Paynter created Ruapehu United Football Club (RUFC) in mid-March after discovering the level of talent and enthusiasm kids in the Ohakune area had for football.
As well as RUFC, the trust is working in collaboration with the Ruapehu Cricket Club and the Kāhui Maunga Basketball League to run programmes for young people in the area.
So far, it has held programmes such as Smash Cricket, a basketball league and a recreational fitness event, which over 200 young people attended.
“Once you have that need visually realised, in terms of the amount of kids that were showing up, it made us even more passionate to want to push ahead and see what else we could offer,” Paynter said.
“We are not big on one-off events, we definitely build around programmes because they allow you the opportunity to build relationships and journey alongside people, as opposed to putting on something for them to consume.”
Following the 2023 Census, the Ruapehu District was found to have 30% of its population classified as suffering the highest level of socio-economic deprivation, according to infometrics.
As of September 2025, the Ruapehu District ranked sixth in New Zealand for deprivation, according to Community Compass.
The trust has received funding through Sport Whanganui via the Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa fund and from Ngāti Rangi.
Paynter said he has had “positive conversations” with other funders.
“Because we are a new trust, there are some limits around [funding] initially, but we have been able to get enough for it to be the main thing that I’m putting my energy into,” he said.
Paynter said the first 12-18 months are crucial for new trusts to prove they can get results and make an impact.
Sport Whanganui chief executive Tania King said the organisation is proud to support the Ruapehu Hauora Trust.
“It is working hard to deliver sports programmes in the Ruapehu region that would otherwise not be available,” King said.
“This initiative creates a fantastic opportunity for more young people to get involved in active recreation and sport, which is something that benefits not only their physical health but also their confidence and sense of community.
“We believe that every young person deserves access to sport and recreation opportunities, regardless of where they live. Supporting the trust is one way we can help make that vision a reality in Ruapehu.”
The trust aims to run a touch rugby competition in 2026 to help players avoid having to travel to Taihape or Whanganui to compete.
Eventually, the trust wants to lease out a space where young people can hang out and programmes could be run.
“If you don’t have a space where young kids, and particularly teenagers, can meet, that is when they hang out in the streets,” Paynter said.
“It’s far easier to make decisions that might not work out the best for you if there is not a safe space for you to be able to hang out.”
Above all, Paynter hopes to grow and develop the trust at a manageable pace.
“The biggest gift is also the biggest challenge up here, there are so many possibilities, the different initiatives that you can get under way is exciting but you need to be wise, not wanting to do too much, too soon,” he said.
“We need to make sure that we build a strong foundation that we can launch out of, so that we are not here for a short time but something that we can build up that can be here for generations to come.”
To find out ways to support the Ruapehu Hauora Trust, contact luke@ruapehuhauora.org.nz.
Fin Ocheduszko Brown is a multimedia journalist based in Whanganui.
