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Rotorua local Jane Eynon-Richards doesn’t usually answer unknown phone numbers, but when a message said that last call was from the Prime Minister’s office, she thought she’d better call back.

After nearly 23 years managing the Rotorua Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) and supporting locals through some of their most challenging moments, Eynon-Richards had been appointed a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Year 2026 Honours List.

She will attend an investiture ceremony at Government House later in 2026.

The call left her “actually flabbergasted”.

She said she simply loved her work and had never felt a need for recognition.

Her citation said since becoming manager in 2003, Eynon-Richards had helped grow the Rotorua bureau into one of the country’s “largest” and “busiest” offices, leading a team of more than 60 volunteers.

It said she was “instrumental” in advocating for vital funding, contributing to national CAB training and ensuring services continued during the Covid-19 lockdowns.

During that time, Eynon-Richards said she ran the bureau from a corner of her home during lockdowns, fielding around 25 calls a day.

The Citizens Advice Bureau provides free, confidential and independent advice to the public.

Eynon-Richards said the Rotorua bureau assisted people with a wide range of issues, most commonly housing and tenancy matters, employment disputes, consumer complaints, relationship issues and access to government services.

In recent years, she said, a growing part of CAB’s work had involved helping people navigate digital barriers, including completing online forms, setting up email or RealMe accounts and accessing services now available only online.

The bureau’s most typical clients were aged between 30 and 39.

Eynon-Richards said her commitment to community work came naturally, driven by a genuine interest in people and their stories.

As a leader, she described herself as someone who led by example, saying she would never ask volunteers to do anything she would not do herself.

Volunteers were trained across key areas and new recruits were paired with experienced bureau workers before handling inquiries independently.

She said the support network within the bureau was critical, particularly as volunteers never knew what issues might come through the door or over the phone.

Sometimes, people had an expectation the CAB could “create miracles”, she said.

Rotorua Citizens Advice Bureau manager Jane Eynon-Richards in 2022. Photo / Shauni James

Her community service extended well beyond CAB, including decades as a Justice of the Peace, governance roles on local school boards and committees, and organising major charity walks for Motor Neurone Disease New Zealand following the loss of her brother.

She said community involvement was “genetic”, shaped by parents who also served on boards.

Despite the honour, Eynon-Richards said her focus remained firmly on the future of the service. Securing stable funding and continuing to attract volunteers were ongoing challenges, particularly as demand for advice continued to grow and services became increasingly digital.

She said her hope was for Rotorua to return to a thriving, connected community, and for CAB to remain a trusted place locals could turn to when they needed support or guidance.

“I’ve got a few years left in me,” she said.

Annabel Reid is a multimedia journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, based in Rotorua. Originally from Hawke’s Bay, she has a Bachelor of Communications from the University of Canterbury.