Ko ngā pūrākau a ngā mātua me ngā kaitiaki | Our stories

Deb Cole had been finalising a big assignment the night before this Zoom interview, for the Masters thesis she’s completing at Unitec. Her topic: the intergenerational impact of FASD on whānau Māori. She's tired but happy. “I was so glad to get that over with,” she says, with a wide-eyed grin. “I felt like I should have been going out partying o...

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As part of FASD-CAN's tenth anniversary, we interviewed a parent who was looking for answers about her adopted son's behaviour back in the '80s. She eventually found Christine Rogan, one of our earliest pioneers, but there was one even earlier who was a saviour for this mum: Shirley Winnakeri in Hamilton.  This mother's story of a misunderstood ...

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We’re celebrating a decade of growth, development and support for those living with FASD, so we got in touch with some of those founding members to ask them about the early days of FASD-CAN – and to look at what has happened in more recent times. 

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Anna Gundesen took on the newly-created role of Navigator in Tāmaki Makaurau for FASD-CAN in July, 2021. Her job was to provide hands-on support for caregivers, whānau, professionals and individuals using a brain-based approach to parenting and education.

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We know that many of our tamariki who are fostered or adopted are affected by FASD. Those initial contacts with new caregivers can make a world of difference to children who may have been traumatised in their birth homes.

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Professor Anita Gibbs of Otago University has always been immersed in the rights of those on the fringes of society, beginning at just 18 years old with voluntary prison visits in Reading, UK. 

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Kim and Alan Milne had fostered a few kids before they were handed 10-week old David at New Year – his mum was going up to Auckland to find a place for them to live. There were already three half-siblings and she just never made it back for him. There were a few increasingly challenging years before Kim had a breakthrough moment.

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Jackie and Simon Prichard have Alex, 20, and two younger daughters, Casey and Emma. Alex has FASD and Jackie long ago bravely faced the knowledge of her own part in this – and armed herself with it.

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