To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BALLANCE, Ms Alison Patricia
For services to natural history, filmmaking and broadcasting
Ms Alison Ballance is a zoologist and science communicator who has attained a high profile in New Zealand natural history, conservation and environmentalism through publishing numerous books, producing television documentaries and her involvement in conservation initiatives.
Ms Ballance has co-produced and co-presented Radio New Zealand’s weekly science and environment programme ‘Our Changing World’ since 2008 and has presented hundreds of radio stories from all regions of New Zealand territory. She has written more than 28 books on New Zealand’s natural history and other environmental issues, including documenting the efforts to save the kakapo from the brink of extinction, a project in which she was also personally involved. She joined Natural History New Zealand (NHNZ) in 1990 and spent 18 years creating nature documentaries. She has produced 16 complete television documentaries for high profile broadcasters such as the Discovery Channel and National Geographic, covering such diverse locations as the Galapagos Islands, Thailand, Siberia, Mongolia and Ecuador and a wide range of rare and diverse species. Ms Ballance was the producer of the NHNZ documentary ‘Equator - Power of an Ocean' which was nominated for two Emmy awards and won a gold medal at the New York Film Festival.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BATES, Ms Lisa Maree
For services to the arts and philanthropy
Ms Lisa Bates was Development Director for the Q Theatre fundraising programme which raised more than $20 million to build a new theatre for Auckland.
Ms Bates currently holds governance roles as a Director of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra (NZSO), Regional Facilities Auckland and Trustee of the NZSO Foundation and the Mackelvie Trust. She was heavily involved in supporting the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal as a volunteer sourcing major private donations from the New Zealand public. She and her husband donate regularly to a number of arts organisations including the Royal New Zealand Ballet, NZSO, The Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra, The Arts Foundation, Auckland Writers Festival, Silo Theatre, NZ Opera and the Venice Biennale Trust. She has served as President of the St Cuthbert's Old Girls Association and has been a Board Member of The Big Idea Charitable Trust, and Discovery Foundation for Teenagers. She was selected in 2014 for the inaugural EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women Programme. Ms Bates is a co-owner of Hawkins&Co, a design and brand company that regularly sponsors arts and charitable organisations such as the Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation, QE II Diamond Jubilee Trust, Basement Theatre, Max Gimblett’s Art of Rememberance campaign, Auckland Grammar and Kings School.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BATES, Ms Raylene Isabel
For services to sport, particularly athletics
Ms Raylene Bates has built a substantial reputation as a coach and athletics manager for touring teams, including to Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, World Championships, World Universities Games and Youth Olympics.
Ms Bates began her career in sport administration as Executive Secretary for the Otago Rugby Football Union. She became the founding Business Manager for the New Zealand Academy of Sport (South Island) when it opened in 2000, and oversaw the significant growth in revenue. She was organiser of the inaugural Otago Athlete of the Year function in 1989. She was Head Coach and Team Leader of the New Zealand Track and Field team to the 2006 and 2010 Commonwealth Games. She was Athletics Team Leader for the New Zealand contingent to the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games and Head Coach/Team Leader for the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Paralympic Games. She has coached top level para athletes and has overseen the Para Athletics Programme which identifies and develops athletes from secondary school level through to elite level. She became a Board member of the Otago Academy of Sport in 2016, and is a Board member and Vice President of Athletics Otago. Ms Bates is a Trustee of the Halberg Disability Sports Foundation and the Skeggs Foundation, and a Director of the Oceania Athletics Association Development Commission.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BATISTICH, Mr Ivan Francis
For services to health and innovation
Mr Ivan Batistich is an engineer who has spent years designing anaesthetic equipment.
Mr Batistich worked with Dr John Hyndman over the course of 12 years to develop the HYVAN, a low-cost, portable anaesthetic machine about the size of a microwave oven that is able to be deployed anywhere, even where there is no power. The idea behind the HYVAN was a reliable anaesthetic machine that could be used in Third World locations and was simple enough to operate with basic training. The HYVAN is a fraction of the size and cost of most anaesthetic machines used in New Zealand and will carry out virtually all of the same functions with reliable simplicity, to the point where it can be repaired in a hospital workshop if required. The HYVAN will be manufactured locally in Christchurch following completion of final clinical trials. For their development of the HYVAN they won the New Zealander of the Year Innovator award in 2016 and have been recognised by the World Congress of Anaesthetists. Previously they have worked together installing anaesthetic equipment in the Cook Islands. Mr Batistich has worked with The Auckland University of Technology’s BioDesign Lab on the development of breathing technology to treat Obstructive Sleep Apnoea, among other projects.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BAXTER, Mrs Eleanor Kay (Kay)
For services to conservation and sustainable food production
Mrs Kay Baxter has gained an international reputation for her work as a permaculturist and is the co-founder and CEO of the Koanga Institute, New Zealand’s first national initiative to collect and save New Zealand heritage food plants.
This project began in 1984 and a Trust was formalised in 1997. It has grown to include contributions from gardeners all over New Zealand, and is now the Southern Hemisphere’s largest and most comprehensive heritage seed repository. The curated collection has grown to include around 800 heritage vegetable cultivars, and 400 New Zealand heritage fruit and berry cultivars in both seed form and a living collection. The Koanga Institute currently hosts apprenticeships and interns, and delivers Permaculture Design Courses and many other shorter workshops. Koanga also has an Urban Garden Research project which is developing a model for optimizing productivity and nutrition from home gardens. Mrs Baxter co-founded Kotare Village, a Community Land Trust project, to research regenerative land use and community development. Mrs Baxter has been active in developing Koanga’s links with other permaculture organisations internationally and has been an advocate for the preservation of traditional food cultivation and preparation skills, and regenerative food production.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BAY, Ms Jacqueline Lindsay (Jacquie)
For services to science and education
Ms Jacquie Bay is founding Director of LENScience, an innovative science education programme established in 2006 that creates opportunities for schools and scientists to work together to promote the development of scientific literacy and enable the translation of scientific knowledge into community understanding.
The LENScience programme has specifically targeted intermediate and high school students in Auckland and has extended particularly to low decile schools and Māori and Polynesian communities across the North Island. The programme has been emulated in the United Kingdom and has been successfully extended to Tonga and the Cook Islands. More than 40,000 students have been involved with LENScience since inception and the programme is now shifting to incorporate professional development for teachers. Ms Bay conducted research in the late 1990s exploring the value of student-led investigations in promoting understanding of the nature of science, which contributed to the development of the LENScience Students as Researchers programme. She co-developed the award-winning LENScience Connect learning platform. She leads research at the Liggins Institute looking at the role of science education collaborations in improving youth and adult health. Ms Bay was previously Head of Science at Diocesan School for Girls in Auckland and is a past president of the Biology Educators' Association of New Zealand.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BLAKE, Ms Marion Clare
For services to people with mental health and addiction issues
Ms Marion Blake has been Chief Executive of the Platform Trust since 2001, an NGO which champions community organisations that provide an extensive range of services across New Zealand to people with mental health and addiction issues.
As Chief Executive Ms Blake has led a number of projects including Fair Funding to improve funding and contracting practices of District Health Boards; Equally Well, a group of more than 40 partner organisations working together to improve physical outcomes for people with mental health and addiction issues; On Track, a project to provide evidence to direct the system change required to better meet the needs of people with mental health and addiction issues, as well as the implementation of the Programme for the Integration of Mental Health Data, which has involved aligning NGO sector data collection with the programme. Ms Blake has excelled at leading collaboration in the NGO sector and is an elected mental health and addiction representative on the Ministry of Health’s NGO Health and Disability Council.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BROWN, Mr Ross
For services to education
Mr Ross Brown has had a career in education spanning more than 35 years and was Headmaster at Napier Boys’ High School (NBHS) from 1997 to 2015.
Under Mr Brown’s leadership NBHS has seen a significant roll increase. He has also been governing principal of Napier Community High School, an alternative education destination for Napier’s disengaged and at risk secondary school students. He has had joint responsibility for all aspects of operations, including the recent rebuild and re-opening of the school in January 2016. He was one of the foundation principals and three times lead principal of the New Zealand Super Eight School (NZSES). Formed in 1997 NZSES incorporates eight boys’ high schools from their respective provincial cities of the central North Island. The group has grown to oversee 10 sports competitions, a cultural festival and professional development programmes for school management and curriculum teachers. As chair of Sport Hawke’s Bay’s Secondary Schools Management Committee and a Board member of the New Zealand Secondary Schools Sports Council he advocated strongly for the place of sport in secondary schools. Mr Brown was a long serving member of the Executive of the Association of Boys’ Schools New Zealand and has helped run an annual professional development conference for school senior managers.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BROWN, Dr Stuart Whitaker
For services to children's health
Dr Stuart Brown is a paediatric surgeon who has worked for the Waikato District Health Board for 32 years.
Dr Brown was co-founder of Paediatric Surgical Services at Waikato DHB in 1983. He was the co-founder of the New Zealand Paediatric Surgical Association and served as inaugural Secretary. He has held medical and surgical education posts and has been Chair of the Waikato Medical Association. He has held governance roles within the New Zealand Paediatric Surgical Society, Waikato Division of the Cancer Society, and Braemar Hospital and Ministry. He contributed to the formation of the Midland Regional Paediatric Surgical Service with multiple outreach clinics, the first outreach Paediatric Surgical Service in New Zealand. He played a key role in the establishment and maintenance of various clinical services including a multidisciplinary Spina Bifida Clinic, a neonatal surgical service, paediatric endoscopy, bronchoscopy and other highly technical surgical procedures to benefit the children of the Midland region. Dr Brown was a significant contributor to the first two operations in New Zealand to successfully separate conjoined twins in 1987 and 2004 respectively.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BURLING, Mr Peter
For services to sailing
Mr Peter Burling is a New Zealand sailor who, together with Mr Blair Tuke, won a silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics and a gold medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in the 49er class.
Mr Burling and Mr Tuke are the first sailors to win four consecutive 49er class World Championships (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016). For the four years between the London and Rio Olympics they were unbeaten in major regattas in the 49er class, winning a total of 28 regattas. Mr Burling is also the 2015 World Champion in the International Moth sailing dinghy class. He was skipper of the winning boat in the 2013 Red Bull Youth Americas Cup and has been named helmsman for Emirates Team New Zealand’s 2017 America’s Cup Campaign. His early sailing career saw him achieve victories in national and international youth championships in the Optimist, P class and 420 class. At 17 he was the youngest sailor to represent New Zealand at the Olympic Games and the youngest sailing competitor at the 2008 Olympics, competing in the 470 class. Mr Tuke and Mr Burling were named Yachting New Zealand Sailors of the Year in 2013, 2014 and 2015. The pair were named International Sailing Federation Rolex World Male Sailors of the Year in 2015.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
BURROWS, Mr Phillip (Phil)
For services to hockey
Mr Phil Burrows is New Zealand’s most capped Black Stick, having played more than 340 international hockey games, and is New Zealand’s top goal scorer.
Mr Burrows earned his first cap in 2000 and captained the Black Sticks from 2009 to 2011. He has represented New Zealand at four Commonwealth Games, earning silver and bronze medals, and three Olympic Games. His abilities as a leader and coach have seen him appointed as Director of Hockey and head coach of the Men’s Premier League team at Melbourne University Hockey Club’s High Performance Programme. He competed for 12 years in Dutch Hockey League and held a variety of roles across top European clubs. Mr Burrows has been involved with New Zealand hockey, refining his skills in analysis, player development and coaching, which he has put towards the inspiration and development of young hockey players in New Zealand.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
CHANDLER, Mr Murray Graham
For services to chess
Mr Murray Chandler is New Zealand’s only chess grandmaster and has played internationally for New Zealand and England.
Mr Chandler first appeared for New Zealand in 1974 in the first Asian Team Chess Championship in Malaysia. He won the first New Zealand Chess Championship in 1975/1976 and qualified as an International Master in 1977 by winning the first Asian Junior Chess Championship in Baguio. He has won three New Zealand Chess Championship titles and was Commonwealth Champion in 1984 and 1987. He qualified for the Grandmaster title in 1983. He was editor of British Chess Magazine from 1991 to 1999 and in the late 1990s he set up Gambit Publications, a publisher of high quality chess books. In the 2000s he shifted his focus from playing to promoting chess in New Zealand and became an active member of the New Zealand Chess Federation Council. In 2005 he developed a plan to sponsor and host a series of major chess tournaments in Queenstown, which were held in 2006, 2009 and 2012 and attracted hundreds of overseas players and their families. Mr Chandler is currently President of the New Zealand Chess Federation.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
CHOEGYAL, Ms Lisa
For services to New Zealand-Nepal relations
Ms Lisa Choegyal has been New Zealand’s Honorary Consul in Nepal since 2010.
Ms Choegyal has assisted many New Zealanders with various consular difficulties, including injuries and deaths. Principally she has provided consular services to New Zealanders during the response to three major disasters to affect Nepal in 2014 and 2015: the Everest icefall avalanche, the Annapurna trail storm and the Nepal earthquakes. She worked to quickly identify and locate New Zealanders reported missing by relatives through her local connections. Drawing on her network of Nepali government and NGO contacts she also advised New Zealand authorities to help target and increase the impact of New Zealand’s post-earthquake assistance. Prior to becoming Honorary Consul she has had involvement with the New Zealand mountaineering and development communities in Nepal. She has supported numerous New Zealand expeditions and rescues, organised film crews operating in Nepal, and been a pioneer of sustainable tourism through her Tiger Mountain ventures and TRC Tourism consulting roles. Ms Choegyal has had a long association with Sir Edmund Hillary and the Himalayan Trust and has contributed to the welfare of communities in Nepal through her advocacy, raising scholarship funds for education opportunities, and leadership in the conservation of heritage monuments and ecotourism sites.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
COLLIER, Mr Reuben Glenn
For services to the television industry and Māori
Mr Reuben Collier founded Maui TV Productions in Rotorua in 2001 and has since developed Maui TV from local news coverage to an award-winning national production house.
Mr Collier has produced and directed a range of shows and documentaries, including the award-winning documentary ‘Sciascia’ and the show ‘Kai Time on the Road’ which ran from 2003 to 2015. He has recorded New Zealand stories, documented the histories of many marae around New Zealand, and produced profiles on a number of prominent New Zealanders across more than 450 television show episodes, the majority in te reo Māori. He was chosen by TVNZ as Outside Broadcast Director for the national television coverage of the State Funeral of the Māori Queen Dame Te Atairangikaahu in 2006. He was responsible for recording Te Matatini Kapa Haka national event from 1998 to 2011. He has been the principal claimant, Trustee and kaumatua of the Treaty Claim Wai 630 for the Rereahu Iwi since 2011. Mr Collier has been a Trustee of the Miringa Te Karaka Marae Trust since 2008 and has been Chairman for the past five years, during which time he has overseen efforts to rebuild the historic and spiritually significant marae.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
CORKIN, Ms Jillian (Jill)
For services to education
Ms Jill Corkin retired as Principal of Snells Beach School in 2015 and has had a career in education spanning more than 30 years.
As well as being the founding Principal of Snells Beach School, Ms Corkin has also been Principal of Victoria Avenue School in Remuera and Pakuranga Heights School. She helped establish principal training courses at Massey University in Palmerston North and in Albany. As a member of the Auckland Primary Principals’ Association she has been elected as Vice President and President. When the Tomorrow’s Schools reforms were announced in 1989 she worked with Boards of Trustees to help them understand their role during a period of major change for the sector. She has held Ministerial Appointments to several cross-Ministry and cross-sector working groups and taskforces, which include Convenor of the Association of Bulk Funded Schools, the Payroll Advisory Group from 2013 to 2014, the Ministerial Taskforce on Regulation Affecting School Performance, and the Payroll Sector Leaders’ Group. After her retirement as Principal of Snells Beach Ms Corkin was Convenor of the 2016 Trans-Tasman Conference and worked to organise the hosting of more than 900 delegates from the education sectors of New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific in Auckland.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
DAINES, Mr Lyall David
For services to rugby
Mr Lyall Daines has been involved with refereeing rugby for more than 50 years up to international level and has undertaken the training, mentoring, assessment and encouragement of referees from their early careers through to national service.
Mr Daines was made a Life Member of the Marlborough Rugby Referees Association in 1991 and served as President of the Association from 2002 to 2013. Over the course of his refereeing career he refereed 54 First Class games including two Ranfurly Shield fixtures and six Seddon Shield fixtures. He was a member of the New Zealand Rugby Referees Association (NZRRA) Executive from 1991 to 1995, during which time he was responsible for setting and assessing the annual exam that is a requisite for all referees aspiring to referee at provincial level and above. He has been a valued member of the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU) and NZRRA coaching committees and has travelled to Australia, Asia and the Pacific region on numerous occasions to coach and develop training programmes for local referees. Mr Daines was selected by the NZRFU to be one of the two assessors at the World Sevens in Hong Kong and Beijing in 2002, having previously refereed the 1985 Hong Kong Sevens and been New Zealand’s Assessor-Selector at the 1994 Hong Kong Sevens.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
DODDINGTON, Mr Derek
For services to theatre
Mr Derek Doddington has been involved with theatre for more than 25 years, beginning in the United Kingdom before moving to New Zealand in 1999.
Mr Doddington has organised Shakespeare in the Park performances at the open-air amphitheatre at the rear of the historic Mona Vale house in Fendalton, Christchurch since 2005. He founded Top Dog Theatre in the early 2000s to facilitate productions of Shakespeare’s works and has directed and acted in these plays in a voluntary capacity. These annual productions have been a feature of Christchurch’s Summertime festival. Since 2003 he has also staged a number of other dramatic productions at various venues around Christchurch. This has included the 2009 comedy play ‘WAC’ which he wrote and presented. He has sought out emerging young actors for his productions, as well as seasoned veterans, and has mentored, encouraged and provided opportunities for other theatre professionals and aspiring talents. Mr Doddington fully invests himself in his productions, often spending more than 15 hours a day to get a show ready for opening, and fulfilling multiple roles as required from marketing manager to set builder to actor.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
DORMER, Mr Alan
For services to the law
Mr Alan Dormer has practised law in the fields of resource management, local government and liquor licensing and since the introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 he has applied himself to ensuring that those in local government understood the workings and implication of the ever changing legislation.
Mr Dormer advocated for professional development programmes to up-skill elected councillors in decision making and was one of the first trainers for the Making Good Decisions programme. He has held Ministerial appointments to chair several Technical Advisory Groups addressing several matters under the Resource Management Act and has held other Ministerial appointments such as in 2010 to the Rugby World Cup Authority and to the independent Board of Inquiry for the New Zealand Transport Agency’s proposal for the Waterview Connection Project. He has been an advisor to the Law Commission and has been appointed as a Hearings Commissioner by nine local authorities. He was elected for three terms as President of the Resource Management Law Association. Mr Dormer has contributed to several works on resource management and the sale of liquor and is the former Legal Editor of Local Government Magazine, having also contributed a regular column to the magazine for ten years.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
FIFIELD, Ms Karen Lorraine
For services to business and animal welfare
Ms Karen Fifield has been Chief Executive of Wellington Zoo since 2006 and has led the Zoo through an extensive 10 year redevelopment plan and cultural change.
Wellington Zoo was underinvested and in poor condition with animal welfare and financial sustainability at risk. Under Ms Fifield’s leadership visitor attendance has increased significantly, animal housing and care has improved and the Zoo is animal welfare accredited. The Zoo is now considered an iconic organisation which contributes to tourism and economic development of Wellington. The Zoo is a cause related business which focuses on learning and conservation. Award winning projects like the animal hospital, The Nest Te Kōhanga, provide unique visitor experiences and conservation outcomes. Wellington Zoo became the world’s first carboNZero certified zoo in 2013 and has received many awards for sustainability initiatives. Ms Fifield was previously President of the Zoo and Aquarium Association Australasia and she is on the board of the New Zealand Sustainable Business Council. Ms Fifield is also a member of the New Zealand Animal Behaviour and Welfare Advisory Committee and a previous member of the Wellington Conservation Board.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
FIRTH, Mr Derek Sinclair
For services to arbitration and education
Mr Derek Firth has been President of the Arbitrators’ and Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand (AMINZ) and serves on various AMINZ Panels and Committees.
Mr Firth has represented New Zealand on the ICC International Court of Arbitration and is appointed to assess various cases by the World Bank. He is the former Chairman of the New Zealand National Committee of the International Court of Arbitration. For a number of years he has been named as one of New Zealand’s top five arbitrators by the National Business Review. He is the immediate past Chair of Dilworth Trust Board and served as a Trustee from 1975 to 2015. During his time as Chair he appointed the current Principal of Dilworth School and has overseen significant improvement of education outcomes, particularly among Māori and Pacific children, and a strengthening of the endowment used to fully fund the 640 students. Mr Firth has served the wider community as a Board member of the Melanesian Mission Trust Board, H.E Fairey Trust for Disabled Children, New Zealand Special Air Service Trust, Chinese Language Foundation, the Confucius Institute of New Zealand, and as Chair of Kristin School (New Zealand’s largest independent coeducational school).
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
FISCHER, Mr Robert Edward Semadeni (Ward), JP
For services to road safety and the community
Mr Ward Fischer has been involved with road safety in the Waikato/Bay of Plenty region and has contributed to a range of community organisations, principally The Boys’ Brigade.
Mr Fischer was Regional Manager for the Waikato/Bay of Plenty region for the New Zealand Transport Agency. He was a co-author of the first self-paced modular learning Defensive Driving Course for New Zealand in 1985. He was appointed to the Road User Standards Section in 1989 and authored a number of road safety publications, including eight Māori readers for Te Kohanga Reo, bilingual and total immersion schools in 1994, which were distributed throughout New Zealand. He established the Hamilton Motorcycle Riding School in 1998 under his parent road safety education company Fischer and Associates. He has been involved with Boys’ Brigade for 51 years, during which time he established two Boys’ Brigade companies and captained three companies. He has served at the local, regional, national and international levels and continued to Captain the 7th Hamilton Company until 2015. He initiated the writing and setting up of the Boys’ Brigade National Leadership Development Courses and served as its Director for 19 years. Mr Fischer has previously served as Chairman of the Waikato Mountain Safety Council.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
GLYNN, Miss Katie Alexandra
For services to hockey
Miss Katie Glynn was selected into the Blacksticks New Zealand women’s hockey team in 2009 and has since amassed 134 international caps and scored 77 international goals, becoming one of the highest female goal scorers in New Zealand hockey history.
Miss Glynn has played at prestigious tournaments such as the Oceania Cup, Champions Trophy, World Cups, the London Olympics, and the Delhi and Glasgow Commonwealth Games, where the Blacksticks won silver and bronze medals respectively. After receiving an injury that forced her to retire from her professional career she has gone on to make a difference in the development of up and coming players as a coach and role model. She has been Sports Manager at Diocesan School for Girls in Auckland since 2014, where she is responsible for development in a range of sporting codes while coaching the first XI hockey team and has markedly improved the school’s performance in this code. Over the past seven years she has coached in schools, clubs and for representative teams, as well as one-on-one coaching. She is currently co-coach for the Auckland women’s national league team. Miss Glynn has run a number of fundraising activities over the past four years to help teams and individuals attend tournaments.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
GREEN, Dr Paula Joy
For services as a poet and to literature
Dr Paula Green is one of New Zealand’s most highly regarded poets and has supported New Zealand literature for more than 30 years.
Dr Green published her debut collection ‘Cookhouse’ in 1997 and has since published six further volumes. She has edited the collections ‘Dear Heart: 150 New Zealand Love Poems’ and ‘A Treasury of New Zealand Poetry for Children’. She edited the 2007 edition of ‘Best New Zealand Poems’ and co-authored ’99 Ways into New Zealand Poetry’. She has had a parallel literary career as a children’s writer since 2006 and has published five books for children including the award-winning ‘Letterbox Cat and Other Poems’. She organised the Alba Poetry Readings in the early 1990s, curated Auckland City Council’s Poetry on the Pavement event in 2005 and provided text for the poetry and painting exhibition ‘The Northern Line’ as part of the Going West Literary Festival. Dr Green runs two New Zealand poetry blogs for adults and children, visits schools at all levels, judged the 2008 New Zealand Post Secondary Poetry Competition and has been a featured poet at various national literary festivals.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
GRIMALDI, Ms Anna
For services to athletics
Ms Anna Grimaldi is a Paralympic athlete who represented New Zealand at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Paralympic Games.
Ms Grimaldi won the gold medal in the women’s long jump T47 with a distance of 5.62 metres at the Rio Paralympics. This jump broke her personal best by 21 centimetres and extended her New Zealand record of 5.41 metres, which was set at the IPC Athletics World Championships in 2015 and ranked her in the top five in the long jump T47. She won the bronze medal in the women’s long jump T47 at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships. Ms Grimaldi has also represented New Zealand in sprinting events at the 2016 Paralympics.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
GUNN, Mrs Madeline
For services to education
Mrs Madeline Gunn retired in 2015 after eight years as Principal of Epsom Girls Grammar School (EGGS) and following many years of teaching in the Auckland region.
On Mrs Gunn’s retirement from EGGS the school’s academic results were at an all-time high with a strong strategic plan laid out to 2018. Under her leadership she encouraged the establishment of a number of special interest groups and committees led by students, as well as overseeing a significant increase in the number of cultural performance groups to celebrate the school’s increasing ethnic diversity. She was elected as President of the Auckland Secondary Schools Principals Association in 2015. She produced a Sabbatical Report on leadership in greater than 2,000 student secondary schools, identifying unique challenges facing principals of these schools and best practices in dealing with these challenges. She has previously been Leadership and Futures Thinking Facilitator with Team Solutions at the University of Auckland, Director of the School Leadership Centre at the University’s Faculty of Education, and academic principal at the Diocesan School for Girls. In 2011 Mrs Gunn was a member of Careers New Zealand’s Benchmarks External Advisory Group looking at career education for secondary schools.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
GUY, Senior Constable Susan Jean (Sue)
For services to the New Zealand Police and youth
Senior Constable Sue Guy joined the New Zealand Police in 1993 and has been based in the Eastern District.
Senior Constable Guy co-established the initiative Wahine Toa to work with young women who have been victims of sexual abuse and provide a supportive holistic programme to improve the wellbeing, education, safety and self-esteem of the participants. She has been instrumental in securing funding for annual camps in the Eastern District over the past 13 years, enabling 157 local teenagers to benefit from the programme. The success of the programme saw it picked up by other Blue Light branches around New Zealand and the development of the Tame Toa programme for male victims of sexual violence. She established a regular Trail Bike Ride fundraising event for the Hastings Blue Light Committee and co-developed the Blue Light Driver Education Programme. She has been a member of the Hip Hop Cops and has visited numerous schools and organisations in Hawke’s Bay, nationally and overseas to deliver anti-crime/anti-drug performances. Senior Constable Guy was actively involved in the Te Ao Marama Graffiti Art Programme for 10 years and was a founding Trustee of Te Ao Marama Roopu Trust, helping to secure premises for an artistic ‘safe space’ for the young people of Hawke’s Bay.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HAIMONA, Mr Darrin
For services to Māori and the arts
Mr Darrin Haimona has been the Chief Executive of Te Hauora O Ngati Haua Trust of Waharoa since 2003 and is Chair of Te Ope Koiora o Waikato Tainui, a collective of eight Whānau Ora providers in partnership with Waikato Tainui.
Mr Haimona leads the Māori Reference Group that developed E Tu Whānau, a Māori-led response to combat family violence while focusing on traditional values. He coordinated, compiled and wrote ‘Kia Rangatira Te Mahi’, which has been utilised by the anti-violence organisation Te Kupenga as a best practice manual for the delivery of Māori men’s stopping violence programmes. He is a strong supporter of the arts and is a member of the Creative New Zealand Arts Council. He was previously Chair of Te Waka Toi, the Māori Arts Board of Creative New Zealand. He was recently the head of the New Zealand delegation at the 12th Festival of Pacific Arts held in Guam. Mr Haimona has been involved in the establishment and running of local iwi arts management plans, community housing programmes, and a number of boards and committees.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HALL, Ms Bernadette
For services to literature
Ms Bernadette Hall is a distinguished writer and poet who has held residencies and fellowships at Otago University, Canterbury University and Victoria University.
Ms Hall has published ten collections of poetry, the most recent being ‘Maukatere, floating mountain’ (2016). She edited ‘Like Love Poems: selected poems’ by Joanna Margaret Paul (2006) and the online anthology ‘Best New Zealand Poems 2011’. She co-edited ‘Big Sky: a collection of Canterbury poems’ (2002). Her poems have been included in ‘Best NZ Poems’ on eight occasions between 2001 and 2015. She has performed her work at festivals throughout New Zealand and in Australia. Her poems have been featured in collaborations with New Zealand composers. Poems from ‘The Way of the Cross’, within a symphony by Anthony Ritchie, premiered on 22 February 2014 to mark the anniversary of the 2011 Christchurch earthquake. In 2008 she co-founded the Hagley Writers’ Institute in Christchurch and is currently Patron. She was a long term poetry editor of Takahe magazine and also for The Christchurch Press. She has been an advisor to the New Zealand Book Awards and was a member of the judging panel for the 2013 New Zealand Post Book Awards. Ms Hall has curated and chaired an annual literary event in Amberley, North Canterbury since 2009.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HEREWINI, Ms Caroline Marjorie
For services to women
Ms Caroline Herewini has been involved with Women’s Refuge New Zealand for 18 years.
Ms Herewini was the driving force behind the establishment and ongoing operation of Te Whare Tiaki Wahine Refuge Charitable Trust, which provides prevention, early intervention, crisis intervention and post-crisis intervention services and support to Māori women and their families who are affected by physical, emotional, mental and/or sexual abuse. She has been Chief Executive of the refuge for the Porirua and Kapiti areas since 2003. She is a spokesperson for Women’s Refuge at a national level and for the prevention of violence against women internationally. She has presented on the impacts of domestic violence at a range of international events, including the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). She has been selected as a member of Pacific Watch New Zealand delegations at three CSW sessions in New York. She is a member of the Everywoman Everywhere coalition, an international coalition working to prevent violence against women. Ms Herewini is a delegate and founding member of the International Network to End Violence Against Women and Girls.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HEYES, Mr John
For services to education
Mr John Heyes retired in 2015 after 13 years as Principal of Mangere College.
Under Mr Heyes’ tenure the ethnically diverse Mangere College developed a new languages learning centre. He embedded a proud, positive and stable culture with a low teacher turnover that helped the decile one school’s staff and leadership team develop a strong relationship with its student and whānau community. He spearheaded the implementation of a Youth Health Council at the school. The strength of the educational provision and social support under his leadership have seen Year 9 students from low socio economic backgrounds with no pre-school education and English as a second language catch up to the national average within two to three years. He has been a member of the School of Teacher Education Advisory Group, an Executive member and Secretary of the Auckland Secondary Schools Principals Association, the Community Partnership Group of Counties Manukau District Health Board ‘Let’s Beat Diabetes’, the Mangere Community Safety Group and a lead principal on the Achievement in Multi-cultural High Schools Forum. Mr Heyes has been Treasurer and Trustee for the Polyfest Trust Board and was a Trustee on the City of Manukau Education Trust.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HICKMAN, Mrs Robyn
For services to education
Mrs Robyn Hickman has had a career in education since 1979 and has been Principal of Aurora College since 2008.
Mrs Hickman established the first free Study Support Centre in Otago/Southland in 2000. She also established a holiday programme to cater for families who could not afford to send their children to more expensive holiday programmes. She has assisted the development of the links@aurora full service model of providing support to students and their families at the College, which has been referred to nationally as a model in exemplar practice. She successfully led the early adoption of Positive Behaviour for Learning in her school. She established the bilingual unit at Aurora in 2009 and has been involved in implementing the Ministry of Education’s projects He Kakano and Kia Eke Panuku: Building on Success to foster culturally responsive and relational pedagogy. She has been Lead Principal for the Southland Resource Teacher: Learning and Behaviour Cluster since Aurora became Lead School in 2012. As Chairperson of the Board of South Alive Mrs Hickman has been involved with a number of major community developments focused on the urban rejuvenation of South Invercargill.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HILL, Mr Anthony Evan (Tony)
For services to the community, disability sport and health
Mr Tony Hill has contributed services to the Queenstown and Lakes District community for more than 30 years.
Mr Hill is a member of the Institute of Directors and has held various Board directorships with interests in education, health and tourism in the Queenstown Community. In 1991, he co-founded the Lakes District Air Rescue Trust, to provide world-class air rescue and retrieval operations in and beyond the southern Lakes District. He was a Trustee until 2015, and Secretary/ Manager for most of that time. He joined the Halberg Disability Sports Foundation in 2000 as a member of the Otago/Southland trustee group and became the director of the Grants Committee. He has organised functions in the Queenstown region that have raised thousands of dollars to assist the foundation in its work and contributed his hospitality skills to the Halberg Awards Dinner. He was on the Executive Board for nine years, and became a Life Trustee in 2016. He is also a co-founding board member of the Queenstown Resort College and was Chair of local council subsidiary, Lakes Environmental. Mr Hill was also Chairman of the Wakatipu Primary Health Organisation and a trustee of the Southern Primary Health Organisation.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HORAN, Miss Katherine (Kate)
For services to Paralympic sport
Ms Kate Horan is a Paralympic sprinter-turned-cyclist who began her professional sporting career in 2003.
As a para-runner Ms Horan competed in the 2004 and 2008 Paralympics. In the 2004 Paralympics, despite setting a world record in the 400m, she was classified out of a medal as she was required to compete against two non-amputee sprinters. In 2008 she achieved a silver medal in the 200m sprint (T44). She switched disciplines to para-cycling in 2013 and has since won medals in the 2014 (silver), 2015 (silver) and 2016 (bronze) Para-Cycling World Championships for the 500m time trial. She has also had top four finishes in the 2014 and 2015 World Championships for the Pursuit and Scratch events. In 2016 she broke the C4 world record for the 200m time trial twice, taking 2.538 seconds overall off the previous record. She is a sought after guest speaker and has made appearances on Attitude TV, a show which explores the world of disability through empowering stories. Ms Horan is an advocate for her sport and for Paralympics and has taken opportunities to meet with the community at the local level to inspire others.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HOWARTH, Miss Nikita Stevie
For services to swimming
Miss Nikita Howarth is a Paralympic swimmer who has represented New Zealand at the 2012 and 2016 Paralympic Games.
Miss Howarth won the gold medal in the women’s 200 metre individual medley S7 event and the bronze medal in the women’s 50 metre butterfly S7 at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Paralympics. She became New Zealand’s youngest Paralympian when she was selected for the 2012 London Paralympics aged 13 years 8 months. She won a gold medal in the 200 metre individual medley SM7 and a bronze medal in the 50 metre butterfly S7 at the IPC Swimming World Championships in 2013, later winning gold medals in both of these events at the 2015 IPC Swimming World Championships. She represented New Zealand at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. At the 2014 Pan Pacific Para-Swimming Championships she won two gold, one silver and two bronze medals. Miss Howarth set a new world record in the women’s 100 metre butterfly S7 at the International German Championships in Berlin on 9 June 2016.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HOWAT, Mr Ernest John Haines (John)
For services to shooting sports
Mr John Howat has dedicated almost fifty years to supporting safety and success in shooting sports in New Zealand.
Mr Howat was involved in the founding of the New Zealand Pistol Association in 1969, where he is a life member. He has made a significant contribution to improving gun safety. He has served for more than twenty years as the Chair of the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council’s Firearms Safety Technical Committee. He was heavily involved in the revision of the Arms Act 1983 and the Arms Regulations 1992, and worked on the establishment of the Open Polytechnic’s ‘Firearms Safety’ Distance Learning Course, which launched in 1987. He was a member of the Police Firearms Consultative Committee and contributed to the Foundation of the Council of Licence Firearm Owners. His expertise is internationally acknowledged, and he has represented New Zealand at two delegations to the United Nations, and addressed a United Nations conference in Thailand. As a sportsman, Mr Howat represented New Zealand at the 1974 Commonweath Games in the rapid fire event, and has participated in target pistol shooting events where he was a National Champion.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HUMPHREY, Mr Hewitt Royden, QSM, JP
For services as a broadcaster and to the community
Mr Hewitt Humphrey has been an iconic voice in New Zealand radio broadcasting.
Mr Humphrey continued as a manager and newsreader with Radio New Zealand until 2015 and has been recognised with many industry awards. He has trained and mentored young journalists for many years and played a critical role in maintaining on-air standards. As a Justice of the Peace since 1996, he has been one of only a small number of JPs appointed as a Visiting Justice under the Corrections Act and has been involved with training new Visiting Justices. He is the longest serving Judicial Justice in the Wellington and Porirua District Courts since being appointed to the role in 1998. He has served as JP Court Panel manager and is a Past-president of the Wellington Justices Association. He is an active contributor to the Rotary Club of Wellington having served as chair of a number of club Committees and been President of the club. As Ambassador for Variety the Children’s Charity, he has attended a number of International conventions to help showcase New Zealand and its fundraising initiatives. Mr Humphrey has served on a number of other committees and trusts.
HONOURS
Queen’s Service Medal for Public Services, Queen’s Birthday 1998
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
HYNDMAN, Dr John Chirnside
For services to health and innovation
Dr John Hyndman has had a 40-year career as a general practitioner and an anaesthetist.
Dr Hyndman worked with Mr Ivan Batistich over the course of 12 years to develop the HYVAN, a low-cost, portable anaesthetic machine about the size of a microwave oven that is able to be deployed anywhere, even where there is no power. The idea behind the HYVAN was a reliable anaesthetic machine that could be used in Third World locations and was simple enough to operate with basic training. The HYVAN is a fraction of the size and cost of most anaesthetic machines used in New Zealand and will carry out virtually all of the same functions with reliable simplicity, to the point where it can be repaired in a hospital workshop if required. The HYVAN will be manufactured locally in Christchurch following completion of final clinical trials. For their development of the HYVAN they won the New Zealander of the Year Innovator award in 2016 and have been recognised by the World Congress of Anaesthetists. Dr Hyndman’s earlier career has seen him help establish three Hospices, chair the Marlborough Health Trust, and establish the Churchill Trust, a private hospital in Blenheim.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
JAMES, Ms Lyndsay Louise (Lou)
For services to people with cancer
Ms Lou James has helped more than 5,000 people in their physical and emotional recovery from cancer.
Ms James is a physiotherapist who focuses on the rehabilitation of cancer patients, and has been a pioneering force in cancer rehabilitation practice in Australasia. She set up her first physiotherapy business when she was 25. She launched the Pink Pilates individualised rehabilitation programme in 2005 to support women recovering from cancer, and following her expansion to training other physiotherapists in the programme, she further developed the programme to provide rehabilitation services to male patients and rebranded as PINC & STEEL. In 2006 she established the PINC & STEEL Cancer Rehabilitation Trust to provide financial assistance for people without health insurance or other funding to help them access the programme. The programme now operates in 50 regions in New Zealand and Australia, and is being extended to South Africa and the United Kingdom. Ms James received a New Zealander of the Year local hero medal in 2013.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
LI, Ms Chunli
For services to table tennis
Ms Chunli Li is a world-renowned table tennis player who has represented New Zealand internationally.
Early in her career Ms Li was a member of China’s national table tennis team and was twice a mixed doubles champion in China. As one of New Zealand’s representatives at the 2002 Commonwealth Games she won gold for women’s singles and silver for women’s doubles, and two bronze medals in the mixed doubles and women’s team competitions. These are the only Commonwealth Games medals that have been awarded to New Zealand for table tennis. She has represented New Zealand at four Olympic Games in 1992, 1996, 2000 and 2004. She coached New Zealand’s national teams for the 2006 and 2010 Commonwealth Games before coming out of retirement in 2011 to lead the New Zealand table tennis team to the 2014 Commonwealth Games. At the local level Ms Li initiated and runs a coaching programme through the Panmure YMCA for people of all ages wanting to play table tennis.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
LIM, Ms Huei Min (Lyn)
For services to New Zealand-Asia relations and governance
Ms Lyn Lim is a lawyer and businesswoman with extensive involvement in Asia-New Zealand commercial and cultural relations.
Ms Lim co-founded and has led the litigation practice of the law firm Forest Harrison since 2006. Forest Harrison provides legal services to medium-to-large companies and individuals with connections or links with Asia. She has been involved with the governance of organisations, companies and professional associations since 2003. She is a Director of Public Trust, a Council Member of Auckland University of Technology, a Trustee of the Asia New Zealand Foundation and a Trustee and recently appointed Chair of Foundation North, formerly the ASB Community Trust, New Zealand’s largest community trust with assets of more than $1.1 billion. She is Deputy Chair of the Foundation’s new Centre for Social Impact. She is also a member of the Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Board and was Chair of the New Zealand Chinese Youth Trust from 2008 to 2014. Ms Lim was on the Executive Committees of both the New Zealand China Trade Association and the Hong Kong New Zealand Business Association.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
MACREADY, Mrs Judith Roberta
For services to hospice care
Mrs Judith Macready has contributed more than 25 years of service to the development of palliative care in the Auckland region.
Mrs Macready began as the South Auckland Hospice Trust coordinator in 1984. She was involved in fundraising for the service and became a trustee when she left in 1990. She was the first national director of the Child Cancer Foundation, and helped to raise the profile of the organisation and set in place services and systems for fundraising. She was the Executive Manager of St Joseph’s Hospice, part of Mercy Hospital in Auckland, one of New Zealand’s preeminent and pioneering hospices, as well as a member of the Hospital’s Executive Team. She was a member of Hospices of Auckland, a fundraising group responsible for events such as Symphony Under the Stars. She was instrumental in appointing the first regional Hospice Educator to coordinate palliative care education programmes. She was a Board Member of Hospices New Zealand, involved with advocacy, service development and rewriting the national Hospice New Zealand Standards of Care. She helped to persuade the Regional Health Authority to develop a regional strategy for Hospice and Palliative Care services. Mrs Macready was the Chairperson of the Warkworth Wellsford Hospice Committee and helped to outline the initial vision of a day Hospice in the area, due to be built in 2016.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
MALONE, Mr Liam
For services to athletics
Mr Liam Malone is a Paralympic athlete who represented New Zealand at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympic Games.
Mr Malone won gold medals in the men’s 200 metre T44 and men’s 400 metre T44 events and set Paralympic records in both events. He also won silver in the men’s 100 metre T44. Mr Malone previously competed at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in the 100 and 200 metre T44 events.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
MANN, Professor Anthony Phillip (Phillip)
For services to literature and drama
Professor Phillip Mann is a leading science fiction writer, academic and theatre director.
Professor Mann founded the first Drama Studies course in New Zealand at Victoria University of Wellington in 1970, and lectured in Drama before becoming professor in 1997. Since the release of his first book ‘The Eye of the Queen’ in 1982 he has published many novels, including the four-volume series ‘A Land Fit for Heroes’ released between 1993 and 1996. He has written extensively for theatre and radio and his fiction has been widely broadcast. Many of his books have been translated into French and German and he has had numerous short stories published in Interzone UK. He received the Sir Julius Vogel Award for services to Science Fiction in 2010 and his 2013 novel ‘The Disestablishment of Paradise’ was shortlisted for the prestigious Arthur C. Clarke Award in 2014. In 2015 he was made an Honorary Literary Fellow of the New Zealand Society of Authors. In semi-retirement he continues to teach writing at Whitireia Institute of Technology, and helps out with new writers at Huia, a Wellington-based publisher. Professor Mann has been the Patron of the Phoenix Science Fiction and Fantasy Society, a Wellington-based science fiction club, since its founding in 1989.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
MCDONALD, Dr Donald Alastair
For services to rowing
Dr Donald McDonald has been coaching rowing in New Zealand on a largely voluntary basis for 60 years.
Dr McDonald has coached hundreds of athletes, from school teams, which have won the Maadi Cup a number of times across a number of schools, to elite adult athletes performing internationally across a range of events and championships. To this day he is usually found six mornings a week at the Clive River in a coach boat. He is currently coaching a Hawke’s Bay senior men’s club 8, who have previously won gold at the New Zealand Championships in 2013 and 2014. He was co-founder and field officer of the Whanganui Sports Medicine Trust from 1972 to 1985. He conducted New Zealand rowing trials from 1965 to 1984 and while overseeing ergometer testing during the trials he pioneered a method of calculating the effort rowers put into a six minute test. He was Senior Rowing Coach for Whanganui Collegiate School and the Union Boat Club from 1975 to 2003, Christ’s College from 2004 to 2008 and for Canterbury Rowing Club from 2004 to 2006. In 2014 Dr McDonald was recognised with a New Zealand Secondary School Sports Council award for services to rowing.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
MCNAMARA, Mr Terence James
For services to the arts
Mr Terence McNamara has been the art critic for The New Zealand Herald since 1966.
Over this period Mr McNamara has contributed substantially to the growth and understanding of contemporary art in Auckland with hundreds of critical articles, which grew into a regular weekly column. He maintained a dedicated routine of visiting galleries and exhibitions. His criticisms have been based on research and an erudite knowledge of art history and contemporary New Zealand art. Mr McNamara has a background as a teacher at secondary school and tertiary levels.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
PARKES, Mr Terence Valentine (Terry)
For services to the arts, business and the community
Mr Terry Parkes is the owner-operator of the Nice Hotel and Table Restaurant in New Plymouth and is the winner of multiple hospitality and tourism awards.
Mr Parkes is the Chairman of Art in Public Places Trust, which commissions works of art and raises money along with the New Plymouth District Council. He has supported arts festivals such as WOMAD, Tropfest, the Taranaki Garden Spectacular, and the Taranaki International Arts Festival. He has been involved in raising money and contributing to the Govett Brewster Art Gallery and the Len Lye Centre. He showcases a collection of works by Taranaki and New Zealand artists at the Nice Hotel and has developed itineraries for visitors to experience the province’s cultural highlights. He also supports many schools with fundraising and has helped fundraise for the WE Heart Taranaki campaign for an angiography machine and purpose built suite at the Taranaki Base Hospital. He is a past President of Jaycees and is actively involved in promoting the New Plymouth business community, including sponsorship of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce. Mr Parkes has provided more than 2,000 free lunches to date to children at low decile schools through the Fuel for School initiative.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
PICKLES, Mr Owen Leslie, JP
For services to local government
Mr Owen Pickles has been General Manager of the Chatham Islands Council since 2002 and has worked to ensure Chatham Islanders have equal opportunities to those living on mainland New Zealand.
Mr Pickles has greatly improved the governance of the Chatham Islands. He initiated an Island interest group, made up of community, business and iwi representatives, and has built a close relationship with Chatham Islands Enterprise Trust. His efforts have ensured a one voice representation when speaking to Ministers and Departmental staff, and strengthened the relationship with central government. He has been instrumental in gaining increased funding to improve roads, procure broadband and mobile services, repair the wharf and improve port access, and upgraded the Island’s water supply and waste treatment. He is held in high regard by staff and Islanders, is regarded as the ‘go to’ person at the Council, and is a Justice of the Peace. Mr Pickles was previously Chief Executive Officer of the Gore District Council
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
RIA, Mrs Tangiwai Margaret
For services to Māori performing arts and the community
Mrs Tangiwai Ria is recognised nationally for her involvement with kapa haka and is a Life Member of Te Matatini, the pre-eminent national Māori performing arts festival attracting up to 30,000 performers and spectators.
Mrs Ria has led the kapa haka group Waihīrere over three decades and has led them to national victories in 1988, 1998 and 2002. She has led groups comprising performers from around New Zealand to international showcases at the World Expo in 1992, the Royal Albert Hall in London, the Commonwealth Games at Kuala Lumpur, and the Pacific Arts Festival in Palau in 2004. She was Chair of the Trustees for Parihimanihi Marae in the village of Waihīrere near Gisborne from 2000 to 2015. She supervised major renovation projects for the primary buildings on the marae and provided oversight in the development and implementation of policies for the revitalisation of language and protocols through facilitating wānanga. She mentors the Eco-Warriors, a group of Māori youth from Waihīrere engaging in the environmental preservation and restoration of the Waihīrere Domain. Mrs Ria has been a Trustee of Te Aitanga a Mahaki Trust for 10 years, which leads the Treaty claims process for the iwi, and a Trustee of Te Rūnanga o Tūranganui a Kiwa, an organisation that represents the three iwi of the Gisborne area.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
ROBINSON, Sergeant Susan Jane (Su)
For services to the New Zealand Police and youth
Sergeant Su Robinson has been a member of the New Zealand Police since 1997 and has served in Wellington and Eastern Police districts as well as overseas in Bougainville.
As a Youth Aid Officer for nine years Sergeant Robinson has gone above and beyond her expected duties to organise and deliver youth programmes. She has been a driving force with the Hastings Blue Light Committee and co-developed the Blue Light Driver Education Programme for young drivers. She co-established the initiative Wahine Toa to work with young women who have been victims of sexual abuse and provide a supportive holistic programme to improve the wellbeing, education, safety and self-esteem of the participants. Participants spend time with clinical presenters, counsellors and motivational speakers and have the opportunity to participate in team building, creative and outdoor activities. Sergeant Robinson has been instrumental in running these camps in Eastern District for more than 10 years, enabling 157 local teenagers to benefit from the programme. The success of the programme saw it picked up by other Blue Light branches around New Zealand. This has led to the development of the Tame Toa programme for male victims of sexual violence, which is also run in Police districts around New Zealand.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
SELUPE, Mrs Nahusita
For services to education and Māori and Pacific communities
Mrs Nahusita Selupe founded the Rise UP Trust and one of New Zealand’s first charter schools, Rise UP Academy, of which she is Chief Executive and Principal.
The Rise UP Trust grew out of a Saturday morning home-school Mrs Selupe hosted in her garage from 2006. This project was initially set up to help her own children but soon expanded to include her extended family and neighbours. Rise UP’s education model, which aligns to the New Zealand school curriculum, uses innovative programmes to address the issue of educational underachievement among Pacific and Māori youth. Since its establishment Rise UP Trust has helped more than 200 families in Mangere and Manurewa. In 2014 Rise UP’s students reached national standards in reading, writing and maths at a rate of 20 percentage points above the average of other children in the Mangere and Otahuhu areas. She has led the trust in developing programmes that encourage parents to be active participants in their children’s learning. These include a series of whanau mentoring services called Building Learning Communities. Mrs Selupe has been a member of the Ministry of Education Northern Region Pacific Advisory Group since 2009.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
SINCLAIR, Ms Elizabeth Mason (Liz)
For services to the State
Ms Liz Sinclair was a Deputy Commissioner at the State Services Commission From 2012 to 2016.
In this role Ms Sinclair was responsible for leading central agencies’ coordination of the government response to the Royal Commission on the Pike River Mine disaster, leading the SSC team responsible for establishing the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, and contributing to the Working Party to Refocus Te Puni Kokiri and the establishment of Te Matawai. She has led SSC’s Sector and Agency Performance Group and was a member of SSC’s Senior Leadership Team. From 2004 to 2011 she was Deputy Secretary, Operations at the Ministry of Justice. In this role she led a significant service improvement programme for New Zealand’s courts. She was also responsible for the successful implementation of several new jurisdictions and services, including the transfer of the Employment Court, and new tribunals including the Weathertight Homes and Immigration Protection Tribunals. She was jointly responsible for developing a package of proposals for Criminal Procedure Simplification, which in conjunction with the resulting Criminal Procedure Act 2011 modernised, simplified and improved criminal procedure in New Zealand. From 1993 to 2003 Ms Sinclair held executive leadership roles at the Inland Revenue Department supporting technology and business changes to improve service to taxpayers.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
SMITH, Ms Benesia Denise
For services to the State
Ms Benesia Smith held senior leadership roles with the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA) from establishment until its windup in 2016.
Ms Smith was a member of the Policy Advisory Group of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet at the time of the 2010 Canterbury earthquakes and immediately became involved with supporting the development of policy advice to the government. From September 2010 she was the Lead of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Policy Team, a special unit set up in DPMC to lead and coordinate policy advice across Government relating to the 2010 earthquake. After the February 2011 earthquakes she was involved with supporting the development of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority and the drafting of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Legislation. She then joined CERA in 2011 and later held the roles of Deputy Chief Executive for Corporate and Governance from 2012 to 2013, and for Strategy and Governance from 2013 to 2015 and for Strategy and Recovery Policy from 2015 to 2016. Following the February 2011 earthquakes she split her time between Christchurch and Wellington to better support recovery efforts on the ground. Ms Smith has worked closely with the recovery strategic partners, including the local councils and Te Rununga o Ngāi Tahu.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
SMITH, Mr Desmond Gerald (Des)
For services to rugby and the community
Mr Des Smith has been involved with sports, the community and schools for 46 years.
Mr Smith taught and coached rugby at Otago Boys High School from 1968 to 1994. This included coaching the 1st XV for ten years, winning the top school side in the South Island on four occasions, and managing the New Zealand Secondary Schools Team. He coached tennis at the school for twelve years, culminating in winning the Dunedin Men’s Premier Championship. On leaving teaching in 1994 he was employed in a number of roles including setting up the Edgar Sports Centre, managing the New Zealand Colts, Highlanders and Otago Representative Rugby Teams. He was appointed President of the Otago Rugby Football Union in 2016. As the Otago Secondary Schools Regional Sports Director from 2006 to 2012, he oversaw significant growth in sports participation in the region, before becoming the Operations Manager for the New Zealand Secondary Schools Sports Council. In 2011 he was awarded the SportNZ award for Innovation in establishing sports councils in secondary schools. Locally Mr Smith has been involved with many community projects including the Blueskin Bay Library, Wakari School Pool, Otago Rugby Gym, Te Rauone Beach Breakwater and planning for the redevelopment of Logan Park.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
TAKARANGI, Mr John Maurice (Maurice)
For services to Māori
Mr Maurice Takarangi is a specialist in Treaty of Waitangi claims with more than 22 years’ experience with Land and Fisheries claims.
Mr Takarangi was appointed as a Deputy Principal Negotiator for Rangitane O Manawatu in 1997 and has been involved with the Treaty claim since it was lodged in 1990. He has been Assistant Chief Negotiator for the WAI182 Treaty claim since 2007. As one of the original Trustees for the Whanganui River Māori Trust Board he assisted in advancing the Whanganui River claim and the Whanganui Land claims between 1986 and 1991. He has been President of Tanenuiarangi Manawatu Inc since 2007 and a Trustee of Te Ohu Tiaki O Rangitāne Te Ika A Maui Trust since 1996. He has been involved with Māori natural resource management, with an emphasis on fresh water, forestry, fisheries and energy, and has been Aquaculture Project Director for ‘Project Tuna’, a specialist research project for sustainable farming of glass eels in New Zealand. Mr Takarangi’s work in the mineral and energy industries has enabled iwi to engage and remain at the table for the entirety of proposed exploration activity and to participate subsequently in production phases.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
TE WIATA, Ms Heather Rima (Rima)
For services to film and television
Ms Rima Te Wiata is a well-known New Zealand actor with a career spanning 35 years.
Ms Te Wiata has starred in international television productions since 1982 and in more than 60 theatrical productions in New Zealand and Australia. In the late 1980s she appeared in more than 200 episodes of long-running Australian soap opera ‘Sons and Daughters’. On her return to New Zealand she starred in New Zealand and Australian comedy shows including ‘Issues’ and ‘Full Frontal’ from 1993. She appeared in the sitcom version of ‘The Billy T James Show’ and sketch show ‘Laughinz’. Her recent feature film appearances included critically-acclaimed roles in ‘Housebound’ (2014) and ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople’ (2016). She has created characters which are both beloved and allow New Zealanders to reflect on their national identity, and in doing so has made a significant contribution to New Zealand’s cultural capital. She has also contributed to performing arts in New Zealand as a theatre director. Ms Te Wiata was a prominent figure in supporting actions to improve the remuneration and employment conditions of New Zealand actors in the mid-1980s.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
THOMPSON, Professor Keith Gordon
For services to veterinary pathology
Professor Keith Thompson has worked in the field of veterinary pathology for more than 40 years.
Professor Thompson’s field of expertise is in diseases of the skeletal system of animals, within which he is known internationally as expert. He has authored and co-authored more than 85 scientific articles, and also authored several book chapters on topics relevant to the pathology of the skeletal system. Professor Thompson served on the Executive Board of the Institute of Veterinary, Animal and Biomedical Sciences at Massey University, and was also Head of Veterinary Pathology for approximately 10 years. In these roles he guided the development of a pathobiology programme and ensured its effective integration with other elements of the wider veterinary and biology curricula of Massey University. Professor Keith Thompson has mentored many veterinary pathologists in the development of their careers, and is also the first and only non-North American appointed as an examiner to the American College of Veterinary Pathologists.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
TUKE, Mr Andrew Blair (Blair)
For services to sailing
Mr Blair Tuke is a New Zealand sailor who, together with Mr Peter Burling, won a silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics and a gold medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in the 49er class.
Mr Tuke and Mr Burling are the first sailors to win four consecutive 49er class World Championships (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016). For the four years between the London and Rio Olympics they were unbeaten in major regattas in the 49er class, winning a total of 28 regattas. Mr Tuke also won a gold medal in the 2009 World Champions in the 29er class and has achieved silver and bronze medal placings in other international events including World Championships. He has been named a member of the Emirates Team New Zealand’s 2017 America’s Cup Campaign. The pair were named International Sailing Federation Rolex World Male Sailors of the Year in 2015. Mr Tuke and Mr Burling were named Yachting New Zealand Sailors of the Year in 2013, 2014 and 2015.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
WILKIE, Mrs Alison Thelma
For services to health and education
Mrs Alison Wilkie is a trained nurse who set up the Canterbury Asthma Society in 1972, and served as Secretary and President until 1994.
Mrs Wilkie set up several other asthma societies in the South Island. She played a key role in the establishment of the New Zealand Asthma Foundation in 1980 and was one of the pioneers of asthma education in New Zealand, having started the New Zealand Asthma Educator’s Forum in 1987. She is a former member of the Canterbury District Health Board, and former member of the Pharmaceutical Society. Since 2015 she has been Chair of the Establishment Board of Trustees for Saint Francis of Assisi Catholic School in Christchurch. As Chair of the Establishment Board of Trustees for Te Waka Unua School she oversaw the merger of Woolston and Phillipstown Schools to create Te Waka Unua. She was a Board member for Christchurch Resettlement Services for five years. She has been Chair of the Kate Sheppard branch of the University of the Third Age in Christchurch. She was a member of the Riccarton-Wigram Community Board and the establishment Chair for the Board’s Environment and Health Committees. Mrs Wilkie’s other voluntary memberships have included the Christchurch Family Help Trust and the Riccarton Bush Trust.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
WILLIAMS, Ms Lynda Christine
For services to women's health
Ms Lynda Williams has been an advocate for women’s health and healthcare consumers nationally and has been a prime mover in the establishment and development of women’s health organisations.
Ms Williams has more than 25 years’ experience counselling women in a range of life and health issues, including miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death, childbirth experiences, and trauma arising from hospitalisation and medical procedures. She founded the Auckland Caesarean Support Group in 1984. She set up and coordinated the Childbirth Education Association of Auckland over a period of seven years and supervised childbirth educators completing their training. She assisted in the formation and development of the Auckland Women’s Health Council in 1988, which inspired the formation of local groups throughout New Zealand and led to a Federation of Women’s Health Councils being established in 1990. She has been Coordinator of the Auckland Women’s Health Council and the Auckland Maternity Services Consumer Council since the early 1990s. Ms Williams has represented consumer concerns on a several ethics committees including the Auckland Hospital Ethics Committee, the Green Lane Hospital Ethics Committee, and one of the Auckland Area Health Board Ethics Committees.
To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
WYNYARD, Mr Jason
For services to the sport of wood chopping
Mr Jason Wynyard has won more than 230 World Championship titles and is unparalleled in the sport of wood chopping.
At 16 Mr Wynyard was the youngest ever competitor when he first represented New Zealand with the New Zealand Axemen Association Team in 1990 and has been a critical part of the team since then. He is currently the Stihl Timbersport World Champion and has been on six previous occasions. He won ten USA Stihl Championships before the event was closed to competitors from outside the United States. At wood chopping’s premier event, the Royal Sydney Easter Show, he has held the Champion of Champions title on three occasions. In 1991 he won the New Zealand Underhand Championship along with both juniors’ events and has consistently had podium results since then. He holds 27 New Zealand records and a number of world records, his oldest standing world record having been set in 1994 for the 350mm Underhand Tarire. He is an ambassador for the sport of wood chopping and has taken time to organise events in Auckland. Mr Wynyard has played a role in the diversification of the sport in New Zealand by promoting the Hot Saw Competition, which has seen growth in younger membership.
Honorary MNZM
To be an Honorary Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
KIM, Mr Jae-chul
For services to New Zealand-South Korea relations
Chairman Jae-Chul Kim has been New Zealand’s honorary consul to Busan in South Korea since 2010 and an advocate for New Zealand-Korea trade and business relations.
Mr Kim has maintained a Consular Office in Busan, providing notary and consular services for New Zealanders in Gyeongsang province. He has hosted various delegations including a lunch for New Zealand Korean War veterans to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Armistice in 2013. He has actively promoted New Zealand – Korea trade and business ties and is a Gold Sponsor of the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Korea. During his term as Chairman of the Korean International Trade Association, regarded as the most influential trade organisation in Korea, he worked closely with and supported the New Zealand Korea Business Council. He has mentored a number of New Zealand and Korean business representatives, and advocated with Korean Business Associations and members of the National Assembly for the Korean-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement. Mr Kim is Chairman of the Dongwon Group, which among a wide range of interests, is one of the key trading partners for the New Zealand food and beverage sector.
To be an Honorary Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
MASUMOTO, Mr Hiroshi (Hiro)
For services to New Zealand-Japan relations and music
Mr Hiro Masumoto is the founder and musical director of the Tokyo based Chor Farmer Male Voice Choir that has been touring Australasia bi-annually for over 30 years.
Since 2000 Mr Masumoto has been directly responsible for touring the choir to New Zealand on regular biannual visits. He arranges the music the choir performs, which include Māori songs as well as songs from around the world. Each tour lasts around two weeks, covering North and South Island venues for at least four concerts. Choir members pay their own way and are billeted with New Zealand families. The concerts have a nominal entry charge with all proceeds going to the host organisation. The tours have therefore not been for commercial gain, but rather to develop relations between Japan and New Zealand communities. The choir has provided grants and support to the communities visited, including Featherston, Dunedin, Nelson, Taupo and Tauranga. It has provided a grant to the Featherston Heritage Museum and helped to source a grand piano for the Featherston ANZAC Hall.
To be an Honorary Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
RANDALL, Dr William Brown McIlvaine
For services to museum governance
Dr William Randall has been a member of the Auckland Museum Trust Board since 2001 and has been Chairman since 2009.
As Chair Dr Randall stabilised the Museum at a time of troubled governance and has built a united Board with oversight for world class collections and assets for the Auckland region. He established a committee system to improve the governance, financial management and culture of the Museum. He has been a key driver of the Future Museum strategy, which has involved initiatives such as publishing collections records online for users to access and He Korahi Māori, a bicultural foundation that ensures there is shared decision-making and a Māori dimension in all of the museum’s plans and activities. He has also supported the development of Teu Le Vā, an initiative to introduce a Pacific dimension for understanding the context of historic and contemporary Auckland through its relationship with the Pacific and Pacific Peoples. He introduced the Statement of Investment Policy and Objectives to govern decisions regarding investment of the Museum’s funds. He was integral to the establishment of the Auckland Museum Foundation in 2015. In the wider community Dr Randall is a member of the Pukaki Trust and was a fundraising committee member for St Matthew’s Cathedral in Auckland.