Words Vicki Ravlich-Horan Images Ashlee DeCaires
Frankton School caretaker Murray Ivory believes flowers brighten your day. Visit Frankton School in the summer months and you will experience this first-hand.
A few years ago, rushing to drop my daughter at the holiday programme held at Frankton School, I was compelled, despite my lateness, to stop in awe of the beautiful bed of flowers gracing the entrance.
After a couple of drop-offs and pick-ups, I had ascertained the beautiful flowers were zinnia. I even marked it in my diary to plant them in my garden the following summer.
And what a success they were! My zinnia bed is now a fixture in my summer garden as well as a number of friends’, who have all followed suit. Providing beautiful blooms from January through to April, they also yield perfect flowers for picking. Plus, as I let them go to seed (some of you may know I adhere to the lazy gardener’s philosophy), they appear again the following year.
When back at Frankton School last summer, I had to take some pictures to share among my growing group of zinnia-loving friends. “Pick some” I hear someone say. As I tried to explain what I was doing and that I had a garden in full bloom at home, I discovered the smiling face offering me this beautiful gift was the mastermind behind them.
As we chatted, Murray pointed to the sunflowers lining the school fence, along with the bed of potatoes being dug. Like his flowers, his smile and enthusiasm are infectious, so for the first time ever I asked a man for his phone number and promised to call. It must have been the flowers!
Intrigued and inspired, I did call Murray and spent a wonderful morning with him discovering just what he is growing at Frankton School.
Murray has been the caretaker at Frankton School for 30 years. And the ‘caretaker’ part of his role extends beyond mowing the lawns. Murray explains that by creating a beautiful space he is creating pride in the school and wider community.
Frankton School Principal, Kirsten Ratana says, “Murray takes great pride, working tirelessly and with dedication to ensure our school grounds are attractive and cared for.” But Kirsten says it is when he shares his enthusiasm and knowledge of gardening that “we see his face light up”.
Sharing the joy while passing on the skills he learnt from his grandmother and uncle to a new generation is something Murray has integrated into his role.
Let’s start with the zinnias, which begins with 800–900 seedlings planted each November. Aside from a beautiful welcome to the school, Murray says everyone uses and enjoys them, as the more you pick, the more they flower.
On Valentine’s Day student councillors pick them and put them in buckets for people to take. There’s always a bunch for someone when sick, a bereavement or simply to brighten someone’s day. Kirsten says, “His beautiful flowers brighten up homes as well as our school.” Murray has even been known to pick them to sell at the Tamahere Country Market, with the money going to fund the school’s new kitchen.
In winter, each child gets a daffodil bulb to plant. And in the summer, a whopping 1500 sunflowers are planted. “I get the kids involved,” says Murray, who points out everything they learn by growing them. “They are always amazed when they see the sunflowers following the sun.”
Along with the main bed of potatoes, a Perspex box was fashioned to grow potatoes in so the students could see what happens underground. The produce is then given away to those who need or want it. That is after the kids and Murray have enjoyed the fruits of labour like a new potato butty “dripping with butter” Murray says, laughing.
We are chatting in the courtyard off the staffroom. It’s a lush garden space Murray has created. There are spaces like this throughout the school. Fruit trees are in abundance with fig, apple, plum, pear and various citrus trees dotted around.
As we tour the school grounds, we discover hens. “They are great for the autistic kids,” explains Murray. On our walk it becomes clear Murray is highly respected, not just by the staff but the students too, many of whom Murray greets by name.
I get the impression Murray Ivory is a force to be reckoned with and would be hard to say no to. “I am lucky with my boss,” admits Murray. “Some schools wouldn’t have the funding for it, but she always finds a way.”
It would be hard to deny this man, who, even in his seventies is at school every morning by 5.30am and sometimes still working on his precious gardens when the sun goes down.
