Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Charitable Trust Website

ph: (09)480-6530
9:00am - 3:00pm
fax: (09)480-6572
email: office@grg.org.nz
Trust Head Office:
PO Box 34-892
Birkenhead,
Auckland

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren ™ Charitable Trust 2005

Board of Trustees The Board is comprised of 7 voluntary members (with new appointments under way) who receive no money for their services. They meet once a month to discuss the issues that surround this sector of society. The objective of the board is to bring about change, security, raise awareness, assistance for all Kin Carers be they grandparents, great grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, extended family/whanau or in some cases not related at all. Love is what makes a family it does not necessarily mean blood related. This often happens where the grandparent may have taken on a Foster child and now raises those grandchildren from this child. The role of kinship has many layers and indeed many complexities. These people are selected through a process of appointment from the Trustee's. It is vital that we have representation of the many cultures and circumstances that have bought us to where we are today and indeed leading us into the future. Here is a brief outline of our trustees:
Diane Vivian: Diane Vivian is the founding member of grandparents Raising Grandchildren which she started in NZ in 1999. She found when been delivered 2 very traumatised grandchildren that there was no help available. So on a voluntary basis she founded the Organisation and is the National Convenor and Chairman of the Board. She married in 1967 and along with her husband raised 3 children and they took on 2 foster children. Today she has 8 grandchildren.	Diane Vivian
Debbie Gillies: Debbie and her husband were left to raise our grandson ten years ago. Some time later Debbie spied an article in the local paper about another family who was raising their grandchildren. And they had thought they were the only grandparents in Auckland raising their grandchild! They couldn't wait to go to the meeting which was organised after the huge response to the article. That was the beginning of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, and in Debbie's words, "I am proud to say I am a Trustee to such a worthy organisation".	Debbie Gillies
Jill Worrall: Jill Worrall is the mother of three sons and grandmother to six grandchildren. With her husband John, the family cared for several foster children over a period of twenty years. Jill was raised by extended family for the first half of her childhood. She has been a nurse, a social worker and a senior lecturer in social work at Massey University. She has had the privilege of writing the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Handbook and undertaking the GRG research on Grandparent and other kin caregivers.	Jill Worrall
Mere Tunks Ethnicity: Maori/French/Irish/ Scots. A Kiwi! affiliated to Whakatohea and Te Whanay-a-Apanui. Formerly a Black and Nanna was Matuakore Delamere Educated: Australia, England and New Zealand. M.Ed(Hons) H/Ec Cert. Dip Tchg. Dip.Ed Studies Dip.151.City and Guilds London. Present Work: Director, Waipareira Trust Alternative Education Unit. Working with students predominantly, Maori and Pacific Island who are alienated and excluded from school. Associated with Justice, CYPFS, Strengthening Families Effective Practice, Secondary Schools and Community groups e.g. Truancy and Youth Aid Current Associations: Member of UNITEC Council: Member of National Health Research Ethics Committee UNITEC Runanga: Senior Management Waipareira Family: Husband Chris Tunks. Married: 44 years. Children: Boy and three girls. Mokopuna: Seven. Baby boy lived with her for 18months and another lives with her week about, aged 8 years old (girl).
Trevor Pugh Trevor Pugh has been married to Gwen for 47 years. He has been on the Council for 9 years and also on the Licensing Trust for 9 years. Trevor is a certified Budget advisor and is the District representative for NZ Federation Family Budget Services. Has had many years experience in local Community as Chairperson and is Director of Educational Standards NZ Charter Health Practitioners.
Kate Woodd Kate first became involved with Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in 2000 as a lawyer in private practice in West Auckland and has been a trustee since its establishment in 2001. As a specialist family lawyer she represented many grandparents in circumstances where the grandparents were required to assume the primary care-giving role for their grandchildren as a result of their parents drugs/alcohol abuse and domestic violence issues. This experience has given her an insight and understanding of the uniqueness of the plight of the grandparents embroiled in our family court system and the degree to which it is a growing problem that needs to be urgently addressed by our society and the Government.	Kate Woodd
Kate graduated from the University of Otago in 1989 with a degree in law and has over eight years experience in civil, criminal and family law litigation. Kate has also had experience in marketing and communications and risk management roles in the banking industry in London and since 2001 has worked for LexisNexis NZ Ltd in the legal conference and professional development and training sector. She is currently a Professional Development Project Manager and staff contributing writer to the fortnightly NZ Lawyer magazine. Kate is married with a four year old son.
Nicolette Bodewes Nicolette Bodewes is married with two adult children. She comes from a Dutch family that immigrated to New Zealand in the early 1950’s and made West Auckland their home. Nicolette has a BA majoring in Psychology and a Law degree with Honours from Auckland University. She was a “mature” student and specialises in the area of Family Law. Nicolette is an Associate with Schnauer and Co. She has extensive experience in all areas of family law, in particular resolving relationship property matters and parenting disputes. Nicolette has represented both grandparents and parents applying for Parenting Orders through the Family Court. This has provided her with an understanding of the issues facing grandparents caring for their grandchildren, both legally as well as emotionally and financially. Nicolette is also secretary of the North Shore Zonta club.	Nicolette Bodewes
Life Members: Jill Neherny, Miriama Paraone-Davies, Samina Corbett Auditors: Prince & Partners. Auckland Secretariat: Rosemarie Dawson. Business Professional Services Ltd www.bpsl.co.nz Ph 09 419 0042