For three days in mid-September, Jessica (and her wings!) visited 7 schools in and around Timaru in Canterbury, South Island, as a Reading Role Model for Duffy Books in Homes. Twice a year, Duffy school students get to choose 2 brand new books of their very own, which are celebrated at Duffy assemblies. Role Models around NZ visit for these assemblies to talk about the importance of reading and to promote reading for pleasure as an enjoyable and important literacy practice. C

Earlier this year, Jessica received an email from an intermediate student sharing how much he loved Generation Icarus. The email was so thoughtful, jessica reached out to his school librarian to plan a surprise. So, on Thursday 4 and Friday 5 June 2026, Jessica returned to Northcross Intermediate after more than 10 years to visit the student and his peers. In her first school visit since Covid, Jess dusted off her wings and updated her slideshow to reflect the twists and turn