To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
ASHWORTH, Mr Vincent Alexandra
For services to agriculture
Mr Vincent Ashworth has contributed to agriculture in New Zealand and internationally since 1970.
As a Senior Agriculturalist with the World Bank, Mr Ashworth led missions to help farmers with food production in more than 30 developing countries. Notably, he did major work to improve farming practices for countries with harsh environments for agriculture, including Afghanistan, Yemen and Ethiopia. Recognising the lack of support for farmers on best practice farming, he established Ashworth and Associates in 1960, a farm management consultancy practice, the first of its kind in New Zealand. He led international work through the consultancy to Afghanistan and Western Samoa. Following his consultancy success, he launched the New Zealand Society of Farm Management in 1969, serving as inaugural President, with thousands of farmers benefitting from research findings to improve their practices. He is a published author of six books since 2009 and has been recognised with two medals from Lincoln University for his contributions to agricultural consultancy and the university’s cultural heritage. He was a member of Save the Children New Zealand Overseas Projects Committee from 1978 to 1988, serving as Chair for three years. Mr Ashworth is a Life Member of the New Zealand Institute of Primary Industry Management and the New Zealand Institute of Agricultural Science.
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BENNETT, Mrs Arihia Darryl, MNZM
For services to Māori, governance and the community
Mrs Arihia Bennett (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Porou, Ngāpuhi) was the first woman and the longest serving Chief Executive Officer of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu from 2012 to 2024.
Under Mrs Bennett’s leadership, Ngāi Tahu worked with the government and Christchurch City Council to assist with the 2011 Canterbury earthquakes and the 2019 Christchurch terrorist attack. She oversaw the growth of iwi finances and assets, which amount to more than $1.9 billion and include more than $600 million in properties. She has been involved with Ngāi Tahu connecting with learning institutions in the United States of America, supporting iwi to work with green energy including hydrogen. She was CEO of He Oranga Pounamu from 2011 to 2012, the iwi mandated organisation for health and social services in the South Island. She is a member of the Pūhara Mana Tangata Māori advisory panel to the Ombudsman’s Office and has been a member of the New Zealand-China Council. She is a member of the Global Women’s Network and the Tuahiwi Māori Women’s Welfare League. In 2021 she was appointed as Chair of the Ministerial Advisory Group to the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the 2019 Christchurch terrorist attack. Mrs Bennett has served on the Boards of Barnardos New Zealand and the Christchurch Women’s Refuge (now Aviva).
HONOURS
Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, Queen’s Birthday 2008
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BOULT, Mr James (Jim), ONZM
For services to local government, tourism and the community
Mr Jim Boult has led and advocated across a range of roles and organisations in the Queenstown Lakes District and nationally for 40 years and was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2015.
Mr Boult was elected as Mayor of Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) in 2016 and re-elected in 2019. He has led a series of projects to bolster the district, including an initiative to provide affordable homes, creation of a Bed Tax as a solution to the infrastructural requirements of supporting more than three million visitors to Queenstown and Wanaka per annum, the $2 bus transport scheme, implementation of a government working party for Freedom Camping, and other key infrastructure and transport changes. During the COVID-19 pandemic he led implementation of funding and support for migrants in the QLDC area who found themselves without homes or work, establishment of the Queenstown Greater Needs fund for the medical needs of migrants, the Economic Recovery and District Diversification taskforces, and worked with central government on initiating shovel-ready projects and establishing the Major Events fund. He chaired the Otago Lifelines Programme for natural disaster readiness and the Metro Mayors section of local government. Mr Boult is Patron of the Child Cancer Foundation, Whakatipu Wildlife Trust, Whakatipu Rowing Club, and continues as Chair of the Canterbury Museum Working Party.
HONOURS
Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, New Year 2015
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
CANDY, Ms Anne, QSO, JP
For services to Māori and local government
Ms Anne Candy (Ngāiterangi, Waikato-Tainui) was a Manukau City Councillor from 1995 until 2010 and Deputy Mayor of Manukau from 1998 to 2007.
Ms Candy chaired the Manukau City Council’s Environmental Hearings Committee from 2007 to 2010 and was an elected member of the Counties Manukau District Health Board from 2008 to 2010. She has been a member of Manurewa Local Board since 2019. She was a Review Panel member for the External Review of Maternity Care in the Counties Manukau District for the DHB in 2012. She has contributed in various ways to Ngati Te Ata, supporting parents and whānau in education, health, housing, te reo Māori, cultural heritage, the wellbeing of tamariki, and environmental protection. She was appointed by the Māori Women’s Welfare League as an inaugural Trustee of the Water Utility Consumer Assistance Trust in 2011. She co-founded in 2005 and has chaired the Taonga Education Centre Charitable Trust, helping establish the Potiki Early Childhood Centre and Parents Unit in 2006 and Te Kopu Inc’s Te Kahui Iti Nei Early Childhood Centre in 2008. She served as Bishop’s Commissary to Te Pihopa o Te Tai Tokerau from 2002 to 2023. Mrs Candy was patron of the Manurewa RSA from 1998 to 2018 and has been patron of the Manukau National Council of Women since 2002.
HONOURS
Companion of the Queen’s Service Order for Public Services, New Year 2002
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
DUKE, Mr Rodney Adrian (Rod)
For services to philanthropy and business
Mr Rod Duke became Managing Director of the Briscoe Group in 1988 before purchasing the Group in 1990, overseeing its subsequent growth into the largest capitalised retailer on the New Zealand stock exchange.
Through the R.A. Duke Family Trust and First Foundation, Mr Duke has provided scholarships for tertiary education for Briscoes employees and children of employees since 2010. He established a funeral cover plan for all Briscoes employees and has demonstrated support and generosity on a more individual basis, such as establishing ongoing financial plans and ensuring retention of positions for employees facing serious health issues. In 2004 the Briscoe Group became a key partner of the charity Cure Kids and has since raised more than $6.2 million for child healthcare research through the Briscoe Group Golf Charity Auction. He helped establish in 2014 and funded the Cure Kids Duke Family Chair in Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the University of Auckland until 2021. The Duke Foundation supports the Youth in Transition project, working to prevent youth suicide and offering specialised support for at-risk youth through the Journey Back to Awesome programme. Mr Duke’s broader philanthropic support has benefitted Westpac Rescue Helicopter, St John Ambulance, Bayswater School and the Tzu Chi Relief Foundation for overseas relief.
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HOLLAND, Mr William Beau (Bill), MNZM
For services to community governance and philanthropy
Mr Bill Holland is an award-winning business leader who has been involved in the governance of a range of trusts and organisations giving back to the community over more than 20 years.
Having helped found the Acorn Foundation in 2003 and chaired it until 2011, Mr Holland has remained an ambassador for the organisation, which to date has gifted more than $16.5 million to the community. He became a Trustee of the Tauranga Energy Community Trust (TECT) in 2012 and has been Chairperson since 2014. He has led TECT through transformational change from a Consumer Trust into a Community Trust. TECT has approximately $530 million in assets, one of the largest in New Zealand, and has made over 240 grants totalling more than $15.9 million as of 2023. He has been a Trustee of the Assisting Different Abilities Peoples Trust (ADAPT) Trust since 2018, playing a key role in acquiring a site to build homes for individuals with intellectual disabilities, and the Wright Family Foundation since 2014. He was a founding Trustee of the Legacy Trust in 2007 and remains involved in the Trust’s distributions of more than $3.5 million to date. Mr Holland received one of three inaugural Life Memberships granted to the founding ambassadors of the Community Foundation of New Zealand in 2021.
HONOURS
Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, Queen’s Birthday 2012
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
LEE, Mrs Mary Helen
For services to snow sports and tourism
Mrs Mary Lee and her husband John Lee developed Cardrona Ski Field, Snow Park and the Snow Farm in the Cardrona area.
From 1987 to 2008, Mrs Lee managed and developed Snow Farm, New Zealand's only dedicated cross-country ski-field, continuing now in voluntary roles. Her efforts have provided employment opportunities and attracted national and international ski tourists, with trails providing off season business. The Lees sold Snow Farm in 2008 and formed the Pisa Alpine Charitable Trust to ensure it remains a recreational area in perpetuity. They developed the Merino Muster race at the Snow Farm in 1995, which in 2014 was included in the Worldloppet international race series. She remains New Zealand representative for the Worldloppet Ski Federation, and Director and Secretary of the Merino Muster. She teaches cross country skiing on a voluntary basis. She set up Wanaka Nordic Ski Club’s Youth Development Group in 1999, to help young people compete in overseas competitions. She founded Snow Girls, a cross country skiing and social network for women of all ages. In 2022 she was the first person to receive the NZQA Snowsports Instructor Award – Cross Country Skiing Level 4. Mrs Lee volunteers with SeniorNet, Cardrona Heritage Trust, and has held founding and executive roles with New Zealand Cross Country Ski Association and Biathlon New Zealand.
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
MILNE, Mrs Lesley Joan
For services to rowing
Mrs Lesley Milne has been a pioneer, advocate and leader in rowing, particularly women’s rowing, in New Zealand since 1965.
As a competitor, Mrs Milne won eight national titles between 1966 and 1975 and was selected for the first women’s crew to represent New Zealand in Europe in 1974. She competed in Masters regattas from 1985 to 2012, winning gold and silver medals at the 1994 World Masters Games. She was the sole woman on the organising committee for the Lake Karapiro 1978 World Rowing Championships. She has been a coach and umpire since 1978, has trained umpires and examiners, and served on decision-making bodies for rowing at club, regional and national level. She was inaugural Chair of the New Zealand Rowing Race Officials Association and co-established a training programme in-line with World Rowing umpire training, raising the standard of regatta management and consistent rule-based decision making. She was Lead Examiner from 2011 to 2021 and attended regattas in Europe as a voluntary official from 2012 to 2022. As Secretary of the New Zealand Women’s Rowing Association she lobbied for the 1973 integration with New Zealand Rowing. Mrs Milne has been a Council Member of Rowing New Zealand and President from 2007 to 2009, the only woman to hold the role to date.
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
PEEK, Dr John Charles
For services to fertility treatment and reproductive health
Dr John Peek has been at the forefront of assisted reproductive technology (ART) and fertility treatment in New Zealand for 40 years.
Dr Peek was instrumental in establishing in vitro fertilisation (IVF) services in New Zealand at the National Women’s Hospital in Auckland, after seeing the positive impacts of IVF while employed with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in Adelaide, Australia. He is New Zealand’s first embryologist and has helped train or influence other embryologists nationally. His innovative introduction of controlled embryological environments at the beginning of IVF has been recognised worldwide and accepted as the international standard. He led quality processes, information management and science direction across the five Fertility Associates Clinics in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin until retiring in 2023. He established the Infertility Society of New Zealand (now Fertility New Zealand) in 1990, recognising the importance of providing emotional support, information, and advocacy services to those undergoing IVF treatment. He was appointed as the first scientist to chair the Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand’s Reproductive Technology Accreditation Committee in 2009. Dr Peek received a New Zealand Standards Meritorious Award for his contribution to the establishment of the New Zealand Fertility Standard in 2006 and was made a Life Member of the Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand in 2018.
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
SADLEIR, Ms Catherine Ann Grant (Katie)
For services to sports governance and women
Ms Katie Sadleir has held influential roles in sports administration and governance since the 1990s and was appointed as the first woman CEO of the Commonwealth Games Federation in 2021.
Ms Sadleir is a former Olympic synchronised swimmer and Commonwealth Games bronze medallist. She has held voluntary roles on many high-profile Boards including the New Zealand Olympic Committee Athletes Commission and the New Zealand Swimming Federation. She has been General Manager of the New Zealand Academy of Sport and of Sport Performance at Sport and Recreation New Zealand. She has been Director of Sport New Zealand, High Performance Sport New Zealand, the New Zealand Drowning Prevention Council, and Director of the International Association of High Performance Training Centres. She has been a major contributor to the development of a world-class high-performance system supporting New Zealand elite athletes to perform at their best internationally. She was General Manager of Women’s Rugby for World Rugby from 2016 to 2021, during which time she oversaw development and implementation of the transformational 2017-2025 women’s strategic plan, to promote, grow and commercialise the game. Ms Sadleir oversaw the appointment of 17 women to the World Rugby Council in her first year and led the ‘Try and Stop Us’ campaign for women in countries facing challenges to their participation.
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
SEED, Mr Christopher John (Chris)
For services to the State
Mr Chris Seed has had a 40-year public service career, latterly as Chief Executive and Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) from 2019 until retiring in 2024.
As MFAT Secretary Mr Seed led the Government’s consular response, trade recovery initiatives and foreign policy engagements during the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath. He was instrumental in ensuring that New Zealand's diplomatic network continued to function and deliver for New Zealanders through the pandemic. During his tenure he also oversaw international aspects of several complex consular and disaster responses including to the 2019 Christchurch Mosque attacks, the Whakaari/White Island eruption and Operation Whakahokina Mai, the latter a collaborative effort with the New Zealand Defence Force and other agencies which enabled more than 1,700 New Zealanders and eligible Afghan nationals to depart Afghanistan following the August 2021 Taliban takeover. More broadly, during his service he championed New Zealand’s diplomatic interests with a wide range of partners, especially with Australia and the countries of the Pacific. He joined the public service in 1984 and MFAT in 1985. Mr Seed was New Zealand’s High Commissioner to Papua New Guinea from 2001 to 2003 and to Australia from 2013 to 2018.
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
SHORT, Air Marshal Kevin Ronald
For services to the New Zealand Defence Force
Air Marshal Kevin Short has commanded at all levels of the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF), latterly as Chief of Defence Force (CDF) from 2018 to 2024, the longest serving CDF in more than 50 years.
Air Marshal Short first joined the New Zealand Air Force in 1976. He was deployed to Afghanistan in 2006 as a Task Group Commander, providing leadership for the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team in Bamiyan Province. He was appointed Deputy Chief of Air Force in 2011, later becoming Commander Joint Forces New Zealand and Vice Chief of Defence Force. His tenure as CDF has encompassed significant and unprecedented domestic and global events, from the recovery of bodies following the Whakaari/White Island volcanic eruption, the COVID-19 pandemic, to the evacuation of New Zealanders from Kabul during the 2021 Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. The pandemic saw the largest deployment of NZDF personnel in a generation, into an unfamiliar environment of establishing and operating managed isolation and quarantine facilities. He oversaw military and humanitarian aid operations domestically and overseas in a resource-constrained, pandemic environment, while also overseeing a significant update of the Capability Management System and a large re-equipment programme for NZDF. He has led The Totara Commitment, an initiative bringing together South Pacific Defence Chiefs. Air Marshal Short has overseen inclusivity and diversity inroads within NZDF, which has been recognised with gender equality and rainbow inclusion awards.
HONOURS AND AWARDS
United States, Commander of the Legion of Merit, 2024
Honorary Officer of the Order of Australia (Military Division), 2022
Honorary Gallant Commander of the Malaysian Armed Forces (First Degree), 2019
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
TAMATI-QUENNELL, Ms Megan Faye
For services to Māori and First Nations art
Ms Megan Tamati-Quennell (Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Mutunga, Kāti Māmoe, Ngāi Tahu, Waitaha) has contributed to the art sector for 34 years and is New Zealand’s longest serving curator of Modern and Contemporary Māori and Indigenous art.
Ms Tamati-Quennell began her training at the National Art Gallery in 1990 and has curated numerous exhibitions at iwi, national and international level. She has elevated and supported many Māori and First Nations artists and built a significant collection for Te Papa Tongarewa. She has advocated for Māori curatorial practice and scholarship. She has worked for Ngāi Tahu for more than 25 years, curating in the first Ngāi Tahu arts festival in 2000 and ‘Mo Tatou’ (2006), the first major survey of Ngāi Tahu art at the request of the tribe. Her work is recognised as foundational in strengthening Ngāi Tahu arts. She has been the Curator of Modern and Contemporary Māori and Indigenous art at Te Papa since 2004. She worked as the inaugural Kairuahi Taketake Toi Onaianei Indigenous Curator Contemporary Art at the Govett Brewster Art Gallery from 2020 to 2022. Recognised for her specialist knowledge, she is sought after internationally as a curator, adviser, writer, editor and speaker. In 2023 Ms Tamati-Quennell was appointed as curator of the Sharjah Biennial for 2025, the first Māori curator invited to work on an international project of this scale.