Our People

Previously chair of Community Trust South between 2016 – 2019, Margot has extensive governance experience and knowledge of the community the Trust serves. Based in Winton, Margot holds several governance roles across the central Southland community, including Central Southland Community Support Workers and Able Charitable Trust.

Stephen (MNZM, MIOD)  is a Business and Strategic Projects Group Manager. He has managed the successful completion of large projects such as Southland’s Regional Energy Strategy, Whole Community Broadband Network as well as major civil and mechanical engineering projects including satellite and space ground stations and terrestrial television.

Stephen has been Chairman of the National Broadband Forum, Chairman of Junior Worlds 2012 Limited and President of Cycling New Zealand Road and Track. He has presented at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) events and at numerous international conferences.

Sam Grant was appointed to the Community Trust South Board in December 2024. 

Tēna tatou e te whānau
Ko Bukit Timah te Maunga
Ko Sungai Kallang te Awa
Nō Singapura Ahau
Ko Bharat tōku Ingoa
No rēira, tēna koutou katou

Bharat Guha began his chartered accounting training at KPMG Ward Wilson Invercargill in 1987 after earning his degree from the University of Otago. As Deputy CE / CFO of SIT, he was the financial architect of the Zero Fees Scheme in 2001. He was also responsible for attracting domestic and international students to Invercargill, assisting in reversing the population decline. Now serving as CFO for the ILT, Bharat is honoured to hold this position to continue contributing towards the growth and well-being of the Invercargill and Southland communities.

Ko Maungawhau te māunga
Ko Liffey te awa      
No Dublin ahau
Ko Airihi, ōku iwi
Ko Waihopai toku kainga noho
Ko Leon Hartnett tōku ingoa

Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland. Leon has professional qualifications in accountancy and tax law and worked as an accountant for 20 years. Leon was the Charter President of the Rotary club of Invercargill NRG, founding director of Greenlight Innovations and director of Helping Hands Southland. He also works for IHC New Zealand.

Leon, his wife and three children have lived in Invercargill since 2011 and are heavily invested in the community. Leon is committed to the wellbeing of the community especially as regards those who are disadvantaged.                

Ko Takitimu te māunga
Ko Te Anau to awa
Nō Murihiku ahau
Ko Dickson toku whanau
Ko Montgomery toku whanau inaianei
Ko Mel Montgomery toku ingoa

Mel lives in Central Southland and is the financial controller at ILT Stadium Southland.  Mel is also the manager of the Southland Indoor Leisure Centre Charitable Trust, owns a rural contracting business alongside her husband, is the chair of a local rural primary school, and was a director of Invercargill City Forest for four years.  Mel has a strong connection to the rural community and has been involved in a number of community organisations in varying capacities over her career.

Maria was appointed as the Community Trust South mana whenua endorsed trustee in December 2024. 

Ko Maungatua toku maunga
Ko Taieri toku awa
Ko Pakeha, Kuki Airani toku iwi
Ko Murihiku tohu papa kainga
Ko Leanne Samuel toku ingoa

Leanne is the Southland area manager for IHC/IDEA services and has held executive clinical leadership/management roles in District Health boards and more recently in the intellectual disability sector. Qualifications include Nursing, Midwifery and a Masters degree in Health Service Management. Leanne is also qualified in Civil Defence Emergency management.  Born and raised in Otago and Southland, Leanne was as a previous member of the Trusts’ Murihiku health scholarship committee.  Leanne’s whanau is a mix of NZ European and Cook Island Maori descent and Leanne serves as a board member on a rural health services provider trust and with local Maori and Pacific organisation. 

Having previously served on the Board for three years, Warren has a proven track record of dedication to the Whakatipu/Murihiku community. Based in Queenstown, Warren brings significant financial planning and governance experience to the role of Trustee, including involvement in Whakatipu Wildlife Trust. Warren’s skillset in navigating complex financial landscapes, will be instrumental in supporting the Trust’s development. Warrens focus is to help strengthen the asset base of the Trust, so that future generations will continue to benefit, from the Trusts Philanthropic objectives.

Tēnā koutou katoa
Ko English/Chinese te whakapaparanga mai
engari Ko Southland te whenua tupu
Ko Waikaka te kāinga
Nō Waikaka au
Kei I Waikaka au e noho ana
Ko  Bridgette Smith ahau
Tēnā tātou katoa 

An experienced business owner, Bridgette simultaneously manages MGM Auto in Gore, and her family dairy farm in Waikaka. Born and raised in Gore, Bridgette is passionate about community engagement and believes in the transformative power of strategic investments and grant funding for community projects. Bridgette holds several positions on regional boards and has significant experience in developing business strategies and marketing initiatives.

Emma was appointed as an intern to the Community Trust South Board in December 2024.  An associate at McCulloch & Partners, Emma has many touchpoints to the wider Southland community, including rural and commercial sectors, and local sporting organisations. Emma will contribute to the development of the Community Trust South Board in the role of Board Intern for two years. 

Kathryn, a chartered accountant with more than 30 years’ experience in public practice, is currently a self-employed consultant, principally to McIntyre Dick.  Kathryn was a partner/principal in McIntyre Dick and Partners for many years, and prior to that a partner in PricewaterhouseCoopers and Coopers and Lybrand.

A director of SBS Bank since 2006, and deputy chair since 2016, Kathryn chairs the bank’s Audit & Risk Committee.  She is a director of Invercargill Central Ltd, and was previously a director of Stadium Southland Ltd and a councillor of Southern Institute of Technology (SIT), chairing the Audit & Finance Committee and serving a period as deputy chair.

Kathryn is the Chair of our Audit, Finance and Risk Committee, is a fellow of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, and a Chartered Fellow of the Institute of Directors.

Andrew is an investment professional currently focussing on governance roles. He has more than 25 years’ investment experience, including nearly 9 years as a consultant advising institutional clients.

Andrew is an investment committee member for two other organisations (including a Community Trust) and a board member of three restricted workplace savings schemes. He also provides ongoing advisory services to a retail managed fund provider, and undertakes ad hoc advisory projects from time to time.

Ko Tititea te māunga
Ko Wanaka te roto
Nō Otautahi ahau
Ko Liz rāua ko Ron Carson ōku mātua
No Wanaka rāua
Ko Ray Flutey toku hoa tane
Nō Akaroa ia
Ko Kai Tahu tana iwi
Ko Abby tāku tamahine
Ko Joseph tāku tama
Ko Waihopai toku kainga noho
Ko Jackie Flutey toku ingoa

Bringing a range of management experience in the grantmaking and tertiary education sectors, Jackie joined the Trust in early 2018. Jackie’s commitment to fostering relationships and partnerships with other funders and the community ensures the Trust is well positioned and continues to build on its solid foundations established over the past 30 years. Her pragmatic and level-headed approach enables her to empower staff and effectively support the trustees to carry out their mandate.

Email: jackie@communitytrustsouth.nz

Ko Takitimu toku māunga
Ko Aparima toku awa
Ko Nightcaps te whenua, e hono nei ki
taku whanau
Ko Kotirani, ko Airihi tōku iwi
Ko Waihopai toku kainga noho
Ko Dianne Williams tōku ingoa

With nearly 20 years working alongside the people of the South, Dianne brings an empathic and sound understanding of all things community. Her knowledge of working with your organisation is a vital link in sharing your passion and advocating for your services and projects with trustees. Dianne’s strength is getting to the heart of a project and working alongside groups to achieve their goals.

Email: dianne@communitytrustsouth.nz

Tēnā koutou katoa,
Ko Te Whara tōku maunga
Ko Mātāpouri tōku moana
I tipu ake ahau i Whangarei
Ēngari e noho ana ahau i Waihopai
Ko Bartley tōku whānau
Ko Jason tōku hoa tāne
Ko James rāua ko Harry āku tama
Ko Jess Domigan tōku ingoa
Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

Jess has a wealth of experience across the Health, Education and Sport sectors.  Her expertise is in bringing strategic priorities to action, policy development and relationship building which lends itself well to her role as Strategy, Insights and Policy Manager.  Jess is committed to fostering collaboration for collective impact to ensure Murihiku whānau reach their aspirations.

Ko Takitimu te māunga
Ko Waimatuku te awa
Ko Napaeleon Toru te waka
Ko Drummond te whenua, e hono nei, ki
taku whanau
Ko Kotirani toku iwi
Nō Otatara ahau
Ko Ngaire Hamilton toku ingoa

Ngaire’s down-to-earth approach, combined with a diverse range of skills and responsibilities, ensures she's the glue that holds our office together. With over ten years’ experience at the Trust, Ngaire knows the organisation inside and out and is your first point of contact.

Email: ngaire@communitytrustsouth.nz

Ko Takitimu te māunga
Ko Waiau te awa
Ko Wakatipu te roto
Ko Kotirani, Ko Airihi, Ko Werehi oku iwi
Ko Jennifer Hay toku ingoa

With over 20 years’ experience as a chartered accountant in the private and community sectors, Jen brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her role. When it comes to numbers, Jen thrives on detail and can bring numbers to life, ensuring our investments and operations are managed based on best practice.

Email: jennifer@communitytrustsouth.nz

Ko Motupohue te māuka
Ko Te Ara a Kiwa te moana
Ko Takitimu te waka
Nō Te Moutere a Ruapuke ahau
Ko Te Rau Aroha tōku marae
Ko Tuhawaiki Te Rangitira
Ko Kai Tahu, ko Katirani oku iwi
Ko Kati Mamoe, ko Waitaha ōku hapu
Ko Waihopai toku kainga noho
Ko Michelle Baron toku ingoa

With a wealth of experience in financial services, administrative systems and support, Michelle brings a positive and friendly approach to supporting community groups and individuals ensuring your grant or scholarship application is in very safe hands. Her part-time role supports our Grants Manager in the day-to-day administration of funding activities.

Email: michelle.baron@communitytrustsouth.nz

Te taha o tōku matua  
Nō te uri o Ngāti Porou  
Hikurangi te maunga  
Waiapu te awa  
Horouta te waka  
Tuwhakairiora te tīpuna  
Wharekahika te turangawaewae  
I te taha o tōku whaea  
Nō Ingarangi me Aerana ia  
Ko Debbie tōku wahine  
Ko Reihana te mātāmua, ko Nikora, ko Nathan te pōtiki  
Ko Jack tōku tama whakaangi  
I tipu ake ahau i Waihopai, e noho ana ahau kei reira  
Ko te Pouārahi Māori kei Te Pou Arataki Pounamu o Murihiku e mahi ana me te Taiohi Poumahi kei Te Takaro ora o Murihiku  
Ko Greg Houkamau tōku ingoa 

Tēnā koutou katoa
Ko ingarangi, ko Kōtirana te whakapaparanga mai
Engari ko waihopai te whenua tupu
Ko waihopai te kāinga 
He tangata tiriti ahau
Ko Reginald Dalzell toku tupuna
Ko Napier toku whanau
Ko Nathan toku Tane
Ko rua tamahine – ko Addison, Ko Ella
Ko Bridget Napier toky ingoa
No reira
Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa

With an extensive marketing and communications skillset and significant experience in local communications roles, Bridget brings a friendly and enthusiastic approach to championing the Trust across Murihiku Southland. Whether it's overseeing Trust communications, or sharing successful grant recipient stories, Bridget is proud to support a thriving south.