Founding Member of Te Rau Matatini Trust Board recognised in New Years Honour

Monica Stockdale (Ngāti Kahungunu) has been appointed as Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2022 New Year Honours List. Monica Stockdale has contributed to health outcomes by helping rehabilitate those suffering from addictions, particularly Māori, since 1983.

Monica’s quiet but dogged determination has led to significant kaupapa Māori AOD service development and a thriving movement of recovery whānau across Aotearoa. Her idea to develop kaupapa Māori addiction services at Queen Mary Hospital has inspired many of us over the years to develop services that would best meet the needs of whānau.

She later became a lead innovator in kaupapa Māori gambling services, which she started out of the back of her car when she moved home to Napier. She gathered whānau, hapū and iwi to support the kaupapa, training and inspiring rangatahi, pākeke and kuia kaumātua to become integral to service delivery – many of whom are still doing the mahi she started over 20 years ago.

She continues now as a supervisor and mentor for many in the helping professions, gifting her skills, humour, grace, and creativity. Her legacy, carefully crafted over several decades, is tightly woven into the korowai of kaupapa Māori service development in Aotearoa which will adorn the mahi of generations to come.

For more information on Monica Stockwell please visit our 100 Māori Leaders website https://100maorileaders.com/monica-stockdale