Team
Nicole Beer
Finance Leader
Nicole joined the team to both hold and develop our Financial Management needs. She brings an extensive background of accounting and financial know-how supporting a wide range of community and charitable organisations including Tuilaepa Youth Mentoring (who mentor Pacifica youth at risk), Hibiscus Hospice and the YES Disability Centre. She has also worked in financial areas aligned to arts organisations – including Limbs and Black Grace Dance Companies. Nicole loves nothing more than using her financial skills to help organisations make a positive difference to the world, especially working in the Not-For-Loss space. When she’s not busy being Queen of the Spreadsheets she can be found refereeing basketball – one of her happy places.
Ekta Gyawali
Operations Leader
Ekta is Mixits newest member of the central team. Originally from Nepal she relocated to Aotearoa to compete a Masters degree in Business Management at Waikato Uni and then worked as the Project Administrator for Waimarie, a community support organisation in Hamilton. She loves having the opportunity to contribute to empowering young people and recognises being part of Mixit also gives her a great chance to grow personally and professionally. She plans to learn to play the ukulele and is enjoying being around inspirational creativity in her new working life.
Wendy Preston MNZM
Creative Producer/Director
Wendy has over 30 years of professional involvement as a choreographer, director, tutor, performer and artistic producer/manager. She has worked extensively with young people on performance projects throughout her career, focusing on cross-cultural and inter-disciplinary creative interaction. Wendy has collaborated with leading practitioners across the performing arts fields, mentors emerging performers and teaches at tertiary level. She has also worked on marae, in schools, community halls, theatres, and film and television, both in New Zealand and Internationally. She passionately believes in the power of creativity to make significant changes in peoples lives and grow stronger communities.
Mel Bailey
Programme Leader
Mel started his journey with Mixit as an intern during the summer of 2016 and in the years that followed, found himself back on the floor hosting Saturday sessions as a guest artist. He is a Unitec graduate, having completed his BA in performing and screen arts. Mel remains an active participant both in front and behind the camera. “As the Creative Programme Leader, I take pride in facilitating an environment that promotes positivity and supports our young people to be their authentic selves”. When he’s not cooking up cryptic lesson plans he can be found penning down rap lyrics to what will hopefully be the next #1 hit.