The Trustees of the Te Puke Community Charitable Trust and Angela Jackson of the Eastern Bay Community Foundation met on 17th December 2025 to sign the Memorandum of Understanding in Te Puke.
From Left: Nicola Cooke, Karen Summerhays, Angela Jackson, Dale Snell and Jenny Wotten. Absent Harpinder Kaur.
A new endowment fund has been established that supports the Te Puke community.
The Te Puke Community Charitable Trust is pleased to announce that it has re-settled its funds to establish the Te Puke Community Fund in partnership with the Eastern Bay Community Foundation. As a dedicated legacy fund this initiative ensures long-term support for the Te Puke community while protecting the capital gifted by donors.
The Trust has held $45,000 in residual funds from the Te Puke Centre project, which will now become the inaugural contribution to the new Fund. After extensive consideration and recognising the challenges Te Puke groups face in accessing funding, the Trustees determined that establishing this Fund was the most practical and impactful way to honour the original community investment.
Trust Chairperson Jenny Wotten says,
“We are closing one chapter and opening an exciting new opportunity. This Fund creates a pathway for people who love Te Puke to invest in its long-term prosperity.”
Under this new arrangement, the Trust and the Foundation will work collaboratively to promote the Fund to donors, community members, and local organisations. All donations to the Te Puke Community Fund will be invested for long-term community benefit, with income generated used to support local people, organisations, and projects. An annual public statement will report on donations received, income earned, and grants distributed.
To ensure that grant decisions reflect local priorities, the Foundation will establish and convene the Te Puke Community Fund Distributions Panel. The area of benefit will align with the Maketu–Te Puke Ward local government boundary. The Panel will have representation from the Foundation, two members of the Te Puke Eastern Community Board, and optional representation from the Maketu Community Board, Tapuika Iwi Authority, and Te Kapu o Waitaha.
Eastern Bay Community Foundation Manager Angela Jackson says,
“We are excited to welcome the Te Puke Community Fund into the Foundation’s family. This Fund will support the Te Puke area in 10 years, 20 years, 100 years and beyond. We are witnessing the generosity of the Te Puke community, with intergenerational impact in mind.”
The current Trustees will continue to support the promotion of the Fund over the coming years in partnership with the Foundation.
On 17 December 2025, Trustees of the Te Puke Community Charitable Trust: Nicola Cooke, Karen Summerhays, Dale Snell and Jenny Wotten, met with Angela Jackson to formally sign the Memorandum of Understanding establishing the Fund. (Trustee Harpinder Kaur was an apology.)
Karen Summerhays and Jenny Wotten signing the memorandum of understanding.
