Jodi Apiata
E te whanau a Te Ara Koropiko, Tēnā koutou katoa.
I te taha o toku Pāpā, he uri ahau no ngā hapū o Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Rahiri, Ngāti Kawa
Ko Pouerua tōku Maunga
Ko Waitangi tōku Awa
Ko Ngapuhi tōku Iwi
I te taha o tōku Mama, he uri ahau no Ingarangi, Aerana, Hamene
I whanau mai ia ki Ōtepoti. I tupu ake ahau ki Ōtepoti
ko Apiata tōku Ingoa whānau
ko Hera tāku hoa wahine
ko Matai tāku tama
ko Te Ao Marama tōku ingoa
I have lived in Ōtautahi for the past 25 years and have lived in Spreydon for the past 15 years and have really enjoyed the whānau nature of the community. To watch familiar faces walking around the neighborhood brings a sense of connection for me.
I am passionate about development and supporting people to find their own pathways to their wawata, aspirations. I currently tutor Te Reo Māori at Ara, I support tirohanga Māori to be embedded into best practice for the Sustainability programs and Allied Health Programs and I support whānau Māori with their hauora alongside the amazing team at Whanau Whanake. I also support Burwood Academy of Independent Living and the research that they do to influence the systems and supports which affect whānau Māori with newly acquired spinal injuries and neurological conditions. My wife Hera works locally at Kingdom Resources supporting wāhine to gain confidence so that they can re-enter the workforce. We have Matai who is our amazing (no bias at all) tama who will be going to Te Ara Koropiko next year.
Na reira e te whānau, he aha te mea nui o te ao? He Tamariki, He Wāhanu, He hapori katoa.
Abbey Parsons
Board Chairperson
My name is Abbey Parsons. I have lived in the Spreydon community for 11 years with my husband Chris and I have two sons at West Spreydon School, Max (year 4) and Charlie (year 1).
I originally trained as a Registered Nurse and have worked in public and private sectors both in New Zealand and Australia. The skills I learned as a nurse regarding relationships, empathy and culture are skills I bring to the Board table as well as time management, organisation and problem solving.