I co-founded the Masterton Ratepayers and Residents Association (MRRA) in 2021, following the “Hands Around the Town Hall” protest. That moment was a turning point for me. People from all walks of life came together, joining hands to protect a place that represents our history and identity, as the Council at the time was considering plans to shift north of the town square site on Chapel St, at a staggering cost of $70 million. It was clear to me then that the voices of ordinary ratepayers and residents were not being properly heard. Decisions of such scale were being made without genuine community buy-in, and with little regard for affordability or heritage. I wanted to ensure our community had a platform to unite, to question, and to advocate for transparency, accountability, and common-sense governance. That is why the Association was born — to make sure residents’ voices could no longer be side-lined. We became an incorporated society on 16 August 2021.  Our Vision Statement became One Voice, Collective Vision. 

As a young family we made the conscious decision to move from Sydney, NSW, Australia to Masterton in 2017 to live closer to family, have our own space we call home with a backyard and live a simpler life close to the natural environment for our young family to experience and grow. 

Once we arrived, I immersed myself into the school community and joined the local ‘friends of the school’ becoming involved with fundraising initiatives. I am now a member of the School Board.

I bring with me a varied skill set from Hospitality, Vocational Education and Training Management, and am currently in the fire protection industry where I work remotely.  I approach life with a continuous improvement mindset and always assess where I can do better and initiate changes to ensure this happens.

Given the political landscape of the recent months I have become disillusioned, disenfranchised, and began to feel that the majority of our community were being delivered products and services that are not necessarily needed, were subpar, an additional financial burden, not aligned to the community or simply not a priority. 

Like many in the community, I have expressed myself through submissions and forums, which seemed to have played no role in future planning. Rather it seemed more like Council was undergoing the motions, undertaking tick the box exercises to demonstrate they had sought community input. The purpose of a Ratepayers and Residents Association is to provide a robust conduit between local government and community members to facilitate the power of influence and steer the future.

I acknowledge that my opinions are mine and may not necessarily be shared by all. However, there are threads of commonality that we as a community need to weave together, to stand tall, speak up and drive change that results in purposeful progress. What is needed is One Voice – A Collaborative Vision.

I paraphrase Simon Mainwaring by replacing ‘industry-wide’ with ‘community-wide’ – "Effectively, change is almost impossible without community-wide collaboration, cooperation, and consensus." – to reinforce my views.