Melissa and her whānau, from left: husband DJ and kids Wyatt, Emmett, and Jethro.
MELISSA KELLY
MURIHIKU/SOUTHLAND Melissa takes care of the vast Southland region. Like both Victoria and Paula, Melissa is the parent of a child with type 1 diabetes. Before Diabetes NZ: Mother of three, Melissa’s early career was as an on-farm sales rep and driver for VetSouth Winton, where she delivered animal products and drugs to farms. In the time between working in the farming industry and joining Diabetes NZ, Melissa took time out to have her three sons, Jethro, Emmett, and Wyatt. An average week: Like Victoria and Paula, Melissa’s focus is supporting two diabetes communities (Type 1 and Youth), so there are always large amounts of emails to reply to and send – whether it’s planning events for the kids with type 1
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DIABETES WELLNESS | Autumn 2025
or coming up with new ways to fundraise. Then there’s all the budgeting that goes with the role, making funds stretch as far as they possibly can, with the aim being that no child or teen misses out on opportunities offered by Diabetes NZ Southland. Highlights of 2024: Melissa says the greatest joy of her role is seeing the smiles on faces during events she’s organised, both for youngster and parent, and especially when she hears the banter of everyone coming together, talking about diabetes and sharing their experiences. Having a son with type 1 means Melissa and her husband have shared experiences within the community she works with. She credits her husband DJ with weighing in to help with events when need be.
In the short term, Melissa says she is always striving to build the wonderful Southland type 1 community and hopes to eventually raise a team of volunteers who will enable Diabetes NZ Southland to do bigger and better things, such as a regional camp, since she knows a lot of cool spots the kids would absolutely love. WE’D LOVE YOUR HELP
If you have a few hours to spare each month, your region’s Coordinator would love to hear from you. Follow the link to our youth coordinators webpage, where you can see what’s coming up soon in your region: www.diabetes.org.nz/ youth-teams
