Mr John O’Sullivan, of Havelock North, ONZM for services to business and philanthropy
John O’Sullivan has built the Tumu Group of businesses since 1978, currently employing more than 600 staff. Through Tumu Group, he has invested in local infrastructure and organisations. He was a Board member of ITM Co-operative. He financially supported the core training team of Outward Bound during the COVID-19 lockdowns. He supported establishment of Mates 4 Life, a charitable trust focused on mental health in the workplace. His businesses have employed release-to-work prisoners, helping them rehabilitate, and he has provided contract work to a skill-building programme within the local prison. He set up Tumu Group’s charitable arm, The Evergreen Foundation, which established a scholarship programme for rangatahi at Lindisfarne College and a health fund. Through the Evergreen Foundation, Mr O’Sullivan created a Cyclone Gabrielle Relief Fund.