Catholic connections in 2022 New Year Honours

Among those whose services were acknowledged in the 2022 New Year Honours were several Catholics and people with links to the Catholic Church.  

Jan Maree Rutledge of Auckland was awarded the Queen’s Service Medal for services to transitional housing. 

Mrs Rutledge has worked in the emergency housing and social services sector for 15 years. 

Mrs Rutledge has been general manager of De Paul House since 2014, providing essential housing and support services for vulnerable people on the North Shore, particularly families with dependent children. As general manager, she has overseen an expansion of De Paul House’s services from 11 apartments to more than 50 properties. She played a key role in De Paul House becoming registered as a Community Housing Provider. She is active with a number of networks, including the Housing External Focus Group for the Ministry of Social Development, the Auckland District Council of Social Services’ housing subcommittee, Auckland Catholic Housing network, Housing Connections network, and New Zealand Council of Christian Social Service Impacts of Policy and Exclusion Policy Group. Mrs Rutledge has been a board member of Auckland North Community and Development since 2016. 

 

Tuita’alili Vaitava’e Aloese-Moe of Auckland was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the Pacific community.  

She has been contributing to the health and education sector for the Pacific community for more than 40 years. 

Ms Aloese-Moe was a registered obstetric nurse with Middlemore Hospital between 1975 and 2000. She discovered a common concern for young Pacific mothers was the struggle of finding Pacific early learning services for their children. She helped her Samoan Catholic Community establish Sagato Iosefa Aoga Amata Early Childhood Education to meet this demand. She completed studies in early childhood education and, alongside her Pacific community leaders, established the Mangere Pacific Early Childhood Education Trust, and was appointed the inaugural chair between 1997 and 2011, with five centres established today. She founded the Tava’esina Trust Board and Fetu Ta’iala Aoga Amata and, with community encouragement, opened another Pacific early childhood education centre in Mangere, Fetu Aolele in 2015. She helped establish Malaeola Community Centre, which hosts more than 25 Catholic parishes in Auckland and has been a member of the parish pastoral council since 2011. She has been a Justice of the Peace since 2012, and a member of the fundraising committee for St Therese Catholic parish, Mangere East. Ms Aloese-Moe was recognised for her services to education and health by the Head of State of Samoa, who bestowed the honour of a matai for her contributions. 

 

Bronwyn Elizabeth Hayward of Wellington was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to people with disabilities and the arts 

Ms Hayward was born with the spinal condition diastemietiamyelia, and has been a life-long advocate for vulnerable persons, disability issues and mental health in both paid and voluntary capacities. 

Ms Hayward has furthered inclusivity for disabled people in the arts, as a dancer with national mixed ability dance troupe Touch Compass, and has advocated for many years for setting up an integrated mixed ability dance company in Wellington. She wrote, produced and starred in the short dance film “Beauty”, supported by New Zealand Ballet. She wrote Dance Aotearoa New Zealand’s Disability and Dance Strategy in 2010. She has volunteered with CCS – Disability Action, Disability Rights Promotion International, Disabled Persons Assembly (DPA), Youthline, and New Zealand Disabled Skiers. She drove the establishment of a network of disability advisors, Kaituitui, nationally with the DPA and led this team from 2012 to 2014. She has coordinated International Day of Disabled People events and organised a New Zealand Disability Pride Week red carpet function in 2017. She co-wrote and presented “Inside Out”, a TVNZ show raising awareness of disability issues running from 1996. She has designed and led disability youth leadership programmes, undertaken accessibility inspections and reports, worked with DHBs on disability strategies and facilitating disability community engagement and liaison. Ms Hayward was Disability Support Counsellor at Victoria University of Wellington, expanding the services offered. 

 

Christopher Patrick Thomas Farrelly of Whangarei was made a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to health and the community 

Mr Farrelly, who was in ministry as a Columban priest in his younger life, was founding CEO of the Primary Health Organisation (PHO) Manaia Health in Whangarei from 2003 to 2016, and recently retired after five years as Auckland City Missioner. 

As Auckland City Missioner, Mr Farrelly led the development of the soon to be opened “Home Ground”, an innovative purpose-built healing facility to stand against homelessness, hunger, poor health and access to health care. Prior to his work at the Mission, he had long service in health in Te Tai Tokerau. Under his leadership, Manaia PHO achieved a significant Te Tiriti-based partnership between Māori Health providers, local hapu and general practitioners. Recognising the social determinants of poor health, and the role of social service agencies in health improvement, he was part of the formation of the Northland Intersectoral Forum, and was instrumental in initiating discussions with Fonterra that led to the establishment of the Milk in Schools programme. He was a founding member and chair of the Te Tai Tokerau Healthy Homes Project, which has now insulated more than 12,000 homes, and helped establish two “one stop shop” youth initiatives. Mr Farrelly was an Executive Leadership Team member of the Northland DHB, serving in a range of health leadership roles between 1991 and 2003, including HIV-AIDS support and actively campaigning against discrimination on the grounds of health status, leading up to the Human Rights Act of 1993. 

 

Venkat Raman of Auckland was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for service to the Indian community. 

Mr Raman, a founder of the Saint Mother Teresa Interfaith Committee, has dedicated more than 20 years as editor of Indian Newslink to disseminate current affairs and news to the Indian community and wider migrant communities.