News
Masterton Trust Lands Trust announces positive annual result for 2023/24
Masterton Trust Lands Trust (MTLT) reflected on a year of sound financial performance at its annual general meeting yesterday. MTLT chair Christine Brewster presented the 2024 Annual Report noting the Trust’s financial resilience in a year of challenging economic conditions. “We recognise the past year has been a particularly difficult one for some of our tenants,” she noted. Overall, the Trust’s debt reduced by $500,000 supporting a marginal improvement in equity to almost $86 million. Total...
Trust grants funding to exceed $2M for the first time
Masterton Trust Lands Trust (MTLT) has doubled its annual grants funding this year to exceed $2 million for the first time. This signals the Trust’s ongoing commitment to grow grants funding in perpetuity, in line with changes to population and the consumer price index. For the last decade, MTLT grants funding has averaged around $1 million annually. More recently, during its 150th year in 2022, grants climbed to $1.5 million. This year, annual grants funding will reach $2.274 million. “This...
$10,000 for the iconic golden shears
The Golden Shears International Shearing Championship Society Inc. received a grant of $10,000 for the 2024 Golden Shears. This provided for educational programmes including school visits by around 800 children to learn about shearing and the wool industry. The Trust’s grant helped to fund branded shirts for competitors and volunteers. It also enabled community participation, with free entry for the public on opening night. Read more about our 2023/24 grants in the 2024 Annual Report here.
First MTLT Humanities Scholarship Awarded
Congratulations to Rebecca Hamlyn. Rebecca is the first to be awarded the MTLT Humanities Scholarship. For school leavers, we created this new scholarship of $3,000 over three years. Available to a top-performing NCEA Level 3 student going on to study a humanities-related subject at tertiary level, scholars are nominated by the Wairarapa Secondary Principals’ Association. Rebecca is studying History, Classics and English at Victoria University. Photo caption: Christine Brewster (Board Chair)...
$600,000 literacy support boost for Masterton
Masterton Trust Lands Trust (MTLT) is investing $600,000 over the next three years to deliver literacy support for Masterton’s youngest learners. “In line with philanthropic best practice, we’re investing in long-term educational opportunities that deliver measurable outcomes. The MTLT Supplementary Literacy Support Project is our commitment to helping Masterton students in their first three years of school to become successful readers and writers by the time they start college. We want young...
Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
The Trust provides space in central Masterton for members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community to join together regularly. It provides an essential hub where former refugees can gather and connect. “We are very thankful... this means a lot to us... to utilise the facility for our community gathering and most importantly prayers. “Tashriq Hanif, President Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Masterton
Latest Trust grants help locals reach for the stars
Community-owned Masterton Trust Lands Trust (MTLT) has invested in excess of a quarter of a million dollars in education and community initiatives to benefit locals in its latest funding round.
$25,000 for Masterton District Library
A $25,000 grant for the Masterton Library was spent on high-demand books and the summer and winter reading programmes. For the most popular books, up to 50 library members can be on the waitlist, meaning you could wait up to a year to read some in-demand books. The grant from Masterton Trust Lands Trust has meant that more copies can be bought, reducing the waitlist significantly. The summer and winter reading programmes aim to encourage families to come together and share in the love of...
Getting Native In The Reserve
Check out this video highlighting the Trust-owned Millennium Reserve on the corner of Hillcrest and Pownall streets. Special thanks to the hardworking volunteers that work tirelessly to provide this wonderful recreational space for the community.
Garden to Table
A $10,000 grant to fund a Great Kai Facilitator to work across three Masterton primary schools delivered learning benefits to 180 students around how to grow, harvest, prepare and share healthy kai. As well as gaining practical skills to grow food, tamariki learned about seasonality and the natural cycles that affect crops – essential to understanding climate change. Children learned how to take action for food resilience. “Taking action fosters hope and lessens the anxiety that many young...
Trustees dig deep to plant trees for Wairarapa College Farm
Trustees of Masterton Trust Lands Trust, staff and volunteers rolled up their sleeves alongside Wairarapa College principal Matt White and students to plant close to 1000 trees on the school farm today.
Ara Toi: Pathways to Art
Becky from Aratoi Wairarapa Museum of Art & History speaks with MTLT Trustee Bex Johnson about public art and the Trust’s Murals for Masterton project.
Science scholarship for top Wairarapa College student
Former Masterton student Anika Stewart was awarded the Alan MacDiarmid Scholarship to contribute towards her studies at Canterbury University for a Bachelor of Engineering with Honours. Anika was Wairarapa College’s Proxime Accessit for 2022 receiving 1sts in biology, chemistry, calculus, physics and geography. Anika held leadership roles at school and pursued a wide variety of sporting interests that she excelled at. These included representing Wairarapa in hockey and receiving distinctions...
Scholarship awarded to top art student
Former St Matthews/Rathkeale top art student Stella Masters received the 2023 Golden C’Art Scholarship to support her study towards a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Canterbury University.
Summer Hummer
The Trust contributed $5,000 to support the revival of Summer Hummer – a Masterton music tradition initiated 25 years ago. The family friendly music event at Queen Elizabeth II Park featured well known Kiwi bands and the chance to hear local college bands. The Trust’s grant helped keep entry costs affordable for locals.