Aaron and his family decided they wanted to live in a family friendly community and moved to Leeston from Christchurch 14 years ago. Aaron has played Team Sports all of his life and can still be found on the Rugby Paddock as an active member of the Southbridge Eels Golden Oldies Team. Aaron also enjoyed his time in Coaching and Club Administration with Ellesmere Football Club & Selwyn Football and has recently become a Committee Member for Ellesmere A&P Association as he enjoys giving back to the community that has supported his family.
e. aaron@selwynsportstrust.org.nz
Emma comes from a medical background. She is the owner of Leeston Physiotherapy and co-founder of Ellesmere Road Runners. Southland born, Emma has been working in Selwyn since 2005. She has been involved in various sports as a player, coach and administrator and is currently a member of Ellesmere Netball and the Down River Kayak clubs. Emma is a co-founder of Ellesmere Road Runners, completed Coast to Coast 2013 as a kayaker in a team and Challenge Wanaka Half in 2015.
Cameron was born and bred in Selwyn, growing up on a mixed cropping farm near Dunsandel. After completing an Ag. Commerce degree at Lincoln University, he commenced his career as a Rural Manager for the Bank of New Zealand. Cameron has been involved in a range of team and individual sports all his life playing senior cricket and rugby in his earlier days and more latterly supporting his three young sons in their sporting endeavours whilst trying to sneak in the odd mountain biking or running event when he can.
Lou has always been an active sporting participant, enjoying the opportunity in her younger years to give a range of team and individual sports a go. It’s that experience, and having her own children, that has seen her become passionate about what the Selwyn Sports Trust does around ensuring children get access to sporting opportunities. A resident of Kirwee, Lou’s greatest sporting achievement is competing in three Half Ironman's to date.
Tammy grew up on a farm in Selwyn and has played, coached and administered Netball in the district over several decades, and also enjoys outdoor recreation activities such as hiking, skiing and water sports. Tammy’s career background is in the Sport sector, after completing a Bachelor of Sport and Rec Management and a Masters in Management. She is currently working as the National Training Manager at Netball New Zealand. Tammy has a passion for the incredible contribution sport and recreation can make to the wellbeing of individuals and communities, which is why she is excited to be a trustee of the Selwyn Sports Trust.
Michael has been a director of the Selwyn Sports Trust for four years and he brings a broad range of experience from his background in Athletics. Michael was a key driver behind the growth of athletics funding models at both a local and regional level, for both Canterbury Athletics and Athletics New Zealand. Michael has a real passion for the active recreation sector and is an advocate for programmes being delivered for young people (tamariki and rangatahi).
Get to know the people behind Selwyn Sports Trust
Mitch alongside partner Kate holding the Coleman Shield.
Mitch was born and raised in Dunsandel. He attended Ellesmere College and then went on to complete a Bachelor of Sport and Recreation Management at Lincoln University majoring in Event Planning. He is stoked to be able to stay in the District and make a positive impact to all areas of physical activity and active recreation.
Mitch has played rugby his whole life and currently plays for Southbridge RFC. While being short in stature, he thoroughly enjoys attempting to play social basketball. Whenever he can, he also loves to be out playing golf and connecting with his mates.
"I am incredibly excited to be leading this diverse team of awesome staff. With the Activator Programme, we have a fantastic opportunity enhance the school's in Selwyn's ability to embrace the holistic values of physical activity to improve their students wellbeing.
This is a real driver for me and the SST team, as sport and physical activity has given us all of the tool's necessary to lead an enjoyable life. To be able to pass these physical activity opportunities on to the next generation brings us immense pride".
Kate pictured representing the Mainland Tactix.
Kate grew up in Ashburton making the most of the outdoors and sporting activities the region has to offer. Being involved in netball led her to gaining a sports scholarship at Lincoln University where she completed a Bachelor of Sport & Recreation Management.
She has played in the ANZ Premiership netball comp since 2017 and is currently with the Mainland Tactix. Her greatest achievement was being part of the World Cup winning Under 21 NZ netball team.
Kate is excited to bring her passion for children’s growth in their physical development and looks forward to building positive relationships in the Selwyn region.
Sarah is at the front of the pack riding in a world championship qualifying race in Tasmania.
Sarah was raised in Leeston. She attended Ellesmere College and went on to study a Batchelor of Sport and Recreation Management at Lincoln University under an Elite Sports Scholarship for triathlon.
Sarah is a part of the NZ Triathlon Development Squad and loves to share her passion with young tamariki and make a positive difference. She is particularly excited about sharing, encouraging, supporting, and enabling cycle safety skills in the Selwyn community.
Jacob (right) with brother Dom (left) celebrating a win for the Canterbury Māori rugby team.
e. jacob@selwynsportstrust.org.nz
m. 0210490667
Kia ora
Ko Jacob Ahuriri-Budgen tōku ingoa, he uri ahau nō Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Heretaunga, Ngāti Raukawa. Ko au te kaimahi tāonga tākaro o Selwyn Sports Trust!
I'm Jacob and I have a huge passion for tāonga tākaro (Traditional Māori sports) specifically Kī-o-Rahi. I graduated from the University of Canterbury with a degree in Sports Coaching, majoring in Physical Education and minoring in Te Reo Māori. I've spent lots of my free time involved with Māori sports. You can find me playing module Kī-o-Rahi in Summer or running around with the Sumner & Canterbury Māori rugby crew!
I'm passionate about working with rangatahi and I believe sports is an awesome opportunity to connect and develop people beyond the sports field. I'm looking forward to creating a community that is engaged within Te Ao Māori (The Māori world) through a sporting lens that can hopefully bring some unique sporting opportunities to Selwyn that may not have been available before.
Sally grew up on a farm in Selwyn, attending both Dunsandel School and Ellesmere College before heading south to Otago University to complete a Bachelor of Physical Education and a Commerce Degree majoring in Management.
Since completing her studies, Sally has been involved in the events industry for over 15 years which has seen her work on some of New Zealand’s iconic sporting events including the Tour of Southland, Challenge Wanaka, The Pioneer, Queenstown Marathon and Hawke’s Bay Marathon.
Growing up, Sally played a range of competitive sports and more recently has competed in events such as Challenge Wanaka, Ironman NZ and Godzone.
Now that Sally and her family have settled in Canterbury on a family farm, she is looking forward to working with the SST team to design, deliver, and evaluate a number of new and existing events which align with the strategic direction of the Selwyn Sports Trust.
The Selwyn Sports Trust delivers a leadership programme within the Selwyn community to support the learning of young leaders who have an interest in active recreation and sport. There are three levels delivered within the programme framework - primary, secondary and tertiary. 2023 Leadership Group:
The Selwyn Sports Trust rely on many amazing volunteers who support the delivery of our vision and priorities. Without the support of this group, we simply couldn't do what we do for the Selwyn Community. Alongside our Board and Staff we have an Expert Advisory Group who provide guidence and advice on the programmes and events we deliver.
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