Te takoha auauRegular giving

Regular giving

Caring for 840 people and families every year thanks to your regular donations

By making a regular donation you ensure the future of care at Mary Potter Hospice for patients and their families and whānau living with a life-limiting illness.

  • A monthly gift helps keep our costs down and has an even greater impact
  • You are in control – change, stop or postpone your regular donation at any time
  • It’s easy to claim back a third of your donation with the annual tax receipt sent to you in April

How your regular donations can help

Over 840 husbands and wives, sisters and brothers, sons and daughters, partners, friends, neighbours and colleagues in Wellington, Porirua and Kāpiti receiving our free-of-charge care every year. A regular gift is the most effective way to provide them with the very best care at the most vulnerable time of their lives, whether that’s at the hospice or in their home – whichever is best for them.

  • $30 a month can provide a patient with 12 home-cooked meals at the Inpatient Unit
  • $35 a month can cover the cost of four counselling sessions for patients and their families
  • $45 a month can allow patients to receive the care they need in the comfort of their own home, by funding three home visits from a Hospice doctor
  • $60 a month covers the cost of an arts therapy session for bereaved children

Join our Starlight Circle

Starlight Circle supporters give a set donation of their choice every month, ensuring Mary Potter Hospice can provide our quality care to all who need it. Joining the Starlight Circle is a great help to us so we can budget effectively. And hopefully, it makes it easier for you to donate as your donations to Mary Potter Hospice occur automatically.

The name Starlight Circle originates from a philosophy that is deeply embedded in the Hospice’s work: Whetū i te rangi – the ‘stars’ in the sky. Just as the stars guided the great Māori navigators to Aotearoa, Mary Potter Hospice guides our patients and their families or whānau on their journeys. Each patient is like a star guiding the Hospice’s work and our patients are with us, in our memories and hearts, like the stars in the sky, when their journey ends.

All Starlight Circle members also receive regular communications about how your donations are making a difference.

Meet Starlight Circle Members Steve and Kay

Mary Potter Hospice cared for Steve's dad and Kay's husband, who are now making regular donations to support Mary Potter Hospice.

It was a privilege for Mary Potter Hospice to care for Steve’s dad and Kay’s husband, George. Last year the family were told that there were no further treatment options available for George and he soon entered the Hospice’s care, first at home and later at the Inpatient Unit in Newtown, Wellington.

“We decided that making a regular donation to ensure others get the same level of care is the best way we can repay this right now. Somehow that still feels inadequate. Lots of charities want money but we have seen where the money goes at Mary Potter,” says Kay. Read Steve and Kay’s story

Setting up your regular donations

Credit card

To make a regular donation through your credit card or direct debit, please select the ‘Give monthly’ option on our online donation page:

Automatic payment

To make a regular donation by an automatic payment from your bank account, please complete the automatic payment form and return it to us by email to starlightcircle@marypotter.org.nz or by post to Mary Potter Hospice, Freepost 3053, PO Box 7442, Newtown, Wellington 6242.

Once you’re set up, we’ll make sure you receive a tax receipt each April so that you can claim your tax rebate. You can choose the amount and frequency you donate to suit your needs, and you can make a change to your donation at any time.

For more information about regular donations please contact:

Penelope Esplin
Fundraiser – Regular Giving

Phone: 04 381 0189
Email: starlightcircle@marypotter.org.nz

Door Knocking Campaigns – FAQs

Who is knocking on the door and why.

From Friday 10th October 2025, until the end of March 2026, you may see Mary Potter Hospice fundraising on Wellington streets, in association with Aida.

Mary Potter Hospice Foundation is a charity that relies on the support of people like you, so we can continue to provide free care to people with life-limiting illnesses and their families.

People who give to us regularly every month are part of our valued Starlight Circle programme. Knowing we are getting money each month gives us the confidence that we have a regular income coming in to support our work.


In order to sign up these vital donors we operate a door to door fundraising programme. This method of fundraising is known as face to face. At present, we are using the reputable fundraising company Aida to go door to door for us in the Wellington community. 

Aida is a member of the Public Fundraising Regulatory Association (PFRA) of New Zealand. Members of PFRA must work within a strict regulatory framework. The PFRA works with charities and service providers to ensure quality, integrity and transparency in face to face fundraising by creating an atmosphere of public confidence and regulatory satisfaction. For more information please visit the PFRA website.

When members of the public sign up to join the Starlight Circle with our face to face fundraisers they provide personal information and bank details to allow automatic monthly donations. We ensure this information is kept strictly confidential. Our fundraisers will use iPads to sign up new donors – the same as if you were donating through our website. This means any information you give us will be stored safely.

We use iPads because it’s a quick and efficient way to sign people up. It also ensures we can safely store your information.

How to identify our fundraisers 

Legitimate Mary Potter Hospice face to face fundraisers will: 

  • be wearing branded bibs or jackets with the Mary Potter Hospice logo on them.
  • be displaying an Aida identification badge with their name, photo and identification number
  • never ask for, or accept, a cash donation
  • Will be carrying Mary Potter Hospice’s Starlight Circle literature with them.

Where are our fundraisers?

Starting Friday 10th October, our fundraisers will be visiting:

  • Mount Cook
  • Mount Victoria
  • Thorndon

Fundraisers collecting this week are:

  • Peter Cartwright

Our team of fundraisers are highly trained and enthusiastic individuals. They are dedicated to raising money and building awareness of our commitment to ensuring every person in Wellington, Porirua and Kāpiti has access to Hospice care. We are committed to ensuring that our fundraisers offer a positive experience to the public when interacting with them, and are friendly, professional and helpful.

If you have feedback or if you are unsure whether someone claiming to represent Mary Potter Hospice is an authorised fundraiser you can contact:

Penelope Esplin

Fundraiser – Regular Giving

Phone: 04 381 0189 or 021 897 980

Email: starlightcircle@marypotter.org.nz

For more information about the campaign, please visit the Regular Giving section on our website: www.marypotter.org.nz