Tiamana/ National Chairperson
Ko Manaia te maunga
Ko Waipu te awa
Ko Spray tōku waka
Ko Mackenzie tōku iwi
Ko Davison tōku hāpu
Ko Te Papa Tongarewa tōku marae
No Kirikiriroa ahau
Ko Alexia Black tōku ingoa
Alexia was born in the Waikato and experienced first hand the devastating impact of suicide on whānau during her teen years. She trained to work in mental health and disability support in Otago and her first few roles in the sector saw her working with many people who had returned to the community after Cherry Farm (the local institution) closed. What she saw during this time led Alexia to a career in human rights, including an incredible role assisting Sir Robert Martin KNZM in his role on the United Nations Committee for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Alexia identifies as a proud member of both the rainbow community and whānau whai ora, having experienced post-natal depression, depression and workplace burnout. She joined the board of Balance Aotearoa in 2019 and stepped into the role of National Chairperson in 2023, when Leo McIntyre stepped down after many years supporting Balance. Alexia has held multiple lived experience roles, including as a researcher within the lived experience rōpu of the Mental Health and Addiction Directorate at Manatū Hauora, as Interim Director of Lived Experience and Engagement for MHAIDS, Te Whatu Ora, and as a representative of Balance
and the Disabled Persons Organisations Coalition on various advisory and governance groups.
Vanessa Macneil - Board Member
Ko Rangiuru te Maunga
Ko Te Arawa te Waka
Ko Kaituna te Awa
Ko Tapuika te Iwi
Ko Ngati Moko te Hapu
Ko Ngati Moko te Marae
Ko Macneil toku whanau
Ko Vanessa Toku ingoa.
Nau mai harae mai I am Vanessa Macneil and my whanau hail from Te Puke in the Bay of Plenty. My husband Ben and I currently live on a farm just outside of Putaruru with our two girls Sienna 12 and Violet 10, our cat Satan, the goats Kooji and twilight and the calf’s freezer and tail-less and I can’t forget our dog Chuckie. I also have two older children Aaron 35 and Jess 29 and three mokopuna Skylar 15, Kaed 9 and Jayden 6.
I am an executive coach and I work alongside Maori and Pacifica on their leadership journey walking alongside them to help them overcome what is holding them back from achieving in their professions.
I also work part time for Oranga Tamariki and for St Pauls Co-operating church as a community co-ordinator running cooking classes, after school programmes and drop in café. In my previous life I have been a sewing machinist, Data entry operator, pricing analyst, Kaiārahi Cultural guide as well as spending 14.5 years working for fletcher building with the last two years as the National Estimation Manager for Humes Pipelines.
Being on the local School board as a trustee for the past 2.5 years as well as being the secretary on one of nga hapu I whakapapa too, and on the charitable trust associated with this helping set the strategic plan for growth for our hapu and finding funding with the other trustees is just some of the things I bring to the table.
I look forward to working with all of you to continue to make Balance an amazing organization.
Lynere Wilson - Secretary
My involvement with Balance began back in 2007 when I was working for Bipolar Support Canterbury as their manager. I was persuaded to become a trustee of what was then called The NZ Manic Depressive Support Trust which aimed to support the development of all the small, self run support groups around the country. This organisation became Balance NZ and when we wound up the trust in 2017 the nationally focused work we were doing through the DPO coalition was taken on by Balance Whanganui who then became Balance Aotearoa. As the previous chair of Balance NZ, I was invited to continue my involvement with Balance Aotearoa as a board member, which I accepted. A bit of a complicated whakapapa but this is just to say I’ve been involved with Balance in one form or another for a long time. I don’t bring lived experience to this work, rather my background is as a mental health nurse. I am eternally grateful for the way my involvement in peer support has changed the way I practice for the better. I live near Christchurch on 10 acres with a husband, an adult daughter and various animals.
Anna Reid - Board Member
Ko Kawerau te maunga
Ko Haehaenui te.awa
No Otepoti ahau
Ko Kelly te whanau
Ko Anna toku ingoa
Anna was raised in central Otago and Dunedin and moved to Wellington in 2012. She originally trained in education and taught for ten years before retraining in health policy an health promotion during covid. Anna has lived experience of post-natal depression and anxiety and has a chronic illness. As a Disability Advisor for Wellington PHO Tu Ora Compass Health, Anna is passionate about the role of lived experience and the peer work force. Anna also enjoys facilitating professional development around disability and the human rights model. Anna is on a number of lived experience and disability advisory groups. She currently lives in Porirua with her husband and two young children, aged 8 and 6.
Gabby Hogg - Board Member
My name is Gabby Hogg. I live in Auckland, but I grew up in Hawkes Bay. I am currently in my late 30s. I am autistic with catatonia and with other neurodivergent needs and mental distress, particular PTSD. I also have chronic physical health needs, endometriosis. My passions lie in the area of neurodivergent needs which yes covers mental distress. I also am passionate about human rights and public policy. I am hoping to bring the lived experience of disability and mental distress and the intersectionality of impairments. I currently study at AUT doing a BA in social sciences/public policy. I am also a part time user of Augmentative and Alternative Communication – I hope to bring that unique experience around accessing mental health services when you use AAC. I have a special interest in high and complex needs. I have had experience of being a support worker and supporting a variety of children and young adults with a variety of support needs, some of whom also had Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, alongside their learning (intellectual) disability. As I was doing my job, I discovered the unmet needs of mental distress in the disability community. I currently work as a contractor with Te Pou, working on the Equitable Access to Wellbeing workforce framework. I am also a aunty to 5 nieces and nephews, ranging from 3 to 16. I hope to uphold the mana of those that are neurodivergent or considered to have a neuro disability.
Mike Sukolski - Board Member
in 1986, Mike, along with other service users, established the group that became the Wellington Mental Health Consumers Union. He has worked for Vincents Art Workshop in Wellington, planning and funding agencies, NGOs, lived experience organisations and service providers. He has served on the boards of community and lived experience organisations, including as chairperson of the Wellington Community Arts Council. He was active in the early days of the then gay rights movement. Currently Mike is a lived experience advisor with Te Whatu Ora in Wellington.