Profiles of all Southern recipients (or those with Southern connections) from this year's King's Birthday honours list.
KNZM
Peter Joseph Beck, Auckland
For services to the aerospace industry, business and education
Sir Peter Beck has soared up the King’s Birthday Honours.
The Invercargill-born and former Dunedin-based founder of Rocket Lab has been knighted for services to the aerospace industry, business and education.
Sir Peter has been chief executive of Rocket Lab since 2006, which designs, builds and launches advanced rockets and satellites, pioneering an industry previously non-existent in New Zealand.
Sir Peter, who went to James Hargest College in Invercargill and developed his skills in inventing in Dunedin while working for Fisher & Paykel, now employs more than 1800 people internationally, including 750 in New Zealand.
It is the most prolific commercial launch provider behind only SpaceX, launching 46 missions to space including Nasa’s 2022 lunar Capstone mission, and more than 160 satellites to orbit as of April.
These satellites have enabled scientific and climate monitoring for Nasa, national security for international governments, school and university research and commercial innovations.
Last month, Rocket Lab successfully launched the first stage of a Nasa climate change-focused mission from the North Island’s East Coast.
Whether it was building motorbikes at secondary school or a dangerously over-powered rocket bike, Sir Peter was always chasing crazy ideas from a young age.
In 1995, Sir Peter became a tool-and-die-maker apprentice at Fisher & Paykel in Mosgiel.
While working there, he taught himself and used the company workshop to experiment with rockets and propellants.
Using these tools and materials, he created a rocket bike, rocket-attached scooter and a jet pack.
Later, he moved into product design and bought a cruise missile engine from the United States.
He later worked at Industrial Research Limited between 2001 and 2006, working on smart materials, composites and super conductors. While there, he met Stephen Tindall, who later became an early investor at Rocket Lab.
While his wife worked as an engineer in the US, Sir Peter travelled to Minnesota and met a rocketeer that he had contacted beforehand. After this trip, he founded Rocket Lab.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon acknowledged Sir Peter’s achievement.
"Sir Peter Beck is a pioneer in the aerospace industry, both at home and abroad.
"In an industry previously nonexistent in New Zealand, he has been pivotal in growing New Zealand’s $1.69billion space industry and is a leader on the world stage."
Sir Peter was unavailable for comment.
CNZM
Mary Helen Lee, Wānaka
For services to snow sports and tourism
For Mary Lee, her recognition in the King’s Birthday Honours rekindled memories of decades spent transforming the Cardrona Valley into the snow sports hub it is today.
"It’s brought back all the memories of the people that have helped us as well and assisted us through. Because no-one can do things by themselves."
Beginning in the 1970s, Mrs Lee and her husband John developed Cardrona skifield, 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 skifield, continuing now in voluntary roles.
Her efforts have provided employment opportunities and attracted national and international ski tourists, with trails providing offseason 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 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.
Mrs Lee said she still committed "quite a few hours to teaching cross-country skiing on a voluntary basis, and still got up to the snow at least four days a week during the ski season.
"I’ve worked with the Nordic youth a lot and that was the thing I loved the most, she said.
"I loved the pathways that gave kids so much more confidence in life.
In addition to setting up Wanaka Nordic Ski Club’s youth development group in 1999, designed to help young people compete in overseas competitions, she also 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 snow sports instructor award — cross-country skiing level 4.
Mrs Lee volunteers with SeniorNet and Cardrona Heritage Trust, and has held founding and executive roles with the New Zealand Cross Country Ski Association and Biathlon New Zealand.
She said the award was both "very humbling and "very surprising, but that she was honoured to accept it.
"John was also awarded several years ago, in 2016, and I got a lot of satisfaction out of that, but to be awarded in my own right is just wonderful.
ONZM
Andrew Scott Dunn, Oamaru
For services to people with Parkinson’s disease
When Andrew Dunn’s father was diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s, he did everything he could to find out more about the disease.
"I wrote to the health department, but they didn’t have anything about it, he said.
In 1983, little was known about Parkinson’s, so he held a community meeting in Wellington to connect with others affected.
By the end of the night, they had formed Parkinson’s New Zealand, a charitable trust dedicated to people living with the disease.
Since co-founding it more than 40 years ago, Mr Dunn has held many roles in the organisations including president, national councillor, board chairman and national co-ordinator.
He established Parkinson’s New Zealand’s field officer service, which enabled professionals to visit those with the disease in their homes.
The organisation now has 17 volunteer support groups around the country and the support groups have expanded to include exercise, physiotherapy, tai chi, swimming and more.
He has been involved with the Wellington, Hawke’s Bay, Canterbury and Otago divisions over the years and has represented the organisation at several international conferences.
During his term as president from 1998 to 2000, he encouraged the Upbeat special interest group for people with young onset Parkinson’s.
In 2011, Mr Dunn was recognised with the Orangi Kaupapa Trust Award for developing a sustainable community service and was named Kiwibank New Zealand local hero of the year for 2021.
Mr Dunn said he was humbled by the recognition, but was "happy to wear the badge of honour if it meant more support for the organisation".
Peter Ralph (Ralph) Fegan (JP), Wānaka
For services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the community
Serving the public takes a village and receiving an ONZM is recognition of an entire community for one King’s Birthday Honours recipient.
Ralph Fegan has volunteered in the Wānaka and West Coast communities since 1973 in a range of capacities including Fire and Emergency New Zealand, United Fire Brigade Association, the Gold Star Association, New Zealand Fighter Pilots’ Foundation Trust, Wānaka Airport, Upper Clutha RSA, Wanaka A&P Show and Food for Love.
He said being presented with the award was an "incredibly humbling experience, and he was simply the torchbearer for a large and wide-reaching group sacrificing their time for their community.
"It’s just as much about them as it is about me — I would not have been able to do anything without us working together, or without my wife and family by my side.
He volunteered with the Franz Josef Volunteer Fire Brigade for 22 years before joining the Wānaka Brigade, where he has served for the past 17 years.
His service to Fenz had been "an absolute privilege", and it would still be able to get another year or two out of him before he needed to retire.
He was chief fire officer in Franz Josef from 1977 to 1996, initiating the formation of a Rural Fire Party, and has been secretary since 2013 at the Wānaka Brigade.
Mr Fegan was previously a Westland district councillor from 1989 to 1995 and a civil defence controller for Franz Josef from 1979 to 1995.
He was the 1996 Westland District Council’s person of the year and in 1990 received a New Zealand Commemoration Medal.
Patricia (Trish) Elizabeth Clare Lindsay, Invercargill
For services to netball and governance
Trish Lindsay has dipped her toes into many different parts of Southland and the region is all the better for her interests.
She has contributed significantly in Southland to netball, the arts and governance.
Mrs Lindsay was a founding director of the Southern Teamco Board (Southern Sting Netball), which helped revitalise netball in the south of the South Island.
She undertook key initial actions to drive the franchise to success. She became a director of the ILT Stadium board in 1999, established for the build of a multipurpose sports and leisure facility in Invercargill.
She had a crucial role in fundraising, stakeholder engagement, design and build of the new facility, which is now a key Southland stadium for events. She was trustee and deputy chairwoman of the Community Trust of Southland from 2006 to 2014.
Mrs Lindsay was a founding trustee of Shakespeare in the Park Trust, which presents an annual outdoor production and provides scholarship opportunities for locals. She is the secretary of the trust and manages its sponsorship for continuation.
She has been a trustee of the Southland Art Foundation, promoting the visual arts, and overseeing and growing a collection of public art works. She became a member of the Museum Governance Group in 2021, to upgrade the museum, looking at its long-term purpose.
Mrs Lindsay was a board member and is now trustee of Southland Disability Enterprises, a director of Invercargill Rotary, and an executive member of the Southland Medical Foundation Council.
She said she really loved doing her volunteer work as it involved initiatives which benefited the whole community.
That involved the Zero Fees scheme, the Southern Sting, Stadium Southland and the Shakespeare in the Park Trust.
Alexander James (Jamie) Mackay, Dunedin
For services to broadcasting and the rural community
Broadcaster Jamie Mackay started his career out of a tiny studio in Gore.
Thirty years later, he is one of the most prominent rural broadcasters in the country, and has been recognised in the King’s Birthday Honours.
Mr Mackay has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to broadcasting and the rural community .
The recognition surprised Mr Mackay.
"Initially, I thought someone was having me on, as I’ve got a few dodgy mates who would love to suck me in with a stunt like this.
"But when I realised it was for real, my first thought was that I would turn it down as I didn’t think I’d done enough to justify the honour.
"In the end, however, I justified it in my mind by accepting it for all the charity fundraising work I’d done over the years, particularly for [disabilities advocacy group] the IHC.
"Besides, I knew my family would be proud, especially my children and eventual grandchildren. I’m truly humbled.
Mr Mackay has been a pioneer of rural radio, driving the broadcasting of rural content nationally in mainstream media through New Zealand’s leading rural network show The Country.
In 1994, Mr Mackay co-purchased the radio station now known as Hokonui Gold, in Gore, and began a daily five-minute rural segment broadcast, working towards a one-hour show format.
In 2007, he obtained a nationwide slot on Radio Sport through The Radio Network (TRN).
In 2016, he co-presented a business case to TRN to take The Country to more markets, on Newstalk ZB’s provincial network. In 2021, he fought to get his weekly show into the metro markets of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, to strengthen understanding of rural New Zealand in urban centres.
"I love the spontaneity of live radio, Mr Mackay said.
"It’s seat-of-the-pants stuff and you definitely have to think on your feet, which in itself sounds like quite a contradiction.
"I’m in the privileged position of getting to talk to leading New Zealanders. People who affect and can change our daily lives.
"I’ve never taken that for granted.
Technology had changed both farming and broadcasting in the past couple of decades, he said.
"Technology has made radio a hell of a lot easier but I’m not sure it’s totally done the same for farming.
"Working the land is no longer the domain of the archetypal, gumboot and singlet-wearing, Fred Dagg-type character.
"Brawn used to go a long way in farming. Nowadays it’s very much about the brain.
It had been a privilege to talk to the prime minister of the day since Helen Clark started a weekly slot on the show back in 2000, he said.
"John Key’s been the best of them but Clark had the mind of a steel trap.
"However, my favourite politician is the ever-evolving chameleon Winston Peters, even though I’ve never voted for him. He’s a great survivor and the biggest political character of our time, if you exclude David Lange’s fleeting shooting star.
Profitability, sustainability, environmental pressures and compliance costs were among the biggest issues for the rural sector, along with mental health.
"The latter is a real issue. The suicide stats for rural folk are sobering at best.
"Isolation is a killer.
Mr Mackay said his arrangement with Newstalk ZB meant he had "more urban listeners than rural.
"I’d like to think I’ve done my bit to paint the primary sector in a positive light.
"My best mates are still farmers. And farmers are still, absolutely, the backbone of our economy.
Deborah Ann Manning, Dunedin
For services to the community and the environment
Driven by a belief that every New Zealander should have access to nutritious food, and people should not throw away food good enough to eat, KiwiHarvest founder Deborah Manning started her food-sharing journey in Dunedin 12 years ago from the back of her green Honda hatchback.
"It just snowballed from there", Ms Manning said.
She left her job as a lawyer and decided to commit fully to the idea.
Now, Ms Manning’s charity has expanded with branches in Dunedin, Auckland, North Shore, Queenstown and Invercargill.
KiwiHarvest has collected and donated 12million kilograms of food to more than 220 charitable organisations.
It has distributed the equivalent of more than 27.5million meals, diverting food from landfills to people in need.
She has today received an ONZM for services to the community and the environment.
Ms Manning said she was "truly honoured and humbled to receive the recognition".
It reflected the collaboration and the commitment of many people and organisations who shared her vision of a sustainable and inclusive future for all, she said.
"I am deeply grateful to my family and my friends and colleagues and community members for their support and encouragement — and I share this award with them — because it recognises that all amazing food rescue organisations, volunteers and champions across the country work tirelessly to reduce food waste and hunger.
Diverting food from landfills has reduced greenhouse gases, taking about 33million kg of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Ms Manning founded the New Zealand Food Network, a sister charity to KiwiHarvest, to address the need for a national overarching food distribution company.
The network now distributes food to more than 65 food hubs nationally.
It has distributed more than 30millionkg of food, equivalent to more than 64million meals and prevented more than 40millionkg of carbon dioxide being produced and released into the environment.
Through the network, more than 655,000 people receive assistance each month.
Ms Manning is a panel member of the New Zealand Food Waste Champions, providing actions and strategies on food waste towards a sustainable, resilient and beneficial food system.
Prof Emerita Nicola Sheila Peart, Dunedin
For services to the law
After a decades-long career in law education and reform, judgement has been passed on Nicola Sheila Peart.
The 71-year-old University of Otago law professor emerita has received an ONZM in the King’s Birthday Honours for services to the law — an award that has left her "stunned.
"I didn’t, at first, believe it. I’m still quite emotional about it.
"I didn’t see it coming — not in a million years.
"I have always been doing what I love, but to get this kind of recognition is just a wonderful thing.
Prof Peart has taught at the university since 1987, where she is estimated to have taught property law to more than 6000 students, and been a superviser of master’s and PhD students.
Since 2000, she has presented at 70 conferences of lawyers on relationship property, trusts and disposition of property on death.
She has also presented to the New Zealand Law Society, the Law Association, Society of Estate and Trust Practitioners, the Senior Courts, Family Court and Māori Land Court.
Her work has been widely cited by the judiciary with more than 120 citations of her work by the courts, and her work and advice has contributed to form judgements.
She has also been a member of expert panels, including the Law Commission’s reviews of the law of trusts (2010-2013), relationship property (2016-2019), and succession law since 2020.
She was the New Zealand Law Society’s relationship property standing committee convener (2008-2014), and provided advice to the minister of justice on the establishment of the Trusts Act in 2015.
She had an active role with the Otago Women Lawyers’ Society, of which she is a life member, and gave the society’s annual Ethel Benjamin Lecture in 2017.
Prof Peart was an adviser and mentor to the University of Otago Student Debating Society and continues to contribute to leadership development programmes within the university.
Lisa Jadwiga Valentina Warrington, Dunedin
For services to theatre and education
It is all about supporting New Zealand theatre for Lisa Warrington.
She said it was an honour to be made an officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit as a member of the Otepoti Dunedin theatre and arts community.
"I think it’s an important thing to promote the theatre of Aotearoa, so that’s what I do."
Most of the 130 plays she directed were New Zealand works.
Ms Warrington had worked in Dunedin’s theatre scene since moving to the city in 1981.
She directed 37 plays for what was Dunedin’s only professional theatre company — the Fortune — between 1981 and 2016, and taught theatre at the University of Otago.
Theatre came naturally to her and she had been involved in it since she was a child, including
making plays with her siblings.
Ms Warrington said just as naturally she fell into teaching.
When she began teaching at the University of Otago, she was the only lecturer in the theatre department.
She taught there for more than 37 years.
She helped foster a successful theatre programme that was well regarded for its acknowledgement and support of New Zealand theatre including Maori and Pacific theatre.
As an academic, she published three books and also helped in the revival of Allen Hall as a working theatre space.
She also continued directing plays while teaching.
"I see them both as being totally intertwined.
"If I’m going to teach theatre, I need to practise theatre, otherwise how can I teach other people stuff if I don’t do myself?"
Ms Warrington was still an active member of Dunedin’s theatre scene with a company she co-founded, Wow! Productions.
She also set up the Theatre Aotearoa Database in 2004 to serve as a permanent record of theatre activity nationally.
She had entered and maintained more than 20,000 records of productions in the country since 1840 herself.
MNZM
Brian George Foley, Dunedin
For services to the plumbing industry and the community
To Brian Foley, being a good plumber is about being good with people.
The career of the former second-generation owner of Foleys — a plumbing business started in Dunedin in 1934 — spans 67 years.
Mr Foley said he was taken by surprise to be recognised as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
"It just came right out of the blue", he said.
"It’s very nice to be able to say yes to it."
Mr Foley has brought on more than 150 apprentices over his career.
He served 20 years on the national executive of Master Plumbers, and as its president from 1996 to 1997, as well as on the executive of the Otago Master Plumbers Association, also as president from 1975 to 1977.
He was made a life member of Master Plumbers in 2020.
Mr Foley also worked with EnableNZ, a healthcare provider with Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora, to deliver housing alterations involving plumbing for clients with physical needs and disabilities at home — including haemodialysis installations, shower handrails and wet-floor showers.
Mr Foley said this work was worthwhile and his drive to make a difference in people’s lives had been with him since he was young.
"Once you start as a plumber you try and make every job you do worthwhile.
"Once you’ve done one job, they tell a neighbour or a friend, you get their work to do as well — it just keeps on developing."
It was very nice to have increased business through word of mouth and from being a people-person, he said.
"I am very lucky that I am like that. I make a lot of friends."
Mr Foley has also been a member of Dunedin Rotary for more than 45 years and was president in 1988 and 1989.
He arranged the club’s meals-on-wheels delivery service for seniors and disabled people in South Dunedin for 20 years, and even undertook deliveries himself.
Allan John (Allen) McCaw, Milburn
For services to the apiculture industry
- See separate story: 'Team effort changed busy-bee industry'
Allister Morrison Macgregor, Edendale
For services to pipe bands
More than a decade of devotion to pipe bands has led one King’s Birthday Honours recipient to receive an MNZM.
Allister Morrison Macgregor spent more than 10 years from 2012 to last year on the Royal New Zealand Pipe Bands Association (RNZBPA) board and was president from 2014-2018.
Mr Macgregor thought he was being "scammed" when he found out the news.
"I thought, ‘There’s one of my mates taking the mickey out of me’ — I didn’t think it was real."
Mr Macgregor helped to revive the pipe band scene in Southland by establishing the Southland Piping and Drumming Development Trust in 2007.
The trust went on to revive the City of Invercargill Caledonian Pipe Band, the oldest civilian pipe band in the southern hemisphere.
He used his own money and time to help the trust which continued to provide music tuition in Southland schools.
Mr Macgregor established the New Zealand Piping Centre in Otago in 2017 and became president of the centre last year.
"It’s not about music and pipe bands, it’s about communities and people.
"When you get involved, you think, ‘I could have done more’, then you go and do more."
His involvement in the education programme National Youth Band of New Zealand helped to drive the growth of youth participation in pipe bands.
By introducing livestreaming to the pipe band championships, Mr Macgregor garnered international attention for New Zealand’s pipe bands.
His latest contribution to pipe bands was organising an inaugural pipe band competition in Queenstown this year.
"I’m 72, but I’m going to last until I’m 132.
"I’ve got 60 years to do a whole lot more stuff, so I better get on with the job."
John Trevlyn McKenzie, Dunedin
For services to education
John McKenzie’s impact on education extends beyond school boundaries.
Mr McKenzie retired as the principal at North East Valley Normal School in 2022 but his work in the 15 years he spent in the role is still influencing the lives of the school’s pupils.
He helped establish the North East Valley Community Project which addresses issues of neighbourliness and healthy living in the community.
"Most principals work hard within the school to make positive change for their students but it is possible for them to also influence change outside the school gates.
"It is difficult to address issues such as poverty or disenfranchisement within a school environment so sometimes the principal must step out of that environment and support those in the community who struggle or who help those who struggle.
"I think we, the principals around North East Valley, did that back 15 years ago."
Mr McKenzie said the project resulted in a vibrant community and he was very proud of that.
He also worked with the school’s staff and community to reverse a declining roll while also opening the school to the community by helping to establish on the school site an award-winning community garden, a community centre and a bilingual unit.
His other roles included sitting on the executive for several committees including the NZEI principals’ council, the Otago Primary Principals’ Association and chairing the New Zealand Normal Schools’ Association for eight years.
He helped form He Ao Hou, a trust aiming to address problems facing children and youth in North Dunedin.
He said he was surprised and deeply humbled by the honour.
He believed it was working with a strong team that helped him achieve his goals.
"I have not achieved anything substantial, I have been a part of groups of people who have, as a collective, made a difference in others’ lives."
Frances Mary Latu Oakes, Oamaru
For services to mental health and the Pacific community
Frances Oakes has been contributing to mental health in the Waitaki District for more than 30 years.
She has played a critical role in providing critical crisis intervention, grief support, triage and case management services in the region.
Mrs Oakes established the Counselling Centre, now Waitaki Community Mental Health Service, which provides essential mental health support to the region.
She founded the Oamaru Pacific Island Community Group in 1998, a Pacific provider which has since become a cornerstone for fostering unity and support for Pacific communities.
She has led the Friday cultural programme for the Oamaru Pacific Island Community group, which advocates for the preservation of Pacific languages and cultures.
She co-founded the suicide prevention group within the Waitaki Mental Health Service which provides families with support.
As chairwoman of the Oamaru Pacific Island Network, she supported the delivery of the Talanoa Ako programme in 2018, a community engagement model which highlights the effectiveness of culturally responsive initiatives.
Minister of Pacific Peoples Shane Reti said in a statement that Mrs Oakes had played a critical role in providing mental health services in the Waitaki District for more than 30 years, as well as supporting Pacific language and culture programmes for the Oamaru community.
"For her services to mental health and the Pacific community, I say malō ‘aupito", Dr Reti said.
Mrs Oakes has led the Le Va mental health training in the community, which provided training to professionals and the community.
She received a Waitaki Citizens’ Award for services to the Pasifika community last year.
Julie Leslie Paterson, Auckland
For services to women and sport
Julie Paterson has done more for women in sport than many will ever know.
But that work has finally been recognised with a MNZM.
The former Netball South chief executive co-founded Women in Sport Aotearoa (Wispa) in 2016 — which advocates for women and girls to gain equity opportunities to be involved in sport in all capacities — when she was determined to create a better pathway for women in sport.
She stepped down as co-chair last year and at the time told the Otago Daily Times she was not moving on because the job was done, but because it was time for fresh voices to lead Wispa.
"There’s still definitely work to be done and I will continue to be involved, but in a slightly different capacity."
Ms Paterson co-chaired the successful bid to deliver the 8th International Working Group World Conference on Women and Sport, which had 1850 participants, in 2022.
From 2005 to 2012, she was the chief executive of Netball South, where she led the Southern Sting and later the Southern Steel.
She later moved to Netball Northern where she was chief executive, which included the Northern Mystics until 2017.
Ms Paterson has been chief executive of Tennis New Zealand since 2017, where she had helped foster significant growth in women in the sport, particularly in coaching and management roles. The wahine coaching scholarship programme won an international award as a result.
She has also been a member of the International Tennis Federation’s gender quality committee.
She was chairwoman of Auckland Badminton from 2014 to 2017, during which time facilities were upgraded for the World Masters Games.
Adine Rachel Wilson, Auckland
For services to netball
Adine Wilson has done it all in netball — both on and off the court.
The former University of Otago student played and captained her country, winning both the World Cup and Commonwealth Games gold.
Originally from Taranaki, she played representative netball for her province while still at school.
Adine Harper, as she was known then, came to Dunedin for university study, and her netball career took off.
She made her debut with the Silver Ferns in 1999 after captaining the under-21 national side.
She was part of the national squad which won the World Cup in 2003 in Jamaica.
During her stint as captain of the year, her side won the Commonwealth Games gold medal in 2006 in Melbourne.
She retired from international play in 2007, following 79 test appearances.
She was a board member of the New Zealand Netball Players’ Association (NZNPA) from 2007-23, chairing the board from 2017-23, with time as interim executive manager in 2015 and 2021.
She was prominent in establishing the New Zealand Netball Players Association, eventuating in netballers having a collective voice as the sport headed into the semi-professional era.
She was a board member of Auckland Netball from 2012-22. Domestically, she played for Southern Sting from 2001 to 2007 and captained the Southern Steel in 2009.
She has been an athlete mentor for the Tania Dalton Foundation since 2018, which supports young women in sport through a range of programmes and is a current trustee.
Ms Wilson is a member of the Integrity in Sport and Recreation Establishment Board.
She is married to double international Jeff Wilson, who has a MNZM. The couple, who live in Auckland, have two children.
KSM
Marie Bennett, Dunedin
For services to seniors
A pioneer of elder abuse response social work has been recognised with a KSM for services to seniors.
Marie Bennett, of Dunedin, has worked in the role at Age Concern Otago for the past 30 years, and leads a multidisciplinary team providing the services.
The 66-year-old was humble about the honour.
"I’m absolutely blown away, but I don’t feel it belongs totally to me.
"I think it also belongs to those people who have worked alongside me for the last 30 years, helping to get the word out about elder abuse and supporting me."
Mrs Bennett is recognised as being the initiator of this area of social work, having developed her role prior to the formal establishment of support persons for elder abuse by local and national agencies.
Other elder abuse social workers look to her for advice and guidance, acknowledging her years of experience and expertise, and she continues to share her resources with others.
She has been committed to raising awareness of elder abuse, advocating for the rights of older people and educating communities on the detection of elder abuse.
She works hard to ensure clients’ safety and security is maintained, and often provides care on nights, weekends and holidays when her support is needed.
She has helped develop several practice guidelines for the sector and contributed to Age Concern New Zealand’s elder abuse service practice guidelines, which were published in 2011.
She helped establish the Otago Welfare Guardian Trust — the first in the country — which has been used as a model in other cities.
Mrs Bennett also developed the model for an advisory panel which brings together relevant professionals each month.
Patricia (Trish) Mackenzie Boyle, Invercargill
For services to the community
When Trish Boyle heard that she would be included on the King’s Birthday Honours list she became "overwhelmed for having been given the privilege".
Mrs Boyle credits her mother for raising her with a robust work ethos.
"My leadership philosophy is to teach capability in others.
"I’m fortunate I had a strong mother to look up to", she said.
Mrs Boyle served as the president of Invercargill North Rotary in 2007 and then became the Rotary district trainer between 2008 and 2012.
As chairwoman of the Australia New Zealand Rotary Conference in 2012, she initiated activities for Rotarians to network and exchange ideas.
She served as the Rotary International president representative to district conferences in New Zealand and Australia in 2013, 2014 and 2017.
"Rotary is about service and I’ve been supported by so many people", she said.
As district governor for South Island Rotary, in 2010 she helped train new members and championed the role of women in the Rotary space as the first female district governor.
She was the New Zealand trainer of Rotary leaders from 2013 to 2016, international trainer from 2015 to 2016 and chairwoman of Rotary International leadership and training from 2018 to 2020.
Mrs Boyle has been a trustee of Community Trust South, a member of the Southland Regional Strategy governance board and chaired the Southern District Rotary Foundation between 2016 and 2020.
She has been an Invercargill city councillor since last year.
Although there had been challenges, she was grateful to have "a supportive husband" who walked alongside her in "balancing her work".
Fay Taylor, Mosgiel
For services to the community
When she first got involved with the Henley branch of Federated Farmers’ women’s division, Fay Taylor was nervous about public speaking.
"I was a quiet sort of person when I started", she said.
"I was not a person to get up and speak."
This was about 66 years ago and Mrs Taylor has since been president several times of the Henley branch of what is now Rural Women New Zealand.
Mrs Taylor, 89, remains president today and has been awarded a KSM for services to the community.
"I guess I’ve done a bit of work", she said, issuing a clear understatement as she reflected on the honour.
"I was taken aback, very humbled", she said.
"You don’t do it for the rewards. You do it for the love."
Mrs Taylor helped raise thousands of dollars for local, national and international women’s projects through Rural Women, her citation said.
She was the branch delegate at last year’s Rural Women conference in Christchurch.
This was 64 years after attending her first conference, when she was the youngest president there.
"I love the organisation.
"I’ve made so many friends over the years and gained knowledge and experience", she said.
Her long service has also been evident at the Momona Hall, picking up the committee presidency there in 1992 and helping to keep the hall open.
Mrs Taylor joined the Otago Pioneer Women’s Memorial Association about 2008.
She acted as hall caretaker for years until its sale to a trust last year.
She continues to clean the hall, has helped to maintain the community garden at Lodge St John in Mosgiel and has also been involved with the indoor bowls association at Momona Hall.
