CELYN EDWARDS – INTERNATIONAL ATHLETE

CELYN EDWARDS – INTERNATIONAL ATHLETE

We’re chuffed to see hard working local lad Celyn Edwards (17) doing so well in the world of swimming.  Celyn lives locally in Halswell and attends Hillmorton High School.  He swims with the Selwyn Swim School out at Rolleston and is coached by Ben Close.  Over the last year or two, he has been smashing national swimming records and regularly recording personal best times.

Celyn is a para athlete as a result of losing an arm at the age of 5 in a car accident.  Inspired meeting Sophie Pascoe and Mary Fisher, he  has been steadily training and wants to get as far as he can as a para athlete.  Right now, that looks like it will be a significant set of achievements.    He began swimming out at Rolleston with the Selwyn Swim School in 2013.  By 2015, he began swimming at national level and now holds 23 national records (wow!). 

Celyn swam internationally for the first time in July 2017 in Berlin – at a world Para Swimming event where he set an Oceania record for 50m breaststroke.  He then competed earlier this year at the Commonwealth Games held on the Gold Coast in Australia.  He swam in the final of both of the Commonwealth Games events he entered, coming 6^th in the final of the 100m breaststroke and 4^th in the 400m individuals medley in times that most of the rest of us can’t imagine getting anywhere near.

Celyn Edwards (photo courtesy of Selwyn Swim Club)

It is clear that Celyn is still regularly achieving personal bests.  Recently, for example, he swam a massive  10 seconds  under the current 200m butterfly WORLD record in a swim meet in Ashburton.  While this time won’t count as the record, because it was not an internationally recognised event, it certainly bodes well for future international events. 

These achievements and the dedication of this young man will also be a big part of the reason why he holds the 2018 Graham Condon Scholarship.  This scholarship is awarded each year to an athlete who has not yet reached the highest level in their sport, but through outstanding commitment, attitude and ability, demonstrates the potential to achieve this in the future. 

If all this is not enough, Celyn is also a keen road cyclist, mountain biker, skier and rugby player.

10 Reasons Why You Should Consider Buying Second Hand Furniture.

Huge quantities of furniture are being imported into New Zealand and consumers are buying it up, but there are many things that the buyer should be aware of.

1. Imported furniture often breaks quickly.
It has been designed to be light so that shipping costs are low and therefore is usually not strong.

2.  It is often poorly constructed
Take a closer look before you buy furniture from overseas. Do the  cupboards and drawers shut smoothly?  Have they  been squarely cut?  Are the joints tight?

3.  Overseas timbers  live in a different climate.
The timbers are used to more humid environments than the New Zealand one and as such moisture seeks to make its way out. This may cause buckling and loosening of the joints and can be rather difficult and time consuming to rectify.

 4. Second hand furniture stores are not located in expensive areas.  High overheads in any business are passed onto the consumer. 

 5. Quality second hand furniture is strong and has been built with solid construction techniques making it built to last. There may be wear and tear, but with  some tender loving care by yourself or a furniture restorer,  a piece of furniture can be  brought back to its former glory, or creatively upcycled.

6.   Fashion is fickle.
  Today's latest trends   disappear very quickly and your home becomes dated by your purchases.  Some consumers are embarrassed when they don't have the latest styles and feel compelled to update. Updating your furniture several times is much more expensive than keeping  a more unique piece for longer. Furthermore, if you follow fashion,  in the back of your mind, you always know that you have been tricked and seduced by clever marketing.

 7. Second hand furniture was made when things were made slowly. 
The work and craftsmanship and attention to detail can be  remarkable.  It feels good to have something that has been made with pride, and if you restore it, it feels good to have treated it with the respect it deserves.

8. Your creativity can run wild.
Second hand furniture  has more character  and you do not have to be locked in to buying something from one time period.  You can mix it all up, and more importantly, find pieces that you genuinely  love  and will generate  interesting discussion when you have company over.

9.  Buying local furniture,  puts money into the pockets of everyday New Zealanders.
Local buying means investing in your local area.  Healthy local businesses spend locally, whether it is in the form of  sponsorship or personal spending. If local businesses do well, it has a spiralling upward effect, on the community around it.  Everybody wins.

10.  Environmental benefits.
Upcycling, recycling, restoration, zero waste,  whatever you call it, means a better planet and future for the generations to come.  You can sleep better at night, knowing that you are not contributing to the enormous piles of furniture being thrown into the landfills every day.

Deb Harding Browne
No Boundaries Furniture
Halswell