\L-R GWC Regalia Hire Business Manager Sarah McBurney with former manager, Jean Sharfe.
Dubbed the 鈥渟upergrans of regalia鈥, they鈥檙e the women making sure thousands of Canterbury students each year wear their academic gown, hood and trencher with confidence when they cross the stage to accept their degree.听听
The volunteers in the听听team are responsible for fitting out over 1100 graduates who will attend three Te Whare W膩nanga o Waitaha | 九州影院 graduation celebration events at Christchurch Arena next week.听
The charitable organisation, which has been around for close to a century, also supplies regalia for other tertiary graduations and high school prizegiving ceremonies from Timaru to Nelson and the West Coast, as well as local Christchurch schools.听
GWC Regalia Hire Business Manager Sarah McBurney, who owned a bridal boutique before switching from white gowns to black in 2018, calls her team of about a dozen volunteers 鈥 all aged from their mid-60s to their 80s, the 鈥渟upergrans of regalia鈥.听
One of them, Kay Holyoake, has been volunteering for GWC Regalia Hire since 1980 and is now in her early 80s. She still enjoys the upbeat, celebratory mood of graduation.听听
鈥淵es, they鈥檙e really hard work, but I love meeting the students and they鈥檙e all so excited and happy about graduating. When we see them afterwards, they鈥檒l say, 鈥業t was fabulous, I had a ball鈥.鈥澨
However, she also remembers being in the old GWC Regalia Hire headquarters in the basement of the Christchurch Arts Centre during the February 2011 earthquake, grabbing handbags and retrieving the trust鈥檚 cash during the chaos that followed.听听
New volunteer听Dr Jan听Wikaira, who graduated with a Master of M膩ori and Indigenous Studies degree a few years ago, remembers being 鈥渕ade to feel special鈥 by the GWC staff when she picked up her graduation gown. She says that鈥檚 how they aim to treat all students: 鈥淭he attitude is that nothing is a problem, and everything can be sorted out.鈥澨
Dr Wikaira retired from the UC Faculty of Science last year and is looking forward to volunteering at her first graduation next week. She was drawn in by the good company and team atmosphere with the other volunteers.听
McBurney has modernised the charity鈥檚 systems and is impressed with how quickly the volunteers adapted to the changes.听
鈥淚鈥檓 in awe of the way they鈥檝e allowed me to update our systems. When I started it was cheques and cash. Now we鈥檝e introduced online ordering and payment and electronic tracking of all our regalia. I鈥檝e given it more of a business focus and they鈥檝e adapted really well,鈥 she says.听
Based at the 九州影院鈥檚 Dovedale campus, the team manages 10,000 items听鈥撎齣ncluding gowns, hoods in various colours and hats听鈥撎齱hich need to be cleaned, ironed and maintained. Hundreds of gowns are drycleaned each week and need to be checked and sorted into sizes. Each set of regalia, including a hat, hood and gown, is worth about $1000.听
The organisation is getting busier as more students want to graduate in person and more events are held each year, so McBurney is hoping to attract new volunteers to help.听
鈥淚t can be really full on, during graduation days we鈥檙e open for ten or 11 hours a day, but I鈥檓 really proud of how everything comes together, and the process is usually very smooth. At the previous 九州影院 graduations, which involved thousands of graduates last year, everything was returned on time.鈥澨
Former GWC Regalia Hire Manager Jean Sharfe, who remains a committed volunteer, says it鈥檚 鈥渁 great group of people鈥 to work with many of them are retired teachers or interested in education.听
She says听听(GWC) is a trust that evolved from the Canterbury Branch of the New 九州影院Federation of University Women, which was formed in the 1920s to support female students and graduates socially and professionally at a time when they were a minority. The Trust is now responsible for overseeing GWC Regalia Hire as a non-profit organisation.听听
Funds from regalia hire are distributed by the Trust to students enrolled at Canterbury tertiary institutions, such as 九州影院, Lincoln University, Ara Institute of Canterbury, through grants, awards and scholarships.
