About HMS Trust

Our Vision

A society that values and celebrates the diversity of all people

Our Mission

Paving the way for successful settlement

Our Goals

Relationship building

> To connect, support, and advocate for the refugee and migrant communities
> To maintain and establish stakeholder relationships
> To foster participation of newcomers in the community

Empowerment

To enable refugees and migrants to be engaged members of the community

Capacity building

To strengthen the organization, grow existing projects while developing new ones.

Our Values

Quality service

We go the extra mile to get excellent results. Our hope is our clients feel appreciated, supported and experience a real difference in their journey to successful settlement.

Trust

We act with professionalism and confidentiality in a trusting and safe environment

Cultural awareness

All people matter. We respect and appreciate inclusion and the diversity of all cultures

Respect

We accept people for who they are. We show respect by being present, listening and open communication.

Integrity

We do what we say we will do. We are honest and we are accountable for our actions.

Family

Everybody is part of a family. We are supported, connected and belong

Our Story

Hamilton Multicultural Services (HMS) Trust was established as a Charitable Trust in February 1999. The Trust was formed out of concern regarding the gaps in services for people from different cultural, ethnic and linguistic backgrounds. The strategic focus of the Trust was to improve access for refugees and migrants to aid successful settlement and to increase the awareness of receiving communities.

The first service offered by the Trust was the provision of an Interpreting Service and in May of 2000 the Interpreting Service opened and operated from an office in Knox Street. The service still operates today under the name Decypher, and also provides translation of written documents.

The Trust moved in October of 2004 to the Multicultural Centre in Boundary Road (the former Marist Rugby Club rooms). In October 2006 the Multicultural Centre was renamed the Waikato Migrant Resource Centre, and in December 2017 it became Settlement Centre Waikato.

Today the HMS Trust has various services and projects to support migrants and former refugees settling in Hamilton and other parts of New Zealand including:

  • Decypher (interpreting and translation)
  • InfoNOW (multilingual settlement information service)
  • Passport 2 Drive (community driving school)
  • Open Road (refugee driver training programme)
  • Migrant Employment Solutions
  • Computers in Homes
  • Ethnic Football Festival

Governance

Board members

Natasha Harvey - Board Chairperson

Dr Asad Mohsin – Trustee

Richard Cain- Trustee

Nicolas hadj-blaha – Trustee

Bryan-Corfield - Board Treasurer

Paul Oettli – Trustee

Raewyn Kirkman – Trustee

Hope Allum – Trustee

Rob Rope – Trustee

Jannat Maqbool – Trustee

Management

Ellie, Tania and Leanne

Operations Manager:

Ellie Wilkinson

Ellie began working for the Trust at the end of January 2010. Ellie comes to the Trust from a background in the community and voluntary sector, having worked in this capacity with the Tertiary Education Commission and with Wintec. Ellie has a sound understanding of the relationships between government and community groups. She has a Bachelor of Social Sciences in Adult and Community Education and Sociology and also comes to the Trust with significant local and government networks.

Passport 2 Drive Manager:

Tania Pointon

Tania has been working for the trust since 2009 and has significantly improved reporting and accountability requirements for the Trust. Being an immigrant from South Africa, she has a strong and personal understanding of the migration experience. Tania now manages the Passport 2 Drive Community Driving School and the national Refugee Driving Mentor programme. She loves the challenge of working in a staff team where diversity and different types of expertise are so greatly valued. Tania’s background includes developing her own business in detecting fraud and was until recently the Treasurer for the Motel Association of New Zealand.

Decypher Interpreting & Translations Manager:

Leanne Salisbury

Leanne joined Decypher in August 2011 and quickly developed a passion for supporting vulnerable people in our community for whom language is a barrier. Leanne had previously worked in management roles in the not-for-profit sector for over 10 years and has lived the majority of her life in the Waikato so brought extensive networks and knowledge with her to Decypher.

Staff

 

OPERATIONS

HMS Trust Operations Manager
Ellie Wilkinson

Financial Controller
Merzia Mehdi

Finance Assistant / Data Base Developer
Karmjeet Kaur

 

SETTLEMENT CENTRE WAIKATO

Centre Coordinator
Corazon Blow

Reception and Information Service
Corazon Blow
Bita Soltanian
Pepa Torre

Housekeeper
Bola Jimoh

 

PASSPORT 2 DRIVE

Business Manager
Tania Pointon

Passport2Drive Team Lead 
Patricia Novoa

Driving Instructors
Robert Lynn
Jhon Agudelo

Practice Programme 
Alan Carter
Fernando Bonilla
Blair McDonnell

Bike Training Coordinators
Bita Soltanian / Maya Zilberberg

 COMPUTER IN HOMES

Computers In Homes Coordinator
Merzia Mehdi

Computers in Homes Tutor
Mohamed Mansoor

 

MIGRANT EMPLOYMENT SOLUTIONS

Migrant Employment Solutions Coordinator
Susan Wright

Migrant Employment Solutions Support
Ellena Butcher

Ethnic Communities Employment Support
Aude Vanoverschelde

DECYPHER INTERPRETING & TRANSLATION

Language Services Manager
Leanne Salisbury

Accounts Officer/Staff Interpreters
Divya Anand (Hindi / Punjabi / Urdu)
Terri Tauliili (Samoan)

Interpreter Coordinators/Staff Interpreters
Shivangi Kachhala (Gujarati / Hindi)
Maria Ceballos (Spanish)
Nguyet Nguyen Thi Nhu (Vietnamese)

Translation Coordinator/Staff Interpreter
Ruby Liu (Mandarin / Cantonese)

Administrator
Karmjeet Kaur

InfoNOW

Coordinator
Rebecca Morris

COMMUNITY SUPPORT

Community Connector
Jackie Runciman

Affordable Energy Navigator
Kate Moore

EVENTS

NZ Ethnic Football Festival Coordinator
Pepa Torre

Marketing and Design
Maya Zilberberg

Funders

Midlands Health
HealthRight Interpreting – providing interpreters to enrolled refugee clients in Midlands General Practices in Hamilton.

Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment
Provides funding for the Refugee Driver Mentoring Programme
Migrant Employment Solutions – Skilled Migrant Matching Service

Ministry of Education
Computers in Home – A programme which delivers computer learning modules for  refugee families with school-aged children.

Trust Waikato
 Operational grant

NZ Ethnic Football Festival

WEL Energy Trust
Grant towards vehicle costs for community driving school

 

 

NZ Lottery Board
Settlement Centre Waikato – Operational grant

Sky City Trust Hamilton
Driving project and interpreter training

COGS
Sisterhood – supporting Ethnic Woman

Hamilton City Council
Community Lease Grant – Settlement Centre Waikato

 

Hi, I’m Jackie. I have worked with Migrant Employment solutions since 2015 and it is the most exciting and satisfying job I could ever wish for. I constantly meet wonderful new clients starting out on their search for a job in New Zealand and settling into the Kiwi lifestyle. The enthusiasm and dedication they show towards the journey never ceases to amaze me. My role is to work with skilled migrants seeking employment and build relationships and networks with employers and recruiters.

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Hi I’m Susan and I have been supporting skilled migrants on their journey into the New Zealand workforce for a number of years so I understand the challenges that many face when looking for work in a very different environment. I really enjoy the chance to meet and spend time getting to know our clients, tailoring our service to meet their individual job seeking needs until they secure meaningful employment. For me, the best part of my job is meeting amazing job seekers from all over the world with great qualifications and work experience who really want to settle here and contribute to the Hamilton economy.

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Kia ora, my name is Aroha and I have been working with Migrant Employment Solutions since 2016. I thoroughly enjoy supporting and working with clients from all over the world, using their great skills and experience plus our knowledge of the New Zealand job market to find employment. Being a part of my clients employment journey is very rewarding and as a (fairly) recent graduate myself, I know firsthand the struggles and rewards that come with finding a job you love.

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