Four people from the Hauraki-Coromandel region have been recognised in this year’s King’s Birthday honours list.
This includes Waihī Beach rugby great Wayne Smith, Waitakaruru’s Peggy Barriball, and Whitianga’s Derek Collier and Dr Shirley Jűlich.
The King’s Birthday and Coronation Honours List for 2023 include 182 recipients from around New Zealand.
WAYNE SMITH
Wayne Smith has been appointed Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in this year’s King’s Birthday Honours for services to rugby.
Sir Wayne, of Waihī Beach, was made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2012 for his services to rugby and has led the men’s and women’s sides to Rugby World Cup victory in recent times.
Sir Wayne was Assistant Coach of the All Blacks at the 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cups and Head Coach of the Black Ferns at the 2022 Rugby World Cup. He took over coaching of the Black Ferns six months prior to the tournament kicking off, where he helped create a better environment for the players to focus on playing styles, which led the Black Ferns to their sixth World Cup title. Through the duration of the Women’s World Cup, he was an advocate for women’s rugby, providing exposure to the team. Mr Smith is a Life Member and was previously a long-term Patron of the New Zealand Foundation for Conductive Education, which helps children and adults with physical disabilities such as cerebral palsy.
PEGGY BARRIBALL
More than 30 years of service to the Waitakaruru and Thames community has been recognised for Peggy Barriball, who has been awarded the Queen’s Service Medal.
Mrs Barriball was appointed a Justice of the Peace in 2010 and has held several roles with the Hauraki Justices of the Peace Association, including president and vice president. She established a JP service desk in Ngatea to provide notary services to the rural community in Hauraki Plains, and has been a financial mentor and governance member of the Thames Budgetary Services for 16 years. She has also been involved with the New Zealand Plunket Society for 30 years and has held various roles including president, secretary and treasurer, along with being president of the Waitakaruru Playcentre Association. Mrs Barriball has held management/governance roles with the Western Firth Catchments Group Trust, Family Safety Services Trust, Seagull Centre Trust, Thames Valley Special Olympics and Waitakaruru Community Hall Committee. She has supported the regional farming community by managing events, including ensuring that the Waitakaruru School Calf Club and Hauraki Plains Agricultural Club Group Day went ahead in 2022, despite Covid-19 disruptions. Mrs Barriball was a Trustee and Treasurer of the Treasury Research Centre and Archive in Thames for three years and has been Treasurer of A Place at the Table Trust since 2018, which provides a community Christmas lunch for more than 100 people annually.
DR SHIRLEY JÜLICH
Whitianga’s Dr Shirley Jülich has been made an officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to restorative justice and survivors of sexual abuse.
Dr Jülich has been involved in the restorative justice community in New Zealand since the mid-1990s, focusing on facilitating survivors of sexual abuse to experience a sense of justice. She was an early member of Te Oritenga, New Zealand’s first community-based restorative justice provider group. In 2001 she completed her doctoral thesis on restorative justice and child sexual abuse at Massey University, where she has since held academic and teaching roles. Based on her doctoral research, she initiated Project Restore in 2005, which offers restorative processes specifically designed to address sexual violence. She has maintained a role as a Trust Board member and helped grow the group to the point where it now receives referrals for service from the community and the District Court system. She is globally recognised as a leader in the use of restorative practices addressing sexual violence, and sought after as a keynote speaker, author and educator. Since 2017 Dr Jülich has also been a member
of the Mercury Bay Cancer Support Trust, focusing on supporting its work to assist people experiencing the debilitating impacts of cancer.
DEREK COLLIER
Derek Collier has been awarded the Queen’s Service Medal for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the community.
Mr Collier 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. He 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.
Mr Collier 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. Mr Collier is regularly involved with the Hauraki Justice of the Peace Association, mentoring newly appointed JPs and regularly contributing to education sessions held in Whitianga.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has confirmed the Queen’s Service Order (QSO) and Queen’s Service Medal (QSM) will be renamed in honour of King Charles III.
However, transitional matters currently being worked through mean this weekend New Zealand will again recognise a number of thoroughly deserving recipients of QSOs and QSMs in its Honours List. Similar appointments are expected to be made in the New Year Honours List 2024, and the first honours using the KSO and KSM titles are likely to be announced as part of the King’s Birthday Honours 2024.
See the full list here: www.dpmc.govt.nz/publications/kings-birthday-and-coronation-honours-list-2023
