$270,000 +Grants Awarded
About Perago
Backing potential in our community
Perago Trust exists to help young people from the Cambridge community realise their sporting potential.
We provide financial support to young sportspeople who demonstrate potential, commitment and ambition, helping remove some of the financial barriers that can stand between them and the opportunities they need to progress.
We believe potential can come from anywhere - and financial circumstances shouldn’t determine how far a young person can go.
Our Purpose
To help young people in the Cambridge community realise their sporting potential by removing financial barriers and supporting opportunities that enable them to progress.
Every sporting journey is different. For one young person, the next step might be specialist coaching or a development camp. For another, it might be travelling to compete nationally or taking up an opportunity overseas.
Our role is to help make those opportunities more accessible.
Our Principles
A clear set of principles guides who we support, how we operate and the decisions we make.
We are proudly Cambridge focused
Our support is directed towards young sportspeople with a strong connection to Cambridge and the surrounding community.
Health and wellbeing come first
Sporting achievement should never come at the expense of a young person’s health or wellbeing. The welfare of those we support will always be our priority.
Funding goes towards supporting young sportspeople
Donated capital and investment income are applied to supporting eligible young sportspeople and creating opportunities for them to progress.
Trustee support is provided freely
Our Trustees give their time, services, support and resources to Perago recipients free of charge.
Jordan Woodall
Golf
Our Ambassadors
Jake Moreland MNZM
Patron
Born and raised in Cambridge, Jake is a retired farmer and now devotes his time to the governance and administration of local and regional sporting organisations. After recognising there was a need for an organisation to identify, capture and assist promising young athletes Jake co-founded the Perago Trust with Kevin Burgess.
Sarah Ulmer ONZM
Ambassador
While Sarah's performances over several Olympics and Commonwealth Games captured the nation, it is her outgoing nature and enthusiasm for life that resonates most. Sarah is a very passionate Cambridge resident and has done a huge amount to make the town a great place to live, especially generating funding for the Te Awa cycle trail and extensions to the greenbelt running and cycling trail.
Rob Waddell ONZM
Ambassador
Rob has a place etched in New Zealand sporting history following his performance as a single sculler at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. He has worn many hats as an athlete, from Waikato rugby player to grinder with Team New Zealand. Post retirement Rob has been just as busy including being a key driver of the Avantidrome and the Te Awa cycle trail in Cambridge, and Chef De Mission for the NZ Olympic team.
Our Trustees
Kevin Burgess
Co-Founder & Chair
Kevin has been a community pharmacist in Cambridge since 1981 and has had a long and active involvement within the Cambridge community, serving on both sporting and community organisations. Kevin has been a judge at the Waipa and Waikato Secondary Sports awards for 15 years and is a passionate supporter of rugby, rowing, netball, cricket and lately, cycling. He has also mentored /sponsored numerous athletes over the years. Kevin is also a partner of Inside Running, a sports management company.
Melissa Wybourne
Secretary / Marketing
Melissa is the owner of Queenbee Studio Website & Design and ANZAAN, a platform supporting schools and universities to build and engage their alumni communities. She brings experience in website design, digital communications, marketing and community engagement to the Trust.
Based in Cambridge, Melissa is passionate about using her skills to help Perago strengthen its profile, share the stories of the young sportspeople it supports and build greater engagement with the local community.
Sarah Cowley-Ross
Trustee
Sarah’s athletics career spanned 15 years during which she became the New Zealand high jump and hepthalon champion, and attended numerous world championships, Olympics and Commonwealth Games.
A qualified physiotherapist, Sarah is also a sought after wellness and sport advocate and is an experienced MC and Keynote speaker.
She is the NZOC athlete’s commission Chair, a community education ambassador and works within the Olympic movement in the Oceania region.
Thomas Nabbs
Trustee
Founder and CEO of The Waterboy, Thomas's life has been shaped by sport and the beautiful town of Cambridge.
Thomas is passionate about giving people the opportunity to be the best they can be, one of the many motivations for his involvement in Perago Trust.
Graham Scott
Trustee
Graham is a Fellow Chartered Accountant who grew up in Cambridge and has run his own accounting practice in town for over 20 years. The firm files tax returns for Olympians, professional rugby players and young athletes on the way up. Graham can provide specialist knowledge on tax residency, expense tax-deductibility, ACC levies and all other accounting related questions including sponsorship proposals. Graham has played rugby on 4 continents and dabbled in Coast-to-coast, ultra-running, rowing and martial arts.
Nathan Sweetman
Trustee
Nathan is an experienced Director with a demonstrated history of working in the food & beverages industry.
He has strong professional skills in sales, market research, trade marketing, key account development, and sponsorship.
Hamish Wright
Trustee
Proudly Cambridge
Perago was established in Cambridge in 2012 and has always been about backing young people from our local community.
Cambridge has an extraordinary sporting culture. Across countless sports, young people dedicate significant time, energy and effort to developing their abilities and pursuing their goals.
Behind that commitment are often families meeting the growing costs of coaching, equipment, competition, travel and other opportunities.
Perago brings the community together to help bridge that gap.
Through the generosity of our supporters, sponsors and donors, we can help more promising young Cambridge sportspeople access opportunities and see how far their potential can take them.
Looking Ahead
Perago’s focus is on continuing to make a meaningful difference to young sportspeople within the Cambridge community.
We are currently applying for registered charitable status, an important step in the continued development of Perago and our ability to support more young people within our community.
As we look to the future, we want to broaden the opportunities Perago can support while remaining true to why the Trust was established — backing young people who demonstrate sporting potential, commitment and ambition.
We want promising young people to have the opportunity to progress based on their potential and determination — not simply on their ability to meet the financial costs associated with pursuing their sport.
With the continued support of our community, we can back more young people, create more opportunities and help the next generation discover just how far they can go.
