Farm Returns Supporting Talented and Troubled Rangatahi

In the last financial year, ending 31 May 2024, the Robert Gibson Methodist Trust (RGMT) distributed a record $259,000 to support local youth ministry, grants to tertiary and Wesley College students, and to an organisation providing residential support and life skills for disadvantaged and troubled youth. Grants also included $5,000 for repairs and maintenance of the Robert Gibson Memorial Hall, in Manaia, South Taranaki and $9,000 for mission resourcing.

The past year has been busy for the Trustees. Beyond farm oversight, assessing grant applications and arranging disbursements, they have overseen the construction of a new home on one of two farms under their jurisdiction. Chairman Bill Yateman is one of ten Board members responsible for fund distribution, governance and capital expenditure on the farms. There were originally three properties but to increase productivity, two smaller entities were amalgamated in 2014, and a new milking facility was built on the block. The result is a far more profitable 123-hectare farm known as Totara Farm, which accommodates 380 Friesian cows. Maire Farm shares the eastern boundary and grazes 330 cows over 118 hectares. Sharemilkers are responsible for the day-to-day running of each entity, with the support of a farm consultant.

Over the past four years, annual RGMT grants have ranged from $143,000 in 2021, to $259,000 in 2024. Bill says the board aims to disburse as much as possible each year and typically allocates $180,000 - $200,000. Covid impacted applications with reduced demand in 2021 and 2022.

Manna Youth Home

A residential facility for vulnerable youth facing challenges has benefitted from an annual $30,000 RGMT contribution for the past three years. Manna Youth Home was established in 2020 by the Bishop’s Action Foundation, a charitable organisation dedicated to creating flourishing communities. Located in a repurposed care centre in the seaside suburb of Oakura, south of New Plymouth, Manna has turned around the lives of many 16- to 21-year-olds experiencing difficulties.  

Residents are generally referred by social service agencies or the police. At Manna, they are supported by a team of dedicated and experienced youth workers who provide specialised counselling, care and mentoring. The rangatahi are encouraged to gain skills, create relationships, build trust and resilience, and establish cultural connections as they are presented with new life experiences and opportunities.

Bill and other RGMT members have visited the home and seen firsthand the transformative effect of the facility on the people it is designed to serve. “We have been out there a couple of times and met the people involved. One young man who had been there for three weeks said it had turned his life around.”

RGMT is one of many partners supporting Manna Home.

Students Supported

This year, grants totalling $90,000 were made to Wesley College students on the recommendation of the College. Bill says about 20 students receive support from the Trust each year. Tertiary students in need of financial support are also encouraged to apply for grants and on average 30 to 35 students from all over New Zealand have their applications approved. In the past year, 35 students received a share of grants totalling $113,000.

A Brief History of the Trust

Robert Gibson and his family moved to the 319-acre property in the mid-1890s. When he died in 1932, he bequeathed the property in trust to the Methodist Church to provide an orphanage and training farm in Kaponga. His wife was granted a life interest. Following her death in 1943, the Public Trust administered the estate with input from a committee chaired by the late Magnus Hughson, Vice President of the Methodist Conference in 1959 and the inaugural Chairman of the Trust. It became obvious that an orphanage in Kaponga would be inappropriate, so arrangements were made for the Supreme Court to change the objects of the Trust to the current beneficiaries.  The 1963 Methodist Conference resolved to form a separate corporate entity to administer the Trust with a Scheme approved by the Supreme Court.  In 1965, the Robert Gibson Methodist Trust was created as an Incorporated Charitable Trust with a strong connection to the Methodist Conference.  The Trust has since doubled the original farm size.

Given the scope of services being supported and financial hardship alleviated by Trust funds, Bill does not envisage any further applications to the Supreme Court to amend the Trust Deed. “There is nothing we need to change or amend. We are covering all that we need to cover at present.”