A Christchurch woodwork teacher is retiring this week after a long and storied 50-year career.
Gary Ashby has taken just one sick day since he first began teaching furniture making at the Ara Institute in 1973.
He first walked through the halls of the institute as a young apprentice in 1968 — and he's never left.
Ashby remembers the early days of coming to work in a suit and tie.
"It was so dangerous on the machine that your tie would fall out and get caught up in the machines, so I was maybe a bit of a rebel and said 'I'm not going to wear a tie'," he told Seven Sharp.
"Once I removed my tie, everybody started to remove their ties so it did change."
Change has been a constant, and he’s adapted to meet the changing needs of his students over the decades.
"I've picked up on their learning problems that they can't read drawings, they can't do calculations and that was a bit of a challenge. I've found that three-dimensional drawings is what they like to see," he explained.
Ashby said he was "never going to go to university and was a hands-on thing".
"All of these kids are exactly the same as I am — they love making things with their hands."
He's had just one sick day in his half a century on the job.
"I had tonsillitis in 1978 and I had to have one day off," he said.
"That's not to say I haven't been sick, and I haven't been in hospital, but it all worked out. It was in holiday time."
Ara Institute trades tutor Paul Ayres said Ashby has "always had the students at heart".
"I think that's the thing with Gary — he's just one out of the box."
Ashby's retirement begins next Monday.
He said the thing he'll miss the most is all the equipment.
"I've got tools at home but I hardly ever use them because the equipment is so much better here to use," he said with a laugh.
"It will be the equipment that I'll miss."
While Ashby's saying farewell to the institute, he isn't giving up teaching altogether — he'll be looking to teach the odd night class.
"Every day's been a good day to come to work."
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