Big-hearted Ryman residents fundraise bumper donation for St John

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The amazing fundraising initiatives of Ryman residents were recognised after a record donation of $520,517 was presented to charity partner Hato Hone St John on Wednesday.

The giant cheque was presented by Ryman Chief Executive Naomi James to Hato Hone St John Chief Executive Peter Bradley at a special afternoon event held at Bert Sutcliffe Village in Birkenhead.

Peter said the donation was ‘absolutely brilliant’.

Addressing the residents, he said: “You really do love us and we love what you do to support us, and we couldn’t do it without you.

“Thank you to Naomi and your team, thanks to all the village management and staff for making us feel so welcome across every village, and thanks to all of you who’ve done an amazing job to raise money in so many innovative ways. This has been a fantastic year.”

Peter said the money would go towards a number of programmes such as the St John in Schools programme as well as running the ambulance service for the country.

Emphasising the existing relationship between Ryman and St John, Peter said their ambulances had visited the villages 6,500 times in the last year across the country, with Bert Sutcliffe having 280 of those visits.

Aptly, an ambulance arrived at the village at that moment just to emphasise the point.

Peter said: “So we see you nearly every day, it really is special.”

Naomi said presenting the donation was the icing on the cake after a fantastic year of partnership with St John who really had made the most of the opportunity to interact with Ryman residents up and down the country.

“I’m incredibly proud of all of our residents, and the fantastic commitment and effort they have made to make this donation to Hato Hone St John so impactful,” she said.

“This past year has been remarkable in the level of engagement we’ve seen and we’d like to thank the wonderful team at Hato Hone St John for the energy they’ve put into that.”

These interactions included informative ‘What we do’ presentations, Save Your Teddy sessions for the grandkids, and 3 Steps for Life workshops, which offer lifesaving skills and confidence building for those faced with a person suffering a cardiac arrest.

One notable highlight was at Possum Bourne Village in Pukekohe, when a group of residents shared stories about what St John meant to them, with two residents currently volunteering for the organisations Caring Caller programme.

Ryman residents took on the fundraising challenge with relish too, with hundreds of initiatives ranging from bake sales, movie nights and raffles, to quizzes, market days and themed dress-up days, all going towards the donation.

A special shoutout was given to the resident gardening team at Bert Sutcliffe who raised over $800 from selling veges grown in the village planter boxes!

Then, as is tradition, Ryman added a contribution to the collective funds raised by all of the villages to produce the final amount.

Since the charity partner initiative was introduced in 1999, Ryman has raised almost $6million for different organisations across New Zealand.

“Our charity partnership programme is a proud tradition for us at Ryman,” said Naomi.

“It represents our commitment to making a difference, not only in the lives of our residents but also in the wider community.”

Naomi also used the occasion to announce Ryman’s next charity partner. She explained the process of choosing a new partner as ‘no easy feat’.

“With so many worthy causes, our panel has a tricky job narrowing down the options, then our board approves a shortlist. From there, it’s over to our residents and team members, who cast their votes for the cause they feel most passionate about.

“I’m thrilled to announce that our 2026 charity partner will be Bowel Cancer New Zealand!”

Representing the organisation was Whitney Gernhoefer, Head of Fundraising and Partnerships, who told residents how thrilled they were to be chosen.

“We are incredibly honoured to be chosen as the next charity partner for Ryman Healthcare,” Whitney said, adding that the partnership would make a ‘huge difference’ to their work, not just from the funds raised but through awareness and conversations that would start within the villages.

“Our mission is simple but very ambitious – to combat bowel cancer on every front.

“We do that by focusing on four key areas: through awareness and education, advocacy, research and our patient well-being programme.”

With nine Kiwis diagnosed with bowel cancer every day and three losing their lives to the disease each day, which added up to 3,300 diagnoses and 1,200 deaths each year, it was something that caused a huge impact on families around New Zealand.

Whitney said: “The good news is though, when caught early, bowel cancer is more than 90% curable, which is why awareness and early action is so critical.

“Every conversation that starts because of this partnership has the potential to save a life, and that’s why this work matters so deeply to us.”

by Maryvonne Gray | Oct 24, 2025