Our People
Our Trustees
Margaret Wilson
Chair
Margaret has had a career in law, university teaching and research and public service.
She was raised in Morrinsville before attending the University of Auckland, graduating with a LLB (Hons) and a MJur (1st), and has received an Honorary Doctorate from University of Waikato.
As a strong advocate for the Waikato and a specialist in public policy, Margaret has held a range of significant local roles, including being the first Dean of Te Piringa Faculty of Law at the University of Waikato, a Deputy Commissioner at the former DHB, and Chair of the former Waikato Plan Committee.
Margaret was a Member of Parliament between 1999 and 2008, during which time she held several Ministerial positions, including Attorney General, as well as the Speaker of Parliament. She also has been a Director of the Reserve Bank and a Law Commissioner.
Margaret was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (DCNZM) in 2009. She has an Honorary Doctorate from, and is an Emeritus Professor of the University of Waikato.
Margaret lives in Hamilton with her cat, Madam, and her sisters and is great aunt to eight nieces and nephews.
Margaret Wilson: Why I am a Momentum Waikato trustee - August 2024.
Dame Susan Hassall
Deputy Chair
Susan Hassall was Headmaster of Hamilton Boys’ High School from 2000 to 2024, following her earlier career as an English teacher there.
Susan has extensive experience in education, in the management of change in an organisation, and in the leadership of a successful school.
She has also been an Executive Member of the Association of Boys’ Schools since its inception in 2002, and has an abiding interest in, and involvement with, gifted education, having contributed to the Minister’s Advisory Group for many years.
In March 2016 Susan joined the University of Waikato Council, becoming Pro-Chancellor in 2017, and then Chancellor in July 2025. She is also a member of The University of Waikato Foundation.
Susan is also Chair of the Hospice Waikato Trust, returning to its Board after being its acting CEO for 10 months in 2024-2025.
In 2021 Susan became an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM), and then in 2026 she was made a Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for her services to education.
Susan contributes to the wider community as a Justice of the Peace and as a Funeral celebrant.
Dame Susan Hassall: A positive way to serve - November 2025.
Joan Forret
Joan is a proud Waikato resident – born in Huntly and growing up in Hamilton.
As a Momentum Waikato Trustee, she shares her knowledge to help build ‘A Better Waikato for Everyone, Forever’.
Joan was originally a secondary school teacher of science and chemistry, first at Hillcrest High School and then at Waikato Diocesan School for Girls.
When her children were young, she commenced her law studies, while also teaching school-aged patients at Waikato Hospital.
Following her graduation with a law degree from Te Piringa - Waikato School of Law, Joan was a lecturer there in Public Law and Resource Management Law. She is now a Ministerial Appointee to the University of Waikato Council.
Joan joined Harkness Henry in 2001 and became a partner there in 2009, between which she completed her PhD in 2006.
In August 2024 Joan began NZ Enviro Law, her own RMA-focused consultancy, and continues to advise clients on a range of resource management-related legal issues. She is a Past Vice-President of the Property Council’s Central Regional Committee.
Joan Forret: A beautiful corner of the world, full of opportunities - November 2024.
Mark Ingle
Meet Mark, a Hamilton native and University of Waikato graduate with a Business Management Degree, specialising in Accounting.
After a brief stint at Deloitte, he worked as an accountant in London for a global emerging-markets investment company. In his mid-20s, Mark transitioned to management, holding leadership roles until 2012, when he shifted his focus to governance and business investment.
Mark has founded or co-founded a number of organisations and involvement in numerous startups. He currently chairs six boards and serves as a director and/or trustee on three others, including Momentum Waikato.
Mark Ingle: Legacy in action, a dual perspective on community foundation impact - February 2025.
May Low
May’s drive and purpose centres on creating an enduring legacy that benefits all.
May holds a number of roles at the governance and executive level. Her main current role is the COO of Kiwi Innovation Network, an organisation accelerating publicly funded research into investor readiness.
She has a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in Accounting and Commercial Law and a Bachelor of Science majoring in Computer Science and Mathematics.
Originally born in Fiji, raised in Hamilton and studied in Wellington and Auckland, she now lives in Hamilton with her partner and three children and is surrounded by an amazing supportive village.
May Low: Translating financial wisdom into enduring community strength - June 2025.
Holly Snape
Holly Snape is a passionate leader in the not-for-profit sector. She has been involved at both a governance and management level in community and social service organisations for 15 years and has been the Chief Executive of Community Waikato since 2015.
Holly has a Master’s degree in Social Sciences from the University of Waikato and delivers guest lectures both there and at Wintec.
Holly is currently also on the boards of national peak body Community Networks Aotearoa and local access radio station FreeFM. She continues to be actively engaged in community development at a grassroots level.
Holly is an avid indoor social netballer and dog obedience instructor. She lives with two dogs and two cats.
Holly Snape: Building bridges between communities and philanthropy - April 2025.
Stephen Town
Stephen has held senior positions in education, transport and local government. He first took up a Chief Executive role at the Whanganui Regional Community Polytechnic at age 34.
Since then, he has held Chief Executive roles with Franklin District Council and Tauranga City Council, before a decade in Auckland where he was Regional Director for the NZ Transport Agency for three years, and then Chief Executive of the Auckland Council for six-and-a-half years.
Stephen left Auckland Council after completing the first post-COVID budget in mid-2020 and joined Te Pukenga, where he spent two years as Chief Executive. He was then the Cyclone Recovery Lead at Thames Coromandel District Council for two years.
Stephen has supported philanthropic efforts throughout his career and has worked with several foundations. He also has wide governance experience and awareness, having been involved in appointments to Council Controlled Organisation boards and Special Purpose Entities.
Stephen is now semi-retired and based in the Coromandel.
Stephen Town: Philanthropy, Building Better Communities - October 2025.
Our TEAM
Michelle Bond
Finance Manager
Growing up in Hamilton and now raising my own family here, I have seen our city grow and change over the years.
It is exciting to now experience first-hand how Momentum Waikato is playing a part in creating positive change for Hamilton and the wider Waikato region.
The impact the team makes by supporting and collaborating in community projects is inspiring.
David Christiansen
Executive Officer
As a proud third-generation resident of the Waikato, it’s a real privilege to be leading an amazing group of people dedicated to delivering real, impactful benefit for this region and its communities.
I was born and educated in Hamilton and have lived my whole life here or nearby – from Ngaaruawaahia to Tamahere to Cambridge and back to Hamilton. I have paddled the mighty awa, climbed most of the major maunga and holidayed at the beaches on both coasts – the Waikato really is my home.
After a long career in education at both The University of Waikato and Wintec-Te Pūkenga, I am delighted to now be part of ‘Team Momentum’, as we connect, enable and partner with generous and committed locals across the region.
Together, let’s make the Waikato an even better place to live, work and play, for generations to come.
Andrea Jones
Endowment Manager
What a privilege to work for an organisation that enables so much goodness and kindness, thanks to the generosity of donors from around the mighty Waikato.
I have lived in Hamilton since my early teens and watched the city grow and get better with age. The picturesque parks, lakes and river running through the city makes it a great place to live.
I enjoy connecting with people and have previously worked for philanthropic and community organisations, and I am very proud to be part of the Momentum team.
Janice Lapwood
General Manager: Endowments
As the lead for the endowment space of Momentum Waikato, it is an absolute privilege to be working with clients considering what their legacy could look like.
Community foundations play an important role in philanthropic giving right across our country, and helping unlock this generosity here in the Waikato and Coromandel is both exciting and humbling.
Although a Mainlander myself (my parents immigrating from Friesland to Southland before I was born), it wasn’t long before our family made the Waikato our home. And this is where my heart and energy lies.
Mark Servian
Communications and Marketing Manager
Hamilton is a great 'little big city' that is culturally defined by its creative tension between provincialism and cosmopolitanism, long may we not resolve it!
The Waikato keeps us honest, not being in Auckland makes us happy and the jealous hassling we get from the rest of New Zealand continues to be 'water off a duck's back'.
Momentum Waikato is here needed to move this town and region to the next level, a place that can take on the world, but you can still know everybody.
Pamela Storey
Manager: Professional Advisor Network
The Waikato has long been at the heart of my life and work, making it especially meaningful to now be part of an organisation dedicated to creating lasting good across our region.
I have always believed in the value of trusted relationships, community leadership, and giving back.
Working with Momentum’s professional advisors brings together my passion for the Waikato, my commitment to service, and my belief in the power of philanthropy to create positive outcomes for our communities for generations to come.
Fund Champions
April Chang
Thames Future Fund
In these days of so many challenges, the Thames Future Fund just makes good sense to me.
That’s why I’m pleased to help spread the word so people understand how it works, and that their contribution, no matter the size, can really make an impact.
Thames has been a great place to live and raise a family and continues to offer so much now that my husband and I are further along that journey.
Thames has a proud history and a strong community, but we all have to be thinking about the future.
Our own endowment fund that brings returns back into the community is such a seamless way to build a lasting legacy and support the causes we value.
Being under the Momentum Waikato umbrella gives the assurance of professionalism while ensuring the Thames Future Fund will always be exactly that – all about Thames.
David Cooney
Cambridge Community Fund
I am proud to champion the Cambridge Community Fund because it gives our town a practical, enduring way to look after its own.
Cambridge has always been a generous, capable community, but many needs are not immediately visible and they do not disappear over time.
This Fund creates a permanent source of support, where gifts and bequests are invested for the long term and the income is granted back into local charitable activities and projects, year after year.
For me, it is about building a legacy that belongs to Cambridge: by local people, for local people, and for future generations.
Through the partnership with Momentum Waikato, we can benefit from strong governance, investment expertise and scale, while keeping the purpose firmly focused on our town. I see this as a smarter, lasting way to turn generosity into meaningful community impact — for a better Cambridge, forever.
Peter Farmer
Mercury Bay Future Fund
I am proud to be a Fund Champion for the Mercury Bay Future Fund administered by Momentum Waikato Community Foundation.
About 20 years ago I was privileged to be part of the small group that formed the Acorn Foundation in Tauranga. This kickstarted the community foundation movement in New Zealand, and there are now 18 such foundations across the country, including Momentum Waikato, each of which hold an independent endowment fund for their communities.
Acorn now holds $130 million in General Funds from bequests, and 500 future endowment donor commitments. As a result, it is playing a very important role in supporting that community’s wellbeing into the future.
The success of Acorn is why I am pleased to be a proud Fund Champion for the Mercury Bay Future Fund.
It is just one of the community endowments we are developing with the team of Coromandel Fund Champions. Together these funds will underpin the health and resilience of the people of the Coromandel forever.
Mercury Bay in particular is leading the way. Our Fund enables residents and visitors to Whitianga to set aside a gift within their Will, which when realised will generate investment income that will support the local community causes of their choice in perpetuity.
Don Scarlet
Maungatautari Sanctuary Nest Egg Fund
I am a proud and active member of the mighty Waikato community.
My ‘why’ is to leave our people, communities, and environments in a better place, for everyone, forever.
As a Fund Champion for the Maungatautari Sanctuary Nest Egg Fund I love that I can amplify the amazing achievements of the visionary leaders who 25 years ago conceptualised and developed the mountain as the world’s largest fenced eco-sanctuary.
Over the course of my career, I have worked in business, environmental management, the visitor industry, wellbeing leadership and various governance roles.
One of my current roles is Co-chair of the Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust, the entity that manages Maungatautari Sanctuary with the resolute purpose to ‘help make the maunga sing’.
Anyone with a love of the natural world and our community is invited to join me in growing a sustainable financial future for Maungatautari and all the inspirational people who are working relentlessly as the kaitiaki of its rare and endangered species.
Board appointments panel
The purpose of the Board Appointments Panel is to establish the Trust Board’s composition by evaluating the competencies required of prospective trustees (both non-executive and executive), identifying those prospective trustees, establishing their degree of independence and developing succession plans for the Trust Board.
Membership of the Appointments Panel is made up of:
The Chairperson or nominee of the WEL Energy Trust
The Chairperson or nominee of the Board of Momentum Waikato
One representative appointed by the Appointments Panel in consultation with the mayors of Hamilton City, Waikato District and Waipa District Councils
One representative appointed by Waikato Tainui
The Chairperson or nominee of the Institute of Directors, Waikato Branch
Three independent members appointed by the Appointments Panel taking into account the skills, knowledge and experience required for the Appointments Panel to function in a balanced and effective manner.