Bring your family and friends to help weed and mulch the New Zealand Gardens and prepare for the beautiful Pou Whenua art carving that will be installed this June or July at the NZ gardens.

Please contact Gareth Waugh at gwaugh@portblakely.com if you can join us to volunteer. The more the merrier!! Meat and veggie pies and drinks will be served afterwards.

To donate to the Pou Whenua Art Project so we can meet our goal of $10,000 for the final $500 remaining, please click here!

Mark your calendars for SIFF May 7-17, 2026. The New Zealand International film, Mārama (trailer) will be playing Fri., May 8 @9:15 pm at SIFF Cinema Downtown or Sat., May 9 @ 3:15 pm at SIFF Cinema Uptown. If you would like a free tickets to either of these showings, the 1st 10 people to email richardbyrdconlin@gmail.com can get a free film festival ticket. SCSCA is a sponsor of the 2026 Seattle International Film Festival.

Upcoming SCSCA Events

April 18-19 (Sat/Sun) - Children's Friendship Festival 11 am - 5 pm
April 25 (Sat) - ANZAC DAY - 6:00 am (please arrive by 5:55 am)
May 9 -(Sat) - Arboretum Garden Work Party - 9 am - 1 pm
May 7-17 - Seattle International Film Festival
Upcoming in May/June - Installation of Pou Whenua Art @ Arboretum
July 25 (Sat evening) - Seafair Parade Sister City Entry
July 26 (Sun) - Summer Picnic at Lake Sammamish - 11:15 - 3 pm

Have you Renewed your SCSCA Membership for 2026?

Our annual membership runs from October 1, 2025 through Sept. 30, 2026. Families can join for only $20. Join SCSCA Membership 2026