In 2016, he joined Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology in a marketing role, where he spent almost three years before moving into hospice care as community relations and fundraising manager at Lake Taupō Hospice.
He later took on the role of chief executive of Anamata, a youth health organisation based in Taupō and Tūrangi, delivering integrated health, wellbeing and development services for rangatahi aged 12 to 25 through a youth one-stop-shop model.
Despite his move into youth health leadership, Mortimer said he had “always loved hospice” and had “never truly left” the sector.
Alongside his professional experience, he had also witnessed the impact of hospice care on a personal level – reinforcing his commitment to supporting patients and whānau at the most vulnerable times in their lives.
Mortimer said he was starting the role at a time when it was “obvious” hospices across the country were facing “very challenging” circumstances, with funding pressures remaining a key issue.
Rotorua Community Hospice supports about 420 patients and their whānau each year, providing compassionate end-of-life care across the district.
In August, hospice fundraising and marketing manager Nicola de Lautour told the Rotorua Daily Post it was “tricky for hospices at the moment” ahead of Harcourts Vegas Showtime – an event held to raise funds for the local hospice.
De Lautour said government funding covered only about half of the hospice’s operating costs.
Mortimer said hospices were “owned by the community”, with support – whether through donations, shopping at hospice stores or attending fundraising events – critical to delivering services.
“They make it possible”.
As he settled into the role, Mortimer said his early focus would be on listening, meeting with staff, volunteers, supporters and stakeholders to better understand the organisation’s strengths and the needs of the community it serves.
Mortimer said he was looking forward to reconnecting with Rotorua life and the community.
A keen runner, he was eager to spend time in the forest and around the lake, as well as reconnect with family now that he had returned home.
Annabel Reid is a multimedia journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, based in Rotorua. Originally from Hawke’s Bay, she has a Bachelor of Communications from the University of Canterbury.
