My name is Kristina, and I’m a mum of three, and grandmother of two. My youngest two are young adults and are autistic, as is my grandson. My son was diagnosed when he was two, and my daughter was 18. I’ve been involved in the disability sector in Wellington for many years with many different hats on.
Born in Napier, I moved back after 40 years of living in other places. With daughter off to university and son finishing school It felt like the right time to be reconnecting with whanau and building new networks. Once we’d relocated and starting looking at things for my son to do as he wouldn’t continue with school, we realised there weren’t many options.
I’m not one to just talk about things so I set about filling that gap with a programme that could evolve to meet the needs of the young people attending, and hence the Trust was born.
Like many parents I am thinking about the future for my children and ensuring they have an independent and happy life after I’m gone. My long term plan is to build a supported living village where people like my children are able to have home ownership (avoiding housing insecurity) and a life-long network/community to support them to live their best life.
It will be a constant evolution and a journey … so watch this space.