He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata.
What is the most important thing in the world? It is the people, the people, the people.
Our Patron
The Brook Waimarama Sanctuary Trust Patron is Lou Sanson QSM. Lou is the former Director General of the Department of Conservation, his appointment as Patron was announced in March 2022. Lou attended and spoke at the Trust’s AGM in October 2022; Lou visits Nelson on a regular basis and takes a keen and active interest in the Sanctuary. You can read more about Lou’s career by clicking on the image on the right.
Our Trustees
Board of Trustee meetings are held on a monthly basis, with Trustee committee meetings held between board meetings.
The Sanctuary is administered by a charitable Trust with a board of unpaid Trustees.
Mike Glover
Mike Glover was confirmed as the Trust Chair following the resignation of the previous Chair (Chris Hawkes) at the board meeting held 17 February 2025. Mike is the Managing Director of a family-owned holding company for a number of business and property interests. Mike has been a Director and Chair of a number of Nelson and national companies over the last three decades. Mike has an honours degree in law and has been a Sanctuary Trustee since 2019.
Maurice Woodhouse
Maurice Woodhouse (Treasurer) has had a long career in the accounting industry and was a founding partner of one of Nelson’s most respected accountancy firms, RWCA. Maurice became a BWST trustee in 2017.
Christine Hemi
Christine Hemi has served in leadership roles with Ngati Kuia, a recognised Nelson Region iwi, including as a current trustee. Chris represents Ngati Kuia on the BWST board and has been a Sanctuary Trustee since 2006.
Paul Russell
Paul Russell is a civil engineer experienced in managing and administering construction contracts. He spent several years training project managers and has managed a large consulting office and mentored staff for more than ten years. Paul joined the Trust in 2014.
Deryk Mason
After 25 years in the management team of a global packaging manufacturer in Auckland, Deryk returned to Nelson. He started volunteering with the Sanctuary six years ago and was involved in the completion and now maintenance of the bio security fence. Deryk represents his iwi, Ngāti Tama ki Te Waipounamu and Te Ātiawa o te Waka a Māui on the Trust.
Joanne Holdaway
Joanne was born and bred in Palmerston North (great place!), and a lawyer by trade having done her tertiary studies in Law and Commerce at Victoria University of Wellington. Since graduating Joanne has done a mixture of work in private practice and business management, latterly having been in a hybrid legal and business governance role with Perpetual Guardian for just short of 5 years. Outside of work Joanne enjoys getting up into the hills either trail running, tramping, or on a mountain bike. Joanne joined the Trust in April 2023.
Brian Olorenshaw
Brian Olorenshaw, a Sanctuary volunteer has been co-opted onto the Trust Board at its meeting held Monday 22 May.
Brian has had a successful career in marketing, from larger corporates to smaller enterprises. He currently assists small to medium sized businesses with advice and marketing strategies. Brian is a member of the Institute of Directors and is an active volunteer at the Sanctuary as part of the pest detection team.
Serean Gallagher
Serean’s professional background is in science and research. She worked for several years at Nelson’s Cawthron Institute in Aquaculture Research and is now a Science Manager at a Nelson-based biotech company. Serean is currently a member of the Nelson Marlborough Conservation Board and has held previous governance roles on the board of Clifton Terrace Primary School and the Society for Cryobiology. Serean was recently awarded the Institute of Director’s Emerging Director Award and has joined the Network Tasman Board as an Associate Director as part of receiving this award. Serean has a strong interest in conservation and the environment. Serean joined the Board in April 2025.
