What a month it has been!
October has been consumed by our annual fundraising and awareness campaign Be Green & Be Seen, we held our first Children’s Fun Day and we’ve just published our Annual Impact Report.
As if that’s not enough, this weekend we’re celebrating the people running in the Auckland Marathon for the Cerebral Palsy Society, and we’re holding our Annual General Meeting.
It’s definitely all go this month! 

Annual Impact Report 2022-2023

Here it is – the Cerebral Palsy Society’s 2022-2023 Annual Impact Report!

We’re thrilled to be sharing this with you. It’s a wonderful reflection of the work we’ve done for, and with, our members over the past financial year.
It covers our funding and grant programmes, as well as our work in the advocacy space, research and presentations, and our financial report.

The report is also a great opportunity to tell our story and provide members, funders, and other stakeholders with our key aims and objectives, and provide an update on how we have been achieving our goals.

You can read our 2022-2023 Annual Impact Report here.

Annual General Meeting 2023

The Cerebral Palsy Society’s 2023 AGM is happening on Sunday (October 29). It is being held virtually on Zoom, at 2pm.

To attend the meeting, you must RSVP before this Friday, October 27:

– By calling us on 0800 503 603 before 3pm
– Or by emailing us at cpsociety@cpsociety.org.nz before 4pm

The Zoom link will be emailed to those that have RSVP’d.

Voting ahead of the AGM is your opportunity to help decide who will represent you on the Cerebral Palsy Society Board for the coming year.
The Board comprises of nine (9) Directors. There are four (4) positions available, and we have six (6) candidates.
Registered members of the Cerebral Palsy Society will have received an email from iro@electionz.com or a letter in their letter box from electionz.com with information about online voting.
The candidate profiles can be read here, and once logged in to the online voting site.

Voting closes this Friday, October 27, at 4pm.

Click here for more information about the AGM.

Be Green & Be Seen 2023

What an incredible Be Green & Be Seen month we’ve had so far! October has been a constant flow of green.

We’ve loved seeing the photos come in and hearing the motivation behind people taking part.
From kindys and schools supporting a student who has CP, to someone showing solidarity to their sibling or friend, workplaces getting on board, and numerous members getting into the green spirit of the occasion in so many cool ways.

We’ve heard about a green smoothie in Tokoroa being created and named just for Be Green & Be Seen, an aquafit class in Wellington, a theatre company donating 10% of proceeds from their opening night in Auckland, Be Green & Be Seen making it all the way to Portugal, giant green ice creams, people setting themselves physical challenges for #beACTIVE, green food being made, green hair being worn, morning teas at workplace social clubs, and gold coin collections at kindys and schools around the country.

And we know there are plenty of other green events we haven’t heard about yet. If you haven’t already, be sure to send us some photos and tell us how you went green for Be Green & Be Seen – send an email to cpsociety@cpsociety.org.nz 

We’ve been delighted with the donations that have come in so far – from people setting up their own #beACTIVE challenge or running the Auckland Marathon and asking for donations, to people donating to our Givealittle page. Everyone has been so generous. Thank you!

#beACTIVE has seen 13 individuals and a school sign up for the physical activity challenge. Nine of those people are members, or parents of members, and the school has a strong connection to the Cerebral Palsy Society with one member, the sibling of member, and a staff member’s child attending.
So far, these incredible people have gathered 119 donations, raising more than $5000 for the Society!
WOW! We can’t wait to see what next year brings.

We also have 11 people running in the Auckland Marathon this Sunday, and two people running in the Queenstown Marathon next month. We are so grateful to every single one of them, and everyone who donates to their fundraising pages. 

Thank you!

It’s not too late to get involved. There’s still time to set your own #beACTIVE challenge or hold a green-themed event at school or work, or simply donate.

Children’s Fun Day

On October 7, we held our first Children’s Fun Day for our young members and their families in Auckland. It was a wonderful day, with plenty of smiles and laughter.

There were a number of activities for children to try, from racing cars and shooting hoops to decorating cookies and painting pots.
It was a great opportunity for parents to mix and mingle.

A huge thank you must go out to all the staff and volunteers who helped make this event happen.
We received some lovely feedback from parents, which certainly made all the mahi worth it.

We also want to pass our appreciation on to the organisations that got behind our day – Raukatauri Music Therapy Centre, Disability Sport Auckland, Walk on Wheels, Independent Living and Papatoetoe High School. Thank you for your part in helping make the day a success.

You can check out all the photos here.

Check your e-card balance

Did you know you can check the balance on your e-card?

– You can go to https://ecardsolutions.nz/portal/cps/   
– OR check your last receipt

Click here for more information about our e-card funding programme.

Research opportunities

There are plenty of research projects to contribute to and you can read about some of them on the Research Opportunities page of our website.

Current projects: 

– Does Physiotherapy intervention match whānau expectation
– Scientists seek children with Cerebral Palsy for space-like anti-gravity walk
– Experiences of young people with disabilities and their families/caregivers on supported family centered care and play in therapy
– Parental Understandings of Sleep Problems in Children with Long-Term Health Conditions
– Eat, Sleep, Play – CP
– Sibling Research
– Helping kids with Cerebral Palsy to be more physically active

Thank you once again to everyone who has gotten behind Be Green & Be Seen 2023 – from mentioning it to a colleague, or sharing a social media post, to hosting a green morning tea, hosting a fundraising event or making a personal donation. Thank you! We are very grateful.
As a charity, annual appeals like this are vital to helping us continue the impactful work we do.

Thanks to everyone who has already cast their vote for the board positions ahead of this year’s AGM, and for your RSVPs. We look forward to seeing you on Sunday. If you can’t make it along, be sure to keep an eye on our social media and your emails on Sunday afternoon for all the results.

Ngā mihi,    
Clare and the CP Society team  

Clare Williams 
General Manager