It's good to now be in the Orange setting, where ANZAC Day commemorations have again taken place in most areas of the country, after a two-year hiatus.
The Orange setting also brings changes at NZFFWS. Pillow cases, sheets and towels are again now provided at holiday homes. You can remind yourself of our COVID protocols here.
In this month's update, Bill Swan reflects on his first 12 months as Chair of NZFFWS, we welcome our new Region 4 Welfare Society Board Rep, Tim Price and we invite you to share your feedback on Healthcare 99. We also invite you to play a bigger role in supporting your fellow firefighters.
My First 12 Months as Chair of NZFFWS
- Bill Swan
In this address, Bill gives a personal recount of being at the helm of NZFFWS and provides a recap of changes which have occurred within the organisation over the last 12 months.
"It is hard to believe that 12 months have passed since I took on the role of Chair of your Welfare Society. I thought I would take this opportunity to update you on what has been happening in the past year.
A group of Firefighters 35 years ago realised there was a gap in support offered to Firefighters and their families – so the Society was born ..." Read more here.
Tim will be taking over from Alice Jonathan as Region 4 NZ Firefighters Welfare Society Board Rep from 1 June 2022.
Personal message from Tim": "I hope to continue with the great commitment that Alice has shown to the Welfare Society's members in the last 8 years and be a good representative for the region. I live in St Martins, Christchurch with my wife and my 3 lively daughters. We have a busy life with our work, school and pets but we try to make time to do the things that we enjoy. We love to get outside and we try to get as many trips away as we can. (The Hanmer holiday home is a favourite!)
I have been a Firefighter, then Station Officer, at City station Blue Watch since 2004. We are part of a great team down here, heaps of laughs and we get stuck in when we have to. I became involved with Firefighters welfare in 2014 after I noticed so many of my workmates still struggling with the after effects of the earthquakes. I joined the Critical Incident and Personal Stress Support group and began trying to help my colleagues and their families. This is a job I wish to continue and expand while carrying out my role within the Society. I am looking forward to getting out and about, meeting more of the members in the region. Please don’t hesitate to call."
Thank you for all your hard work Alice and welcome, Tim. We look forward to you joining us as our Region 4 Rep.
Healthcare 99 AGM Coming Up
We would like to invite our Healthcare 99 members to join our AGM – to be held on 22 June 2022 @1.00pm via Microsoft Teams.
Healthcare 99 relies on our members to take an interest in the fund. The AGM gives you the chance to see how your Mutual Fund is working and a chance to address the Board with any concerns.
We would love to see you – please email Amanda and advise that you wish to be included in the AGM meeting: amanda@firefighters.org.nz.
Last year's survey sent to our members highlighted that some members felt support was not offered when they have needed it.
As an organisation, we rely on being advised that members require assistance. We are independent to Fire and Emergency New Zealand so information on personnel/members is not shared. Privacy of our members is paramount. One way we can combat this issue is to have representation at all Brigades.
This is where we need your support. The NZFFWS has been working on a new structure that will enable a wider reach of support. We would like interested parties to apply to be Area Welfare Representatives for their Regions. This exciting new voluntary role will be the link between Station Representatives, Roving Representatives, and our members. You will be reporting directly to your Regional Welfare Managers (currently called Regional Welfare Representatives) and the Office. We envisage this role will be approx. a 5 hour per week commitment. As a goodwill gesture and acknowledgement of the importance of this new role, we will offer you free membership to the NZFFWS and cover your travelling expenses.
If you are interested, in the first instance please contact your Local Representative for more details and a job description. We can only build our organisation and support our wider family of members with your support.
Regional Representatives
Region One Te Hiku Darryl Johnston 021 321 507
Region Two Nga tai ki te Puku Mike Varga 021 721 992
Region Three Te Upoko Noel Brock 027 449 8180
Region Four Te Ihu Alice Jonathan* 021 025 685 05
Region Five Te Kei Kris Kennett 027 278 0895
*Until 31 May. Tim Price is Region Four Rep from 1 June.
