Kapiti WEA

Weekday Courses

#2641 Beginner French

Tutor: Mélanie Lacombe

Dates: Monday (9, 16, 23 February 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 March) 4-6pm

Venue: Waikanae Presbyterian Church Lounge, 43 Ngaio Road, Waikanae

Cost: Members $175 Non-members $190

A minimum of 8 people is required to run this course and a maximum of 12

Come and discover the basics of the French language. This course has been developed for complete
beginners who are curious to explore a whole new world. Hear new sounds, speak new words and
understand a new logic. If you have always been interested but didn’t know where to start, this is
your chance. You will even learn some practical sentences so that you’re able to communicate next
time you’re in a beautiful French-speaking country.

Mélanie Lacombe is an experienced teacher, until 2024 a teacher at l’Alliance Française in
Wellington. Originally from Cannes, she studied English in Paris and gained a Masters degree from La
Sorbonne Nouvelle in 1998, specialising in teaching French as a second language. She taught French
in Japan for a number of years before moving to New Zealand. This will be the third year Mélanie has run this course for Kapiti WEA.

#2642 Intermediate French

Tutor: Mélanie Lacombe

Date: Monday (9, 16, 23 February 2, 9, 16, 23,30 March) 7-9pm

Venue: Waikanae Presbyterian Church Lounge, 43 Ngaio Road, Waikanae

Cost: Members $175 Non-members $190

Numbers: A minimum of 8 people is required to run for this course and a maximum of 12

This course is aimed at people who already have some knowledge of French. During the course, you will practice the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing with the aim of refreshing your French. You will become more comfortable using what you already know and expand your knowledge to help you speak more naturally, outside the textbooks, in real-life situations. Mélanie will use a variety of supports such as popular French songs and news articles to help you get a better understanding of French culture. The course is interactive, giving opportunities to practice with the tutor and the other participants.

Mélanie Lacombe is an experienced teacher. Originally from Cannes in the south of France, she mostly lived in Paris where she studied English first and then gained a Masters degree from la Sorbonne Nouvelle in 1998, specialising in teaching French as a second language. She has been in New Zealand since 2013. After 10 years working at l’Alliance Française in Wellington she is now focusing her energy solely in the Kāpiti area. She has run this course for the last eight years for Kāpiti WEA with excellent results for participants. For the last three years, this course has been run twice a year.

#2543 Wine & Watercolour

Tutor: Alfred Memelink

Date: Thursday 9th April 6.30 - 9.00pm

Venue: Waikanae Presbyterian Church Hall, 43 Ngaio Road, Waikanae

Cost: Members $50 Non-members $55 (materials included)

Numbers: A minimum of 8 people is required for this course, maximum 15

Alfred Memelink is a gifted watercolour artist and teacher who likes to bring the joy of art to others through his classes. These include Wine and Watercolour evenings for adults. This course has been successfully run by the Kapiti Coast WEA in recent years. Alfred also runs Artspace Gallery in Petone, which not only displays his own art, but also the creativity of over 300 New Zealand artists and craftspeople in all genres, with regularly changing exhibitions.

Beginning with a glass of wine/juice and nibbles, you will learn the pleasure of watercolour painting in an easy-to-follow, step-by-step process. During the evening, you will be guided through painting your own watercolour of a Kapiti Coast scene in a fun and friendly atmosphere. The course will cover different techniques (eg painting ‘wet-on-wet’, colour mixing and brush control). No previous experience is necessary, and the session is especially suitable for beginners. Artists with some experience who want to fine tune their skills and style will also benefit from Alfred’s guidance. And no need to worry about drawing as this will already have been done for you.

#2644 Introduction to Chinese Language & Culture

Speaker: Cheng Yunn Fen

Dates: Wednesday (15, 22, 29 April 6, 13, 20, 27 May, 3 June) 6-8pm

Venue: Waikanae Presbyterian Church Lounge 43 Ngaio Road, Waikanae

Cost: Members $150, Non-members $160

Numbers: A minimum of 8 people is required to run this course and a maximum of 12.

Cheng Yunn Fen has a Diploma in Teaching from the Singapore Institute of Education and a BA from Canterbury University. She taught English in Singapore for ten years before moving to New Zealand. Since then, she has provided private tutoring in both English and Chinese and run Chinese courses at Kāpiti Community Centre. Fen is bilingual in English and Chinese, has strong communication skills and experienced in adapting teaching styles to meet individual student needs. Her lessons are engaging using flashcards and videos to connect learning with real-world contexts.

The course will introduce speaking, reading and writing Chinese as well as an understanding Chinese culture. This includes conversational Chinese (speaking simple words, including greetings and naming family members, counting, telling the time and asking for help), reading (recognising Chinese characters), writing (Chinese characters and pinyin), and culture (discussion on Chinese history, festivals and food).

#2645 Kapiti Readers & Writers Autumn Series

Speakers: Writers who live on the Kāpiti Coast or have written about it

Dates: 5 Wednesdays 22, 29 April, 6, 13, 20 May

Time: 2.00-4.30pm

Venue: Waikanae Presbyterian Church Hall, 43 Ngaio Road, Waikanae

Cost: $20 per session or $80 for all five sessions

This series is jointly organised by Kāpiti WEA and Bookmark Kāpiti

The Readers and Writers series celebrates the people, stories and places of theKāpiti Coast. At a number of weekly sessions, we will hear from creative peoplewho either live on the Kāpiti Coast or have set some of their work in theregion. They will talk about their work, their inspiration and how theirartistic endeavours tell us something about ourselves as New Zealanders. Details for each session is listed below.

Toregister for all 5 sessions for $80 - click here

Session One: 22 April 2026

The place of the past in writing history and historical fiction.

Historical fiction writer Jenny Pattrick, in conversation with local historian Chris Maclean.

Jenny Pattrick OBE wrote her first historical fiction Denniston Rose in 2003 and has since written 8 novels, the most recent Sea Change set on the Kāpiti Coast. Chris Maclean is a Waikanae-based historian, author, photographer and publisher. His books include histories which celebrate the local landscape ̶Waikanae, Tararua and Kāpiti and several biographies.

Jenny and Chris’ session will discuss the similarities and differences between writing history and historical fiction, and the challenges and processes involved in both forms of writing.

After the break, local writer and teacher Mandy Hager, will give a theory to practice talk about historical fiction research and process, based on her experience writing her novel Heloise.

Format: 1 hour discussion, afternoon tea, 1 hour workshop/talk

————————————————————————————————————————————————

Session Two - 29 April 2026

Ink to Action: The people we love to watch on screen

Writer, director, and producer Mike Smith interviewed by Natala Gwiazdzinski.

Mike Smith, writer and director of The People We Love (a filmset in Kāpiti and released in 2025), as well as episodes of TV series The Brokenwood Mysteries, 800 Words, Nancy Wake: The White Mouse, Outrageous Fortune and many other NZ TV series interviewed by Natala Gwiazdzinski,a local script writer, director and interviewer.

Format: 1hour, 30 minutes questions, afternoon tea

————————————————————————————————————————————————

Session Three - 6 May 2026

Operation Writer: Crossing the medical/literary divide

Local GP Lucy O’Hagan and writer Carl Shuker in conversation with health commentator Ian Powell.

Lucy O’Hagan has been a GP for over 30 years, an educator, writer, speaker and performer. Her most recent book published in 2025 is Everything but the Medicine – A doctor’s tale. Carl Shuker is a writer of novels, nonfiction and reports and papers on the quality of our healthcare. His expertise is in aspects of healthcare from a policy and evidence perspective and some of his novels draw on his healthcare work. Ian Powell was Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists for over 30 years. He is now a health systems, labour market, and political commentator.

The conversation will explore how literature can support medicine and vice versa, how narrative writing can help to develop empathy, how medical experience influences creativity, how a story-based formula can be applied to improve understanding of patient needs and how this can be applied in health policy. Followed by Lucy O’Hagan’s one-woman show.

Format: 1 hour, afternoon tea, Lucy’s show.

——————————————————————————————————————————————————

Session Four - 13 May 2026

Why murder? Why not?!

Kāpiti crime writers Kim Hunt and Ann Chapman in conversation with Jan Jordan

Crime writers explore their craft with criminologist and author Jan Jordan.

This session asks:

Why write crime, and whose voice do we prioritise?
Can crime writing provide the justice that real life seldom delivers?

Format: 1 hour, 30 minutes questions, afternoon tea.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————

Session Five - 20 May 2026

Kāpiti, Te Rauparaha, and the women who signed the Treaty of Waitangi

A discussion between Kāpiti wāhine Arini Loader (Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Whakaue, and Te Whānau-a-Apanui) senior lecturer in Māori history at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University, Rewa Morgan (Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Ngāti Raukawa)historian, writer and researcher, Reina Solomon (Ngāti ToaRangatira, Te Āti Awa, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Koata, Ngāti Tama, Ngāi Tahu)researcher, historian, environmental consultant and Treaty claims manager.

As a nation we commemorate the signing of Te Tiriti in February each year, but many iwi signed it at other times and locations across our islands. Between April and June 1840 rangatira from the Kāpiti Coast signed Te Tiriti. This session aims to give a little of the history of Te Tiriti in Kāpiti through the lives of Te Rauparaha and the rangatira wāhine signatories.

Learn about their experiences as strategists, composers, military leaders, entrepreneurs and relationships with Pākehā that contributed to their legacies across Kāpiti and its waterways.

Format: 1hour, 30 mins questions, afternoon tea