For Tauranga 23-year-old Taylor Verhoeven, volunteering at this year’s K Valley planting day is a chance to give back to the community that has given her so much.

Verhoeven, who works for Zespri, became involved after completing the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) course this year.

The seven-day leadership experience, which included seminars, team challenges and an outdoor experience, was sponsored by Rotary Club of Tauranga Te Papa.

“I was super keen to get involved with really any projects they had on the go, or anything I could give my time to, as a way of saying thank you,” Verhoeven said.

Taylor Verhoeven on an outdoor challenge as part of a Rotary Youth Leadership Awards course in early 2026.

After returning from RYLA, she gave a presentation to Tauranga Rotary about her experience and spoke with Tauranga Rotary Centennial Trust chairman Lyall Holmes, who told her about the Kōpūrererua Valley planting project.

She was immediately interested.

“I just think it’s such a great project. There’s something really rewarding about getting involved in the land and putting your time into something that’s going to be there forever,” Verhoeven said.

“You know that what you’re doing now is going to have an impact for years to come, and I think that’s pretty special.”

Taylor Verhoeven and Lyall Holmes planting a seedling in Kōpūrererua Valley. Photo/ Kelly O’Hara

Verhoeven grew up in Tauranga and attended Aquinas College before completing a Bachelor of Business at the University of Waikato. She returned to Tauranga after university.

“I love the beach, the community is always super inviting,” she said.

“I’ve lived in Auckland and in Australia in my younger years, but in comparison this place always feels like home, and the people here are a huge part of it as well.”

Volunteering is not new to Verhoeven. Two years ago, she volunteered at the Zespri AIMS Games, helping in the company’s tent by cutting up fruit. That experience eventually led to employment with Zespri, where she has worked for two years.

She recently moved into a new role supporting growers with the paperwork required for them to pick and harvest their fruit.

Taylor Verhoeven gains leadership experience on a Rotary Youth Leadership Awards course.

For Verhoeven, community involvement is something she hopes to continue alongside her working life.

“I’ve done a lot of volunteer work through sports, other bits and pieces, so any sort of community work I love doing,” she said.

The K Valley planting day will be held on Sunday, September 20, with volunteers meeting at the Marshall Ave entrance from 9.30am for a 10am start.

There will be 5000 native seedlings to plant, with holes pre-dug by Tauranga City Council.

Holmes expects the planting to be completed by noon, followed by a sausage sizzle.

“It’s a great way to have your family involved in the future of Tauranga,” he said.

Participants are asked to bring gloves, a spade, hat, boots and water.

Lyall Holmes and Taylor Verhoeven will be volunteering for this month's planting day in Kōpūrererua Valley. Photo/ Kelly O’Hara

The event marks the 22nd year of the Tauranga Rotary Centennial Trust for the Kōpūrererua Valley Reserve development, which has overseen the planting of an estimated 800,000 native plants across the 364ha reserve with Tauranga City Council assistance.

The trust was formed by four Tauranga Rotary clubs: Tauranga Te Papa, Tauranga, Ōtūmoetai, and Tauranga Sunrise and works in partnership with Tauranga City Council and Ngāi Tamarāwaho.

Since its establishment in 2003, the trust has invested more than $2 million raised from local funding organisations in infrastructure, including bridges, pathways, cycleways, signage and other structures, helping transform former farmland into one of Tauranga’s best-known public reserves.

Kōpūrererua Valley is an important wetland and ecological corridor, as well as an area of cultural and historical significance. It forms part of the ancestral lands of Ngāi Tamarāwaho, for whom the valley and nearby Waikareao Estuary are treasured kete kai, or food baskets.

Puketoromiro Pā stands towards the southern end of the Kōpūrererua Valley. Photo / Tauranga City Council

The valley contains remnants of Puketoromiro Pā and other archaeological features associated with pivotal 19th-century conflicts between Māori and British colonial forces.

The reserve’s transformation received national recognition last year when Kōpūrererua Valley received a Merit Award at the 2025 Recreation Aotearoa Parks Awards.

This year also sees the formation of a Friends of K Valley Care Group, with details about how people can get involved to be outlined at the planting day.

Kōpūrererua Valley Reserve covers 364ha. Photo / Tauranga City Council

For Verhoeven, the message to locals is simple: take the opportunity to get involved.

“Tauranga’s got so many beautiful places and so many opportunities to give back,” she said.

“I’d just encourage people to get involved. K Valley is such a great example of what can happen when a community invests time into a place. What you do today might seem small, but you’re contributing to something that will be here and enjoyed by people for generations.”

K Valley Planting Day: Sunday, September 20. Meet from 9.30am for a 10am start at the Marshall Ave entrance, Greerton. Planting runs until noon, followed by a sausage sizzle. Bring gloves, a spade, hat, boots and water. To register, go to the Humanitix website