Tena Koutou Katoa,

I have nothing but appreciation for you all, for welcoming me into your lives and sharing your caregiving journey with me. Being the new Regional Coordinator I have had a lot to learn and your patience and grace for me have not gone unnoticed.

I love that we have a summer Christmas, my husband and I decided to change things up a couple of years ago to break away from old traditions and create new ones and I have no regrets. It’s given us our own sense of identity as a family and brought us closer to each other knowing we are doing things that we love doing rather than meeting everyone else’s expectations. Now, I understand that not every care family have that privilege, some may be restricted from travelling because of family access, or some children have no family to visit and can find this season very lonely. But I encourage you to find your own traditions that you know will work best for your family.

Yes, Christmas might be the 25th on the calendar, but there is no reason why you can’t celebrate your own little special Christmas on a date when you know you can all be together, without interruption and without demand. At the end of the day Christmas is about bringing family together, sharing laughter, joy and love with one another. It is that feeling and those memories that you want to imprint on your children and that is the true gift of Christmas. I also hope that sometime during the craziness of the holidays you can take a moment for yourself.

My last day of work this year will be Friday 22 December, and I will be returning on Monday 8 January. Our National Office will also be closed during this time. For urgent matters involving an allegation please call 0800 693 278.  For all other urgent matters please call your Agency.  For non-urgent matters please leave National Office a message on 0800 693 323 or email, and they will get back to you when they return.

A big mihi (thank you) to all our caregivers, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Cheers to 2023 and welcome 2024!

Ebony Rose Phillips