ABOUT
THE STORY
A bit about John "Cocksy" Cocks
Widely loved for his humorous, down-to-earth persona on television, Cocksy remained a hard-working and skilled craftsman day-to-day. A man who surfed & fished hard, a creative poet, a husband, a dad, and a tireless volunteer who was dedicated to his charity work in helping kiwi kids.
He became a household name as the "celebrity builder" on shows such as Treasure Island, DIY Dads and My House My Castle, and often joked that he was Cocksy the TV builder who'd never built a TV. Affectionally labelled the ultimate kiwi bloke, he lived life to the absolute fullest, even more so on his final journey. Cocksy was determined not to waste a minute of the time he had left and spent much of it still helping others.
Cocksy was diagnosed on Anzac Day 2016 at 49 years of age with Stage 4 terminal kidney cancer.
He played hard but lost the game on Waitangi Day, 6th February 2019.
THE EVENT
It all started from a conversation at Cocksy’s final send-off over a beer or three.
Many there had never actually met each other so exchanged stories on how they knew him. All had entertaining tales, but many talked of how much support he gave them individually over the years. Something good had to come from the day and it was decided this eclectic bunch of mates needed a better reason to stay in touch.
That light-bulb moment has become a fully-fledged annual fishing competition open to everyone and anyone, with the added bonus of giving back to a worthy charity that Cocksy spent many years supporting and how he met his wife.
THE CHARITY
The Kiwi Kids Charity is not your everyday charity, it’s like a huge, extended family made up mostly of volunteers who pledge their time, talents, tools, and toys to make a tangible difference at a grassroots level. Real talk, real people, real results. No matter whether it’s custom mobility support, access to learning tools, working bees, specialist medical equipment, speech lessons, sports equipment, or just basic supplies, when it comes to bringing hope, help and happiness to kiwi kids – they get super creative and use their networks to stretch the dollars.
Cocksy believed in helping kids in our own back yard first and The Kiwi Kids Charity does exactly that.
HAVE YOU ENTERED YET?
Just fill out the form - fish on!
