TINA jones

Director/Counsellor/Co-Founder

Tina is a registered practitioner with many years of experience working with youth in crisis. She has spent eight years working with Victim Support and the New Zealand Police, as part of the suicide bereavement team. Tina dedicated her career to working with our young people after witnessing first-hand the tragic deaths of far too many young people to suicide and the devastating effects on their families and friends.

Having discovered there were far too many young people in our community who were suffering and in need of quality and timely support services, Tina, co-founded Youth in Transition Charitable Trust, in 2014 to improve the wellbeing and mental health of young people and to help them get back into a life worth living.

BRIGITTE WINDSOR

Trustee / Mentor

I lost my son George aged 19, to what was deemed to be an accidental suicide, and it is my wish through the Trust, we can provide the help and support for young people who are struggling, that our family found so hard to find.  I have two other children aged 20 and 22, and have witnessed far too many associated young friends struggling with depression, anxiety and suicide ideation, with nowhere to go and no-one to listen to them.  I have immense empathy and passion for young people trying to navigate a world that is unlike anything my generation experienced. 

I have been training people in the community to become successful Youth Mentors, together with mentoring many young people over the last six years; which is incredibly rewarding.  I am a facilitator of our Peer Support Group, which we have been running with great success for the past four years.  I also meet with parents and caregivers to support them in supporting their children.  I am an active member of Hibiscus Coast Blue Light with the local Police and a Trustee of the Youth in Transition Charitable Trust.  I co-facilitate (and a member) of the Empathy Group in Orewa, a support group for people who have lost loved ones to suicide.

There is no shame in having a mental illness; it can happen to anyone. Those who suffer with depression often try to hide the symptoms from family and friends, and it is vital that we learn to recognise the early warning signs.

NIGEL RIGG

Chair person (2014-2018)

Sadly, on the 25th September 2018, we lost our Chairman Nigel Rigg after a long battle against cancer.

Nigel was so much more than our Chair – he was our beloved friend, tireless champion and humble benefactor. We are deeply honoured that Nigel was such a big part of this project, very hands on, giving so much of his time in helping vulnerable young people to turn their life around.

He was a man of substance and his tremendous courage to face any challenge made him a formidable presence, which will be sorely missed. He lived and breathed his passions, and we at Youth in Transition feel very privileged to have been one of them.

Our young people drew great strength from Nigel; here was a man fighting for his life whilst they wanted to give up theirs. It is through his dedication and commitment, that we have been able to help hundreds of local youth find a way back to a life worth living.

Nigel leaves an amazing legacy, we remember him with immense gratitude and are determined the incredible work he has started will live on.

MERV HUXFORD

Trustee/Accountant

Merv Huxford  ATAINZ, BSc, RFA, is an accountant and professional trustee who has practised in Orewa since 1979. He has five children and 13 grandchildren. A past president of both the Rotary Club of Orewa and the Rotary Club of Maungaturoto, Merv is also a past Rotary District Governor of Auckland Northland Pacific.

Merv was the founding chair of the Life Education Trust Rodney, the MetroPark Development Working Group and the Hockey Hibiscus Trust, developing the complex at Millwater.

Merv is a trustee of several charitable trusts and many family trusts and a life member of North Harbour Hockey Association and the Hibiscus Dairy Flat Hockey Club

He is also a recipient of the Hockey New Zealand Gold Service Award and holds a Certificate of Meritorious Service from the from the global Rotary Foundation.

ANDREW HOGGARD

Acting Chairperson

Andrew has over 34 years’ experience in the dental industry. Andrew’s career includes general management of Shalfoon Dental in New Zealand. He emigrated to Australia to take up the Operations Manager role with Halas Dental and then later became the General Manager of that company. Since the merger of Henry Schein and Halas in 2006, Andrew was responsible for leading the national sales activities of Henry Schein Halas. He continued for 2 years as Training and Business Development Director effective January 2013 where the opportunity to speak to over 2000 people took flight. For the last three years.  Andrew managed Sirona Dental Systems in NZ as Country Manager following an opportunity to be closer to his family.

Andrew brings a wealth of experience to the Trust and now runs his own public speaking business “Business from the Heart”. He is passionate about breaking the stigma associated with mental health and encouraging organisations to put purpose and wellbeing at the center of everything they do.

MICHAEL LEATHART

Counsellor

Michael Leathart

I am proud to be part of the counselling team at Youth In Transition. Working to make a difference in the lives of young people has always been a passion and my previous experience of mentoring, coaching, building character and leadership skills have contributed to my chosen profession. My ancestry is a mixture of Māori (Ngāti Pāhauwera from Hawke’s Bay), Chinese and Pākehā. As a counsellor, it is a privilege to work alongside young people and their whānau on their journey towards wellness. I have a Bachelor of Health Science in Counselling and am a provisional member of the New Zealand Association of Counsellors.

JUDY LIEBENBERG

Counsellor

It is my privilege to be walking alongside young adults, guiding them on this journey back to awesomeness.  I am a counsellor, facilitator, teacher, coach, cheerleader, whatever is necessary to empower and equip them to find their voice, discover their identity and the power within them to overcome obstacles and challenges.

I started my counselling career in 2010 and received a Diploma of Professional Counselling, Bachelor of Counselling and a Certificate in Grief and Loss.  I am a registered member of the New Zealand Association of Counsellors (MNZAC).

I value the complexity and uniqueness of each individual and as an integrative practitioner; I use a variety of research and evidenced based therapeutic modalities to design a treatment plan for each person, within our suggested 12-week programme.

HANNAH LONGLEY

Youth Mentor/Therapist

Hannah has been working with Youth in Transition as a youth mentor since early 2017. She is currently studying Psychotherapy (child and adolescent) at AUT and has a bachelor’s Degree in health science (Psychology major) and a Certificate in Health Science.

To be able to help in this capacity is such a privilege and is so rewarding, says Hannah. I have really valued the time I have had with this wonderful charity. I knew I wanted to work in adolescent mental health after realising during my own adolescence the lack of support there is available at this time.

SANJAY KUMARASINGHAM

Planning Advisor

Sanjay is responsible for developing the strategic focus of the Trust along with promoting good business practice. He completed his schooling at Wellington College & qualified as an Environmental Engineer from Massey University. He works as a Technical Manager for Watercare Services Ltd. He is married with children & lives in Mairangi Bay, Auckland.

Sanjay is passionate about seeing our young people reach their full potential and in his other role donates hours of his time in teaching mindfulness and meditation skills to our young people, helping them to manage stress and overcome their anxiety.

SUSAN McHUGH

Clinical Advisor

Registered Clinical Psychologist

MA(Psych)DipAppPsych,DipClinPsych,MNZCCP

Susan McHugh provides a much valued clinical advisory role to the Trust.

Susan is a registered clinical psychologist and has worked in mental health services across a wide range of settings including adolescent mental health. Susan contributed to the field of suicide risk management for four years in her role as a Clinical Advisor with the National Towards Wellbeing Youth Suicide Consultation and Monitoring Programme. In this role, she provided training and consultation to social workers at CYFS in their management of youth at risk of suicide. Also as a Clinician with CASA ( Clinical Advisory Services Aotearoa) on their Suicide Postvention and Planning for Communities Service. More recently Susan has developed an interest and expertise in the area of specialist palliative care.

Susan has been a long term supporter and advocate for the Trust in their wrap around support of young people and their families.

Susan is a local and has lived in the Rodney area for many years. She now lives in Warkworth with her husband (who is a chef) and seventeen year old son. They are a multicultural family. Susan was born in the UK, her husband is Australian/Italian and their son was born in Samoa.

ESTELLE LLOYD

Counsellor and Mental Health Advisor

Estelle has over 20 years of experience as a psychotherapist and extensive experience of working in private practice and in agency settings. The agency work has consisted of work with Whaiora/clients in multi-disciplinary settings such as community residential NGO, and residential inpatient settings within the mental health services in positions as a clinician, clinical supervisor and Care-Co-ordinator. She has been employed for the last 10 years as a counsellor and Mental Health Advisor in a tertiary educational setting providing support to mainly young people. Her private practice work has included work for ACC in Sensitive Claims Recovery work. Her specialty areas include Anxiety, Depression, Trauma Recovery, Mental Health Support, cultural adjustment, interpersonal issues, identity issues and grief. She has trained in a number of modalities such as CBT, DBT, SFBT, Interpersonal Psychotherapy, TA and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy and has particular interest in the application of Mindfulness approaches and working with Immigrants, the Indian population and applying the principles of Bi-Cultural practice to her Mahi.

JULIA NEVILL

Bachelor of Social Services, Certified Power Coach, Educator/Presenter

Julia is a neuroscience-based coach and educator. She has experience working with youth (in schools and youth justice) and loves helping them learn how to make good choices using the latest brain science and easy to use tools. Understanding how our brains work (especially through adolescence) can be helpful in managing anxiety, seeing the world more clearly and feeling the confidence necessary to take responsibility and get what you want out of life. Our youth are our future and while they go through the amazing upgrade from child to adult they can struggle with the day to day pressures of school, relationships and body changes. Being heard, acknowledged and accepted can be the key to allowing them to work through their challenges and thrive.

GRAYSON NIPPER

Youth Mentor

Grayson has been a part of Youth In Transition for many years. Along with many other helpers he has done many hours of building and painting in the old offices and the new, to make them a fun place for young people to feel at home and at ease.

He is a youth mentor for Youth In transition and helps young people suffering from depression and anxiety, as well as doing his best not to swear too much.