The SkyCity Queenstown Casino Community Trust Trustees are prominent local community members with backgrounds in community involvement and local business.
Joanne Conroy - Chair
Joanne has lived in Queenstown for 35 years where she specialises in Property Management and Advisory, including having owned several businesses, and is an Independent Company Director. Joanne has been involved with many community groups including Sports Groups, Plunket, schools and since 2006, with St John. As a contractor to the Queenstown lakes District Council she assisted numerous community groups securing tenure on Council land and buildings throughout the district. She was invested as a Commander of the Order of St John in 2018, spent four years as the Chairperson of the South Island Regional Trust Board and sat on the National Governing Board. Joanne is an experienced Director, currently sitting on six Boards including charitable, Council owned Organisations, Crown Entities and commercial Boards. Joanne is married to Danny, has three adult children, and enjoys walking, biking, fishing, and gardening.
Darren Rewi
Originally from Invercargill married to Debbie with 6 grown up children who has lived in Queenstown for 30 years. I bring over fifteen years of governance experience across varying organisations including roles as Chair and managing portfolios such as Health and Safety, Audit and Risk and Employment, this has been at Regional and Local level. My board level experience has been in Health, Education, Sports, Arts and within Maori organisations, this breadth of organisations has allowed me to develop a wide set of skills valuable to a governance board. Amongst these experiences has been the rewarding challenge of leading boards through change and restructuring, key to succeeding in these roles has been the ability to engage with all stakeholders, but also to cut through complex issues to assist multiple stakeholders to understand the problem statements allowing an organisation to manage multiple work streams.
Anna Hiatt
Anna has lived in Wanaka for the past 11 years. Anna brings to the Trust a range of skills from her experience in both the commercial and not-for-profit sectors. Anna has had considerable experience with Stakeholder & Event Management – including the Winter Games NZ, Challenge Wanaka, Queenstown International Marathon, and the World Triathlon in Auckland. Anna has recently finished her 6 year term as a Board member for NZEA (New Zealand Events Association) and Te Kākano Trust, a community-based local plant nursery specialising in plant propagating for local native plant restoration. With both these board roles, Anna has played a role particularly in the areas of strategic plan development, commercial and communications spaces. In her spare time Anna enjoys the outdoors, the arts, as well as having fun with friends and family. She has recently started a new edible gardening business and completed a certificate in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at AUT. She is currently further developing her governance skills and has recently graduated from Boma’s Transformational Directors course. Anna is loving her journey in learning Te Reo and Tikanga Māori, currently enrolled to study Poupou Huia Te Reo 1.
Jonathan Browne
Jonathan Browne is the General Manager of SkyCity Queenstown. Jonathan joined SkyCity in May 2015 and is responsible for overseeing the operations of SkyCity Queenstown Casino and SkyCity Wharf Casino in Queenstown. Jonathan has extensive experience in the gaming, consumer goods, hospitality and tourism industries.
Kate Cherrington
Kate Cherrington (tribes: Ngati Hine, Te Kapotai, Ngā Puhi, Ngāi Pākeha) has served in governance and advisory roles across tertiary, conservation, philanthropic and not-for-profit organisations, most importantly alongside her tribal marae and tribal collectives. Currently Chair of Hāpai Tūhono, Te Pou Theatre and Tapuwae Roa and an Associate with The Centre for Social Impact.
Internationally it is her privilege to serve on the board of Americans for Indian Opportunity (AIO) for 20 years and more recently be appointed to MA’O Farms on O’ahu Hawai’i serving the aspirations of young people and food sovereignty movements.
Kate and her tāne Bentham Ohia operate as directors of Puata Hou Ltd, a family business. Through this, they serve whānau hapū, iwi, Māori organisations as well as non-Māori and international indigenous institutions, organisations and movements.
A priority to them both are the deep and enduring intergenerational relationships they have with their indigenous brothers and sisters from around the globe. Leading with love, serving and working hard are fundamental elements to their life’s work.