Waikato community stalwarts have gained royal attention: at least 20 people with links to the region have been named in the New Year 2026 Honours List.
Overall, 177 New Zealanders received accolades this year.
Coral Shaw, of Pirongia,
New Year 2026 Honours: Waikato leaders, farmers, volunteers recognised
Waikato Herald
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She chaired the commission with empathy, her citation reads, demonstrated by engaging with survivors, ensuring that thousands were able to be heard and that faith-based institutions and the State could be held to account.
Throughout her career, Shaw has led a range of significant public sector reviews, including reviews of the Human Rights Commission and Fire and Emergency New Zealand.
Earlier in her career, she was a District Court Judge in West Auckland, where she introduced a fast-track system for family violence cases and established the WAVES Trust, which coordinates services for both victims and offenders.
Shaw integrated a pioneering kaupapa Māori-based restorative justice programme into the court’s sentencing processes, informing a model for other courts nationally.
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She was the first woman appointed as a judge of the Employment Court in 1999 and was a judge of the United Nations Dispute Tribunal from 2009 to 2016.
Among the companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit are former Rural Support Trust chairman Neil Bateup, motorsport parks owner Tony Quinn and Hamilton professor Tom Roa.
Bateup, who was appointed an officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2018, has now been made a companion of the order for his services to the rural sector.
Bateup chairs the Waikato Hauraki/Coromandel Rural Support Trust and served as chairperson of the New Zealand Rural Support Charitable Trust from 2017 to 2024.
His work has helped ensure farmers and growers nationwide have a dedicated, confidential and effective support network.
Quinn, who owns three Motorsport Parks in New Zealand, received the honour for his services to motorsport and the community.
Quinn developed Highlands Motorsport Park in Cromwell, which opened in 2013, before buying and upgrading Hampton Downs Motorsport Park in 2015 and Taupō International Motorsport Park in 2021.
He was instrumental in bringing the Australian Supercars Championship back to New Zealand in 2024, securing a three-year deal at Taupō.
In 2021, he established the Tony Quinn Foundation and Hampton Downs New Zealand Racing Academy, nurturing young motorsport talent.
Quinn is also heavily involved in Cromwell community initiatives, including funding mental health workshops, a school social worker and reviving the Street Smart defensive driving programme.
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Roa (Ngāti Maniapoto, Waikato, Ngāti Apakura), who is a Professor in Te Pua Wānanga ki te Ao, The Faculty of Māori and Indigenous Studies at the University of Waikato, received the honour for his services to the Māori language and education.
He was a prominent leader in the 1972 Māori Language Petition, the subsequent recognition of te reo Māori as an official language of New Zealand and the launch of Te Wiki o te reo Māori.
There are at least four new officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit from Waikato.
Lloyd Downing, of Morrinsville, received the honour for his services to agriculture and governance.
His first leadership role was chair of the Young Farmers Kiwitahi branch, followed by chairing the Federated Farmers Morrinsville branch.
Downing has been a board member of the Waikato Federated Farmers Charitable Society since 2002 and became chairperson in 2014, leading the organisation through the transition to become the Waikato Farmers Trust.
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He modernised the organisation to become more focused on supporting rural charitable causes.
Downing was involved with Fieldays from 1985 to 2014 in several capacities, including as president of the New Zealand National Fieldays Society.
He helped create what is now the New Zealand Business Centre and increased international delegations’ visits to Fieldays.
Tony Egan, of Hamilton, received the honour for his services to the agricultural industry and the community.
While managing director of Greenlea Premier Meats, he championed sustainability initiatives.
He advocates for agribusiness education and has inspired numerous young New Zealanders to pursue careers in the primary industries through his leadership with the Agribusiness in Schools programme and Growing Future Farmers.
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He supported Hamilton’s St Vincent de Paul to build the largest food bank in the area and has volunteered with several primary sector organisations.
His financial contributions also helped advance research into Parkinson’s disease at the Centre for Brain Research.
Judith Hamilton, of Cambridge, received the honour for her services to rowing.
Hamilton is an award-winning rower, having scooped up accolades with Rowing New Zealand in the 1990s before becoming a coach, while working fulltime.
In 1995, she was appointed lead coach of the New Zealand Junior Rowing Team.
She was Rowing New Zealand’s first female coach at an elite level and received a Prime Minister’s High-Performance Scholarship to study the United States Collegiate rowing system.
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In 2018, she became the first female High-Performance Director at Rowing New Zealand.
She launched a three-year Career Coach development programme, ensuring it accommodates athletes who took time out to become parents.
Under Hamilton’s leadership, the Tokyo Olympic Games were Rowing New Zealand’s most successful Olympics ever, with New Zealand becoming the top-ranking rowing nation in the world.
Karen Ritchie (Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi), of Pōkeno, received the accolade for her services to people with HIV/Aids and Rainbow communities.
She has held long-standing roles with the New Zealand Aids Foundation, Body Positive Inc and Positive Women and founded the Cartier Bereavement Charitable Trust, which supported those dying of Aids, and their families, who could not afford a funeral.
The latter trust ran from 2002 until 2023 and closed due to reduced need for its services. The outstanding funds were shared between The Positive Women’s Institute and Body Positive Inc.
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Ritchie helped establish the K’Rd Community Safety Group to address rising violence against Rainbow communities and sex workers.
She has been a member of the Prostitutes Law Review Committee and advocated for decriminalising sex work.
Ritchie has also been a founding member of the Red Umbrella Fund, an international organisation raising and distributing funds for sex workers throughout the world.
There are at least five new members of the New Zealand Order of Merit from Waikato.
Kevin Burgess, of Karapiro, received the honour for his services to governance, the community and sport.
Burgess has been a leader and advocate for Cambridge and the Waipā district for more than 30 years.
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He has been heavily involved in numerous organisations, including the Adastra Foundation, the Perago Sports Trust, The Grassroots Trust and Cambridge Resthaven Trust.
He has been instrumental in establishing the Cambridge Information Centre, the Cambridge Retailers Association and the Cambridge Community Fund.
He facilitated a group of New Zealand pharmacists to fundraise for computers, books and air conditioning for Nawaka School in Fiji.
Dawn McMillan, of Thames, received the honour for her services to children’s literature.
After years as a primary school teacher, McMillan launched her career as a children’s writer in the late 1990s.
She released her first publication, Sea Secrets, in 1998 and has since authored more than 40 picture books for children and more than 200 educational texts.
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Her books had global success across the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and Canada.
She has mentored up-and-coming writers and illustrators and has written stories highlighting social issues, like the adoption of children from the United Kingdom by New Zealand families after World War II.
Gaye Poole, of Hamilton, received the honour for her services to the performing arts and education.
She was previously a member of the Queensland Theatre Company and lectured in theatre and film studies in Australia.
She became a lecturer in theatre studies at the University of Waikato in 2004, has taught internationally and was an assistant director at the Humana Festival of New American Plays in the US.
Alongside her university work, she founded Carving in Ice Theatre in 2007, a Hamilton-based company dedicated to contemporary theatre and has directed 70 productions and staged readings in Hamilton.
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Ravinder Singh Powar, of Hamilton, received the accolade for his services to ethnic communities.
Powar was a driving force behind the establishment of New Zealand’s first Sikh Temple in 1977 in Hamilton, and he was heavily involved with the New Zealand Sikh Society.
He has also been involved in other organisations, including the Waikato Multicultural Council, the Waikato Indian Cultural Society, the Hamilton Punjabi Sports and Cultural Club, the Country Section New Zealand Indian Association, and the Shaheed Bhagat Singh Memorial Trust.
He has also worked with Massey University’s religion department to compile information and holy scriptures on Sikhism.
Helena Tuteao, of Hamilton, received the honour for her services to people with disabilities and Māori.
She has held many roles within the disability sector, including at Ripple Trust, CCS Disability Action, Blind Low Vision New Zealand, My Life My Voice and the Disabled Persons Assembly.
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She joined Waikato’s Enabling Good Lives Leadership Group in 2013 and participated in a world-leading evaluation reference group.
In 2023, she became the Waikato-Hauraki area’s Pou Rangatira regional leader of Te Ao Marama Aotearoa, the national body for disabled Māori, and is guiding Kaupapa Māori solutions for those who are blind or vision impaired.
She provides regular strategic advice to Whaikaha, Manatū Hauora, Te Puni Kōkiri and the Ministry of Education.
In 2024, Tuteao co-authored the chapter “Decolonizing Disability: Indigenous Māori Perspectives of Disability Research in the Modern Era” in the Springer Handbook of Disability.
At least seven recipients of the King’s Service Medal are from Waikato.
Myra Caldwell, of Te Aroha, received the honour for her services to the community and music.
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Caldwell has volunteered for 81 years and continues to serve her community at the age of 97.
She started playing organ for church services in 1943 and continues to play for many events today.
Caldwell represented Thames Valley in badminton and was Te Aroha College’s badminton coach from 1975 to 1988.
She sang alto in several local choirs and was the piano accompanist for the David Qualtrough Singers group.
She still plays the piano for Te Aroha Women’s RSA meetings and the Manx Society meetings.
Marjorie Carr, of Ōtorohanga, received the medal for her services to netball and the community.
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Carr’s contributions to netball began as a player and coach for the Ōtorohanga Netball Association, now Ōtorohanga Netball Centre, before becoming a Games Organiser in 1966.
While teaching at Ōtorohanga College, she was instrumental in developing the school’s netball programme and initiating tours to the South Island, Rarotonga and Australia.
Anneke Dinnington, of Taupō, received the honour for her services to seniors and the community.
While manager at Age Concern Taupō from 1992 to 2004, she was the public face of the organisation, advocating for seniors locally and nationally.
She was crucial to the Taupō Citizens Advice Bureau, where she was involved for 18 years.
She has also been an active volunteer for many services, making her a conduit between the community and Taupō District Council.
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She was a member of the Daycare Centre for the Elderly and Disabled Trust, the Waiora Community Trust Funding Distribution Committee and the Community Organisations Grants Scheme Tongariro Distribution.
She also served on the board of Te Whare o Manaaki Trust, assisting newly released prisoners into employment and accommodation.
Barbara Knowles, of Tuakau, received the medal for her services to the community and to Members of Parliament.
Knowles was the electorate secretary from 1985 for Sir William Birch, Dr Paul Hutchison, and Andrew Bayly, making her one of the longest-serving electorate secretaries in New Zealand.
Until her retirement this year, Knowles assisted constituents with a range of issues from fundraising for community organisations to individual advocacy.
She has been a member of the South Auckland Orchid Society and involved with Scouting in Papakura and Onewhero.
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Peter and Sylvia Maunder, of Paeroa, received the accolade for their services to athletics.
Peter has officiated at athletics meets since the 1970s, after he joined the Scottish Harriers, with whom he held key roles.
He also served on the Karori Athletics Club Committee, the Wellington Junior Committee, the Track and Field and Centre Committees, and Newtown Park Commission committee.
Sylvia has officiated at athletics meets since the 1980s, starting at Wellington Centre interclub events.
She served as Centre Delegate to the Athletics New Zealand Council for 18 years and took an active role in the Colgate Games.
Together, they officiated at national and international championships, including the World Masters Championships and IPC World Para Championships.
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Paul Toms, of Te Aroha, received the honour for his services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and football.
He has volunteered with Te Aroha Volunteer Fire Brigade since 1981 and has been involved with Te Aroha Soccer Club since the late 1970s.
He served on numerous brigade committees for special projects and coached Te Aroha Soccer Club’s first women’s team in the 1980s.