Scholarships
The Adastra Foundation has been providing scholarships to extraordinary young New Zealanders since 2007. In that time, the Foundation has supported hundreds of athletes and performing artists with more than $2m and dozens of customised mentoring programmes.
In mid-2022, the Board completed a strategic review of its vision and purpose and agreed to refine its priorities. It wanted to ensure that it provided support where it was most needed and to those exceptional young people who might otherwise struggle to achieve their dreams. As such, priority is given to exceptional young people who face financial or personal hardship.
Adastra offers scholarships to extraordinary young athletes and performing artists (dancers and musicians), from Waikato and Bay of Plenty, who are facing hardship in their pursuit of excellence. Our programme includes a cash scholarship and personal development workshops, specifically designed for young adults aiming to be the best they can be – on and off their stage. A key part of the Adastra ethos is the personal development programme guided by leading professionals in their field.
Adastra is grateful to be supported by Grassroots Trust, The Lion Foundation, TECT, The Brian Perry Charitable Trust, Craigs Investment Partners, the Merito & Hill Families, BDO Tauranga and Construction Advantage Limited.
Sponsored Scholarships
Adastra is delighted to offer sponsored scholarships where recipients are “tagged” with a sponsor.
We are excited to be able to offer Craigs Investment Partners scholarships. Craigs is one of New Zealand’s leading investment advisory firms. Their network of investment advisers are supported by an award winning research team to help clients achieve their investment goals. Achieving goals is important to the team at Craigs Investment Partners and they share that same passion for achieving investment goals with seeing young adults in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty communities achieve their life goals by pushing boundaries on the national and international stage.
We also offer sponsored scholarships with Brian Perry Charitable Trust, BDO, Construction Advantage and the Merito & Hill Families.
The Brian Perry Charitable Trust is part of the Perry Group headed by Simon Perry. It is an integral cog in the Adastra wheel and has supported the programme since it’s inception.
The “Merito & Hill Family” scholarships are offered by Codi Merito, previous NZ representative BMX athlete and one of our Adastra alumni and Britt Hill. These scholarships are offered to 2 recipients who embody the values of Codi and Britt and show promise and drive in their endeavours.
Construction Advantage Limited is a Cambridge based construction company that delivers innovative construction projects, design and build, feasibility studies and management of commercial projects. The director and staff have a keen interest in sport and providing opportunity for a Cambridge recipient through their support of the Adastra programme.
BDO delivers leading accountancy, advisory, tax and assurance services to leading businesses and has offices nationwide. The Tauranga branch of BDO selects and supports a local recipient that aligns with the company values and brand.
Sponsored Scholarships are awarded after the standard application process (i.e. no further specific application is required).
The Sponsored Scholarships come with standard Adastra reporting requirements, plus further responsibilities to the sponsor, such as reasonable personal appearances and performance updates.
Sponsors
The Adastra Foundation acknowledges the support of:
Our Supporters
A huge thank you to BDO and their continued partnership with us for 2025🙏🏽
Here’s what the legends at @bdotauranga had to say about their involvement this year…
“At BDO, people are at the heart of everything we do. Connecting with our recipients and following their journey has been incredibly exciting for us. We’ve witnessed the exceptional mentoring and opportunities Adastra’s scholarships provide to our talented rangatahi, and we’re excited to back BDO’s recipient @david_moraaaaaa all the way this year!”
Head to the team at BDO for all your tax, audit, advisory and accounting services. They can help you achieve your personal and business goals 📝 ... See MoreSee Less
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Adastra is excited to announce the @acornfoundationnz as a partner on behalf of the Bill & Eaddy Trust for 2025.
Acorn Foundation is the community foundation for the Western Bay of Plenty and recently took over the Bill & Doris Eaddy Trust, the purpose of which was to support both junior rowers and their coaches.
“After a lot of research, we were connected to Adastra Foundation and were really impressed with the professional nature and wraparound support and guidance that the Adastra scholarships provide to young athletes. “
“We felt the Adastra ethos aligned perfectly with what Bill & Doris Eaddy would have intended to provide funds to committed junior rowers, and we are excited to see how these rowers progress” says the Acorn Foundation.
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Cheering on Adastra alumni Matt Reutsch and Brad Rothwell this afternoon. Go Kiwis!!Your NZ U21 Men’s starting lineup for today’s game against AUS at 2pm 🙌🏻
It’s shaping up to be a warm day here at Lloyd Elsmore and we hope to see as many of you here with your best supporting signs! It’s free to come and watch so get here to watch what’s set to be another close match! 👀
If you can’t make it, tune into Hockey TV at the link below in the comments. ... See MoreSee Less
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www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/news/teenagers-trek-across-north-island-for-child-cancer/C...
Great effort lads for a worthy cause! 👏👏👏 ... See MoreSee Less
Teens complete 800km challenge across North Island
www.nzherald.co.nz
The Tauranga trio travelled under their own steam from East Cape to Cape Egmont0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Congratulations on a massive achievement Keira Russell!
Being selected in the U18 New Zealand 7’s is one big goal ticked off in her young career.
We look forward to following your future wearing the fern! ... See MoreSee Less
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Thomas Winter and friends are on their penultimate day. What a huge effort they have undertaken!
If you’d like to support their cause, you can donate in the link in their bio to Child Cancer support and research.
www.capetocape.nz/?Will, Olly and Thomas (pictured L-R) are now on the final stretch. They will finish tomorrow at midday. Can we get them to $20,000 and give some families some much needed support through a very challenging time this Christmas? @childcancerfoundation
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Meet @officialecks ! Born in Tāmaki Makaurau and raised in Kirikiriroa where he attended Hamilton Boys’ High School. A special place that fills Xavier’s cup is home and his church. The love and comfort provided by his whānau are what keep him happy and motivated!
His three proudest achievements are getting baptized, getting married, and representing New Zealand in Touch (2019) and Weightlifting last year at the IWF World Weightlifting Championships held in Saudi Arabia. He also competed in the Youth Junior/U23 Oceania Championships in Samoa, where he won Gold in the Juniors and Silver in the U23s!
Xavier’s short-term goal is to continue working hard on rehabbing his current injuries so he can get back to wearing the fern on his chest. His long-term goal is, as he says, “Leaving a legacy, creating generational wealth, being someone my kids can look up to, and achieving freedom.”
Xavier applied for this scholarship because he saw it as a great opportunity to meet and connect with others of similar age who also face similar challenges, as well as an opportunity to help each other. Additionally, the financial aid has been incredibly helpful in covering costs such as sports equipment, physiotherapy, and competition and travel fees!
A massive thank you to all our funders who support our recipients’ dreams! ... See MoreSee Less
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Brilliant effort by Rubi Hart and Keira Russell in the Condors 7’s tournament.
Both playing for Hamilton Girl’s High School in the final it was a draw until the final moments where Howick College took the win in golden time.
Huge congratulations to Rubi for being named Most Valuable Player and both Keira and Rubi being named in the tournament team. 👏👏👏
Codi Merito ... See MoreSee Less
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Meet @caitlinnicolemusic ! Born and raised in Kirikiriroa, she was a pupil at Hamilton Girls’ High and has just finished her first year studying a Bachelor of Commercial Music at Massey University in Te Whanganui-a-Tara. Caitlin is a multitalented musician who plays guitar, piano, bass, and vocals, and also loves to write songs!
Caitlin says, “I try to live by having a growth mindset and knowing that I’m always moving on to bigger and better things. I want that for the people around me too.” Her growth mindset has definitely helped her achieve some amazing things, including recording at Bigpop, Roundhead, and Parachute Studios, and releasing her three songs (“Mine,” “Radical,” and “River Styx”) through the Play It Strange Songwriting Competitions. She also won the Waikato Smokefree Rockquest regionals in the solo/duo category!
Caitlin adds, “In the next year, I hope to release music of my own under a new solo project I’ve been working on! I really want to be playing gigs - as many as I can land. I just want to perform here, there, and everywhere!”
Caitlin applied for the Adastra Scholarship because she found out it supports more than just financially. She appreciated the personal development aspect of the scholarship and enjoyed attending workshops, meeting the other recipients, and hearing about their ambitions and careers.
Caitlin would like to thank “anyone who’s ever encouraged and inspired the confidence in me to express my love for music. Thank you to my music teachers in high school, my lecturers at Massey, and the biggest thank you to my roommates and best friends, who have really made this year incredibly rewarding. And, of course, thank you to Craigs Investment Partners and The Adastra Foundation.”Craigs Investment Partners ... See MoreSee Less
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