King’s Birthday Honours recipients recognised
26 September 2023
Fire and Emergency New Zealand volunteers and staff from Ranfurly, Kaikohe, Foxton Beach, Cromwell and Rotorua were presented with their Royal Honours by Governor General Dame Cindy Kiro at Government House in Wellington today. This follows one of our Whitianga volunteers receiving his honour at Government House in Auckland on 8 September.
“These six worthy recipients have dedicated years to helping their communities become stronger, safer, and more resilient both through their roles as volunteer firefighters for Fire and Emergency, and through all their other community contributions. It is a pleasure to see their efforts recognised,” says Fire and Emergency Board Chair Rebecca Keoghan.
“On behalf of Fire and Emergency and the people of Aotearoa New Zealand, thank you for your outstanding service - your communities are richer for your work.”
The recipients are:
Mr James Hazlett
Queen’s Service Medal (QSM) for services to Fire and Emergency and the community
James joined Ranfurly Volunteer Fire Brigade in 1985 and has been Chief Fire Officer since 2005.
He led the integration of the Ranfurly Volunteer Fire Brigade and the Maniototo section of the Blackstone Rural Fire Force. He was Vice President then President of the Central Otago Fire Brigades Sub Association from 2007 to 2010 and a Technical Panel member for eight years. He held Executive roles with the Otago Southland Provincial Fire Brigades Association from 2012, including President in 2015.
Since 2018, he has been on the Otago Southland Challenge panel, the last two years as convenor. He has volunteered with the Road Crash Rescue Organisation and been involved with UFBA Challenges as a participant, coach and judge.
He has volunteered for St John Ambulance in Ranfurly since 2013. He was on the St John's School Ranfurly Board of Trustees from 2001 to 2011, with six years as Chair, and designed and established an off-road carpark and a garden area for the school. He was President of Ranfurly Curling Club from 1997 to 1999, having joined in 1987.
James has held leadership roles with the Naseby Curling Council, including President, helping build the Naseby Indoor Curling Rink in 2002/2003, and executive roles with the New Zealand Curling Association, including President from 2012 to 2014.
Mr Geoffrey (Geoff) Mayall
Queen’s Service Medal (QSM) for services to Fire and Emergency and the community
Geoff has been a volunteer with Kaikohe Volunteer Fire Brigade since 1972, holding multiple roles including Officer and is currently Operational Support and a Life Member.
He was Secretary and Treasurer for 45 years and mentors new brigade members in his current role. He has organised various brigade events and celebrations, including golf fundraising tournaments. He helped run the first fire camps in Kaikohe, with brigades from the Northland area, and helped run the Auckland Association Conference when it was hosted in Kaikohe.
Geoff has served on the Northland Fire Brigades Sub Association and was President for a term in the 1980s. He has been Kaikohe delegate for the Auckland Provincial Fire Brigades Association and the United Fire Brigades Association. He has organised inter-brigade bowls and pool competitions for the Northland Sub Association. He has competed with fire brigade competition teams for Bay, Northland and Auckland, and has represented at Nationals.
Within the wider community, he has been involved with various organisations including the Kaikohe Swimming Club, Kaikohe Police Blue Light discos for youth and coaching junior and senior hockey teams. Geoff was on the committee of Kaikohe Golf Club, helped run tournaments, and has encouraged youth into the sport.
AWARDS
Kiwibank Local Hero Award, 2017
Mr Neil Robbie
Queen’s Service Medal (QSM) for services to Fire and Emergency and the community
Neil has served with the Foxton Beach Volunteer Fire Brigade since 1975 and was Deputy Chief Fire Officer from 2000 to 2011, remaining active as a Senior Firefighter.
He has made himself available 24/7 to attend fires, car accidents and community emergencies, as well as regular attendance at brigade meetings and training. He has been instrumental in recruiting and training young adults into the brigade and most recently he has trained to drive the brigade’s new rescue/response vehicle.
Neil has also supported the wider community, creating and maintaining trails in Ferry Reserve in Foxton Beach for cyclists and walkers, and accessible trails for people with mobility issues or infants in strollers. The Manawatu Mountain Bike Club held their Winter Biking series on trails created by him in the pine forest in Cousins Avenue, with more than 100 riders of all ages.
He was an integral member of a small group who created a windmill sculpture in the Ferry Reserve, offering his building and engineering expertise to manufacture and erect the windmills as a tribute to Dutch New Zealand artist Leon Van Den Eijkel and connections to the Foxton Dutch community and museum.
Mr Stephen Shaw
Queen’s Service Medal (QSM) for services to Fire and Emergency and hockey
Stephen (Ngāi Tahu) has volunteered as an urban firefighter for more than 35 years.
His involvement with the Gore Volunteer Fire Brigade spanned 1987 to 1997, at which point he transferred to the Cromwell Volunteer Fire Brigade. He served as the Cromwell Brigade’s Chief Fire Officer between 2007 and 2021, when he stepped down to join its Operational Support Unit.
In his leadership roles in the Brigade, he influenced significant changes, transforming it by implementing a training and progression system and an operational skills maintenance scheme. He developed inclusive brigades and worked to ensure they trained diligently to respond as effective units. Since 2017 he has led the Fire and Emergency Central Otago-Lakes Peer Support Team, which conducts defusing sessions following traumatic events and provides one-on-one support to firefighters experiencing personal psychological issues and trauma.
He also held leadership roles in the Central Otago Hockey Association between 2006 and 2013, refreshing the organisation with a community focus, and was instrumental as Board Chairperson in the formation of Southern Region Hockey Inc. in 2010.
Stephen has been made a Life Honorary Member of the Cromwell Volunteer Fire Brigade, and a Life Member of the Central Otago Hockey Association.
Ms Gwendolyn (Alexis) LewGor
Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to ethnic communities
Alexis has made a significant contribution to multiculturalism in Rotorua, the Bay of Plenty District and nationally for more than 20 years.
In 1997, she was one of the founding members of the Rotorua Ethnic Council now Rotorua Multicultural Council and was President from 2007 to 2018. In 1998, Alexis was a founding member and Board Secretary of the Rotorua Pacific Islands Development Trust, the first Pacific Island social and health services provider in the Bay of Plenty District.
She has held several roles on the New Zealand Federation of Multicultural Councils (NZFMC), including National President from 2014 to 2017. She was National President and Chair of NZFMC’s Ethnic Women’s Council for three years and played a key role in assisting migrant women recently resettled in New Zealand.
For four years she was an event manager for GLOBALfest, a large-scale festival celebrating Rotorua’s cultural diversity through dance, music and performance and attracting 10,000 attendees annually. She was Chair of the Rotorua Community Organisation Grants Scheme for two years and Trustee of the Rotorua Christmas Parade Charitable Trust for several years.
Alexis is currently a Trustee of the Rotorua Civic Arts Trust, Chairperson of the Rotorua Pacific Islands Development Charitable Trust and a past President and member of the Rotorua Fijian Association. She currently works for Fire and Emergency as a Business Services Coordinator for the Bay of Plenty. She also volunteers as an Operational Support Officer for the Rotorua Composite Station.
Mr Derek Collier, JP
Queen’s Service Medal (QSM) for services to Fire and Emergency and the community
Derek has been involved with Whitianga Volunteer Fire Brigade since 1987 and has been Deputy Chief Fire Officer since 2018.
He is heavily involved with a range of brigade activities from training recruits to judging national and international competitions, fundraising and catering for functions. He was made a Life Member of the Brigade in 2010.
Derek was an original member of the Brigade’s Road Crash Rescue Team, competing in New Zealand and Australia, including winning the 2007 Auckland Provincial Challenge and title of Best Team Leader. He came second overall as Team Leader at the 2007 Australasian Challenge.
Prior to the establishment of a Rescue Helicopter service in the area, he flew for Mercury Airlines which operated an Emergency Air Ambulance.
He has been a Justice of the Peace in Whitianga since 2004. He offers his local business as a location for the public to engage his JP services. Derek is regularly involved with the Hauraki Justice of the Peace Association, mentoring newly appointed JPs and regularly contributing to education sessions held in Whitianga.