Waka Ora Health Shuttles supported with Sunrise Foundation endowment fund

Vencie Hartshorne, Tikitiki team leader, and Dawn Brooking, Matakaoa team leader, were delighted that an endowment fund has been established with Sunrise Foundation to help secure the future sustainability of the shuttle service on the East Coast. Photo / Sunrise Foundation

A new endowment fund has been established with Sunrise Foundation to help secure the long-term future of the Waka Ora Health Shuttles serving communities along the East Coast.

Seeded by a generous anonymous group of donors, the Waka Ora Health Shuttles East Coast Endowment Fund will provide sustainable, ongoing funding to support the operation of the much-needed health shuttle service, which helps people access essential medical and wellbeing appointments.

“For many East Coast residents, long distances, limited public transport and the cost of travel can make attending appointments extremely challenging,” the Sunrise Foundation said in a statement.

“The Waka Ora Health Shuttles remove these barriers by providing koha-based transport, operated by trained local volunteers who pick people up from home and return them safely after their appointments.”

A survey of seniors in the region last year found that those based in rural parts of the East Coast felt significantly disadvantaged by the lack of access to public transport and were mainly reliant upon private vehicles or whānau to support their travel needs.

The Gisborne district-based Sunrise Foundation raises funds from donations and legacies and invests them in perpetuity through endowment funds.

Income from investments is used to increase endowments in line with inflation, while the surplus investment income is granted to local charities, organisations and causes.

Sunrise Foundation chief executive Glenda Stokes said the establishment of the fund was a powerful example of donors responding to real community need in a thoughtful, future-focused way.

“This fund is about making sure a vital service for the coast is protected for the long term,” Stokes said.

“The donors behind this gift care deeply about people being able to access healthcare, regardless of where they live or their circumstances. By choosing an endowment model, they’ve ensured their generosity will continue to make a difference year after year.”

Stokes said endowment funds played an increasingly important role in helping community services plan ahead with confidence.

“We continue to receive inquiries from community groups and organisations who are thinking about how they can secure their long-term sustainability,

“Rising costs and ongoing funding pressures make it harder for services to rely solely on short-term grants or fundraising. An endowment fund provides a stable income stream into the future, allowing groups to focus on delivering their service, not just surviving year to year.”

Income generated from the Waka Ora Health Shuttles East Coast Endowment Fund will be distributed annually to support the shuttles, while the capital will be preserved and invested to ensure the fund continues in perpetuity.

“This is a gift not just for today, but for future generations of coast whānau,

“It ensures that access to care remains possible for people who need it most, well into the future.”

More information about the fund and how to contribute is available at sunrisefoundation.org.nz or by emailing glenda@sunrisefoundation.org.nz.

Funding applications are assessed by the Sunrise Grants Committee.

Sunrise Foundation, founded in 2014 by Sir Stephen Tindall, is one of 18 independent community foundations in New Zealand.

As a community foundation, it only retains 1% of the endowment value each year to cover operating costs.

Funding from Trust Tairāwhiti, Clark Charitable Trust, and corporate sponsorships support operational costs.