By C Packwood | Posted: Sunday June 21, 2026
World Vision 2026 - New record!
The World Vision group is officially a force to be reckoned with at Timaru Boys' High School. Building on the momentum of an outstanding 2025, this year's team has been fiercely determined to make an even greater impact on global communities.
Twelve boys consisting of Daniel Heffernan, Liam Bridson, Myles Wheeler, Heath Wheeler, Oli Black, Ollie Burton, Thomas Crawford, Harry Bradley, Toby Winter, Zach Brookland, Riley Horstmann and Archie Fenn have strengthened the group even further with their own unique approaches. It is very exciting to see what they will achieve and how their plans and actions will make a difference in the lives of those less fortunate.
Several meetings were held since December 2025 to come up with some rough ideas as to what could be done to improve the living conditions in the Solomon Islands, which was once again our main focus.
Our 2026 campaign launched on Sunday, March 29th, with an Easter Egg Hunt at the Shearers Quarters in Temuka. The boys managed to raise a fantastic $508. It was a thoroughly enjoyable day for all involved, and we extend a massive thank you to the Shearers Quarters team—especially Carl Black—for the invaluable organization and support.
Hot on the heels of the weekend, we hosted our highly anticipated Quiz Night at the Richard Pearse on March 30th. Packing the venue with an incredible mix of students, staff, parents, and local supporters, the night was a roaring success. The event brought in a massive $1,168—surpassing last year’s total by $368 and nearly tripling our 2024 quiz results.
This phenomenal start pushed the boys past the $4,000 mark before the main challenge even began—an unprecedented feat, something not even achieved by some big schools up in Auckland at this point. Refusing to rest on their laurels, the team remained fiercely determined to shatter records and maximize their impact for the people of the Solomon Islands.
With the boys being on such an unprecedented roll, the next event was the World Vision Conference up in Christchurch on the 30th of April. Six year 12 boys (Thomas Crawford, Ollie Burton, Archie Fenn, Daniel Heffernan, Oli Black and Heath Wheeler) spent the day hearing about leadership from a range of outstanding speakers and looked at ways in which they could strengthen their fundraising efforts even further. For the second year in a row, Timaru Boys’ High School managed to impress all the schools in the South Island in attendance with their ideas, plans and what they had already achieved up to this date. Following the conference, fundraising momentum surged, with the boys' total climbing higher by the day.
The fundraising momentum only grew as the weeks went on. A golf tournament out at Gleniti that was run by the boys pushed the total to $9,600, setting the stage for a spectacular finish. On June 12th, the school held a non-uniform day where $676 was raised, Timaru Boys' didn't just reach its ambitious $10,000 goal—Timaru Boys’ blew right past it to finish at $10,276 prior to the challenge. Yet, the boys were far from finished. Driven by their mission for the Solomon Islands, they continued to push forward, watching their record-breaking total rise even higher by the day and capped this off with another fundraising event which was a BBQ fundraiser at lunchtime on Friday 19th June where the boys who started the day with $10760 raised, managed to top their goal even by bringing it up $11120.
After months of hard work, it all culminated in the ultimate test: the 40-Hour Challenge. Commencing at 6:00 PM on Friday, June 19th, and wrapping up at 10:00 AM on Sunday, June 21st, 22 senior boys pushed their limits by spending 40 continuous hours locked in the gym. Surviving on no food, they relied on sheer determination and the facility's equipment to keep them fuelled and focused.
Huge congratulations go to every student who participated in the challenge. A massive thank you must also go to those staff who gave up time over their weekend to support the boys through this monumental endeavour as well as the Senior Leadership Team for their ongoing support.
Last year, it was said that the standards achieved in 2025 would be a "mission impossible" to beat in 2026. The boys have really proven that no target is out of reach!
Congratulations to all the boys involved for their outstanding determination, drive, and relentless effort. The unprecedented total raised will go an incredibly long way toward changing the lives of thousands of families in the Solomon Islands. Well done, boys—you haven't just met the bar; you've completely rewritten it for the future. The stage is now set to top an unprecedented achievement in 2027.
Thank you to all who have supported these students with their fundraising goal.
