Article added: Monday 17 August 2020

Tēnā koutou,

You will all be aware of the current situation due to the COVID-19 outbreak in Auckland and its spread to Tokoroa.

Given the current Alert Levels I wanted to write to you as Chair of Volleyball Southland to reassure you that we are dedicated to supporting our players, coaches, referees, volunteers and staff. You can follow our website for relevant information about COVID-19.

Here in Southland and Queenstown Lakes, we are currently scheduled to remain at Alert Level 2 until 11:59pm Wednesday 26 August. We have no cases in Southland or Queenstown and there are currently no cases in the South Island.

We are extremely fortunate that life is not too different for us as we operate at Alert Level 2 and our thoughts are with our many Auckland-based families who are not currently able to enjoy the same everyday freedoms we have.

Alert Level 2 means that social volleyball can commence on Wednesday. Please get your entries in ASAP. Our large secondary school competition due to start in September will go ahead under level 2 with restrictions and will also go ahead under level 1.

We have court space booked in coordination with other sports at the Stadium on our normal annual dates and in our normal time slots.

We are reviewing all sports in the same time period and the new exam timetable but our season is well planned in advance and aligns well with court availability and with us hosting South Island Junior Championships in November.

We are incredibly proud of how our entire Southland and Queenstown Lakes community has adapted and the camaraderie and support towards each other is truly heartening and was noticeable at our competitive VolleyFest were 18 Nationalities came together to play volleyball.

We are, of course, hopeful that the next Alert Level moves for New Zealand will be down rather than up. Should that not be the case, then I can assure you that in keeping with our previous Covid response plans we will being doing our best by everyone as we navigate through these very difficult times.

It is a particular point of pride for everyone here that our board and staff faced the challenges of transitioning through Alert Levels 4, 3 and 2 with your safety at the heart of every decision. This gives me huge confidence that we can continue to do well with whatever comes our way in the weeks to come.

In responding to potential COVID-19 challenges, Volleyball Southland will continue to follow guidance from the New Zealand Government and our National office. I realise that this will sound a little tired now, but there are several key messages that Volleyball Southland is communicating with Everyone to help stop the spread of COVID-19:

QR code into stadium, maximum 100 at Volleyball

Avoid close contact with people with cold or flu-like illnesses

Cover coughs and sneezes with disposable tissues or clothing

stay home if they are unwell

Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds with water and soap and dry them thoroughly before eating or handling food, after using the toilet, after coughing, sneezing, blowing your nose or wiping someone else’s, and after caring for sick people.

If you could continue to reinforce these messages with your people, we would very much appreciate it.

Volleyball will continue to follow the lead of the Ministries of Health and Education and we will be ready to implement our own plans to support our community.

Nāku noa, nā

Donna Milne

Chair Volleyball Southland