My Perfect Family: Ebony Sinclair
Ebony Sinclair is a go-getter born with Achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism. Ebony and her husband Ge...
My Perfect Family:Fragile X
To discover you’re the carrier of the genetic condition Fragile X only after your children are born ...
My Perfect Family: Nash Jones
The Jones family’s life changed forever when their youngest boy Nash was diagnosed with a rare condi...
My Perfect Family
Exploring the day today lives of tight-knit families, who are managing complex or unusual conditions...
My Perfect Family: Lydia Golding
6-year-old Lydia Golding was born with her right femur bone significantly shorter than her left. In...
My Perfect Family: Hatty
Hatty Walton is a 13-year-old star on the show Mystic, who lives with a hearing impairment. Hatty ho...
My Perfect Family: Twins
For young mum Nikki Stokes being a mother of five means there's never a dull moment. With non-verbal...
My Perfect Family: Georgia Heard
Georgia Heard thought she had parenting all mapped out. But when the younger of her two boys was di...
My Perfect Family: Mahia & Tipene
Mahia and Tipene Stephens were born with a congenital eye disorder, causing their eyesight to deteri...
My Perfect Family: Harper Ahern
Since being diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy at age four, 10-year-old surfer Harper and his family ...
My Perfect Family: Meet the Asners
They call themselves the "The Brady Bunch of Autism". Descendants of Hollywood royalty, Matt and Nav...
My Perfect Family: Kat and Ella
Kat Yearbury is a mother to two-year-old Frankie and six-year-old Ella, who has Cerebral Palsy and E...
My Perfect Family: The Priestleys
Four of the six Priestley family members live with Autism. Because they’re able to function at a hig...
My Perfect Family: No Respite
Life during a pandemic is a challenge for all parents with kids at home. But for parents whose child...
My Perfect Family: Kim Preston
Raising three boys is always a big task, especially when two of them have severe autism. But Kim Pre...
My Perfect Family: Zoe
Zoe Tate lives with Wolf-Hirschhorn Syndrome, a genetic disorder affecting her appearance, growth an...
My Perfect Family: Hunter
Hunter McGregor is a passionate gamer, a design school graduate, and he runs a B&B with his mum, Roi...
My Perfect Family: Jaxon Woolley
15 year old Jaxon Woolley is already blitzing through para-sprinting records. An athlete to watch, J...
My Perfect Family: Max and Grace
Siblings Max and Grace are off on a road trip to Queenstown, putting Max's independence to the test ...
My Perfect Family: Friedreich's Ataxia
Preparing for a 30th birthday is a big deal in the Boon family. Three out of five siblings live with...
My Perfect Family: Courtenay
Demar Gear was just five months old when she contracted meningitis, leaving her unable to walk or ta...
My Perfect Family: Tara Aumalesulu
Nine year old Tara is launching her very first album, Pele O Lo’u Fatu. Living with visual impairmen...
My Perfect Family: The Fergusons Part 2
Last week we met the Fergusons, a family of five who communicate using NZSL. Here, we join the Fergu...
My Perfect Family: OCD
For two teenage sisters living with OCD, the world can often be an uncertain and scary place. In the...
My Perfect Family: Grace Payne
Grace Payne is a powerlifter who has competed in the Special Olympics as an autistic athlete. Now, 2...
Brothers and Sisters
The unique perspective of those closest to us, our brothers and sisters.
My Perfect Family: Creative Clan
Ranger Ashurst is eleven and needs regular injections to control his Chrone's disease, his eight yea...
My Perfect Family: Tri Rugby
For members of Christchurch's Tri Rugby team - who live with intellectual disabilities - rugby is mo...
My Perfect Family: Bold As Brass
As New Zealanders living in Australia, Abbi and Morgan Brass received no government support when the...
My Perfect Family: The Fergusons Part 1
The Fergusons are an average family of five; they have fun, they fight, but mostly they get along. ...
My Perfect Family: Jo & Leon
Young doctor Jo Scott’s career was on the rise when a brain haemorrhage changed her life. Seven year...
My Perfect Family: Perrones
Young anime artist Bee Perrone lives with the rare condition, Ivemark Syndrome. Understanding this i...
My Perfect Family: Little People
The 50th annual conference for Little People of New Zealand (LPNZ) is fast approaching, and 27-year-...
My Perfect Family: Southland Lockdown
Awards Night is the highlight of the social calendar for a vulnerable workforce at Southland Disabil...
My Perfect Family: CDKL5
Learning your new baby has a complex rare condition is life altering. Three Mums connect over their ...
My Perfect Family: Malaena Cariño
12-year-old Malaena Cariño has a rare genetic form of epilepsy. Her whānau have exhausted most treat...
My Perfect Family: Martine
Blind since birth, Martine Able-Williamson is now a global leader in the blind community. In this i...
My Perfect Family: Cystic Sisters
Kristy and Nikki are sisters and young mums who bring smiles to the faces of strangers by doing surp...
My Perfect Family: Sam and Jason
Sam lost her sight as a baby due to meningitis, and her husband Jason has limited vision due to a ge...
My Perfect Family: Alex
Performance is in the Walsh family’s DNA. When their youngest son Alex was born with Down syndrome, ...
My Perfect Family: Tiffiney Perry
Always an active person, Tiffiney Perry continued participating in sports and achieving success afte...
My Perfect Family: Family Man Graeme
When Graeme Porter was diagnosed with an intellectual disability as a child no one expected him to r...
My Perfect Family: Scruff's Bunch
Kim Preston (Scruff) reckon's she'll be caring for her three adult sons with Autism until she 'carks...
My Perfect Family: Candle Dad
Raising four children alone is a challenge - more so, when two have Down Syndrome. Tony Sykes rose t...
My Perfect Family: Southland
Southland Disability Enterprises employs over 80 people who live with a disability. For Mary-Ellen J...
My Perfect Family: Melody
Within just one year Melody entirely lost her vision, gave birth to her first child, and left her ho...
My Perfect Family: Welcome Home Stevie
Murray and Janine's son Steven was a gentle boy with autism. 18 months ago he left their house with ...
After three years of planning and saving, the Ferguson family have gone to World Federation for the Deaf (WFD) congress in Paris, France. It is an important event to them for a number of reasons.
Zoe has always dreamed of going to Paris and now she is there she can’t wrap her head around it.
“Coming here to see the Eiffel tower is kind of weird but in a good way, sort of unreal but real at the same time.”
“Coming here to see the Eiffel tower is kind of weird but in a good way, sort of unreal but real at the same time.”
Zoe, her dad Oliver, and youngest brother Carter are deaf. Her middle brother Elijah and mum Bridget are hearing and can use New Zealand Sign Language.
The three-week trip via London is a chance for Zoe to give Europe a test-run before she decides to join the Frontrunners program in Denmark after leaving school.
She is shadowing the current youth president of Frontrunners and family friend, Mark Berry and looking to follow in his footsteps.
Mark’s role includes planning travel, teaching students about media and linguistics and creating conversation around Deaf Rights. He also works with the youth sector in WFD and around the world.
17-year-old Zoe has recently become interested in advocacy and is working to bring together Deaf youth in New Zealand.
Bridget is there to present ‘First Signs’, a unique New Zealand signing course.
She was very nervous, but felt it went well as people came up at the end to ask questions about how they could implement it in their countries.
For Oliver, who is the president of the executive board of the New Zealand Deaf Foundation, the trip is an opportunity to pitch the country as host for the next congress in 2023.
“I’m nervous and excited. We are the only organisation and country with a full week celebrating New Zealand Sign Language.”
Unfortunately for Oliver of the four contending countries, Korea won. Oliver was disappointed but had to remember the driving force of the project.
“Supporting WFD is the priority, whether you win or lose.”
Yet he is still proud of the progress of the New Zealand government. He believes they go from strength to strength with improvements in the Deaf sector.
For Zoe, this trip has only boosted her confidence about the Frontrunners course and she is excited to look into applying for it.
My Perfect Family: The Fergusons Part 1
The Fergusons are an average family of five; they have fun, they fight, but mostly they get along. ...
My Perfect Family: The Fergusons Part 1
The Fergusons are an average family of five; they have fun, they fight, but mostly they get along. ...
My Deaf Parents
Parents and teenagers don't always see eye to eye, but what if they speak a different language? This...
Dean Finds His Voice
Eighteen-year-old Dean Buckley has overcome serious health issues, depression and the judgments of o...
Being Me: Heather
As Heather Lawson turns heads while walking the streets of Melbourne with her dressed-up walking can...
Parenting by Sign
Sarah is Deaf and preparing to give birth to her first child. Having been there twice before, Deaf p...
Hear Me Run
Sekou Kenneh is the fastest kid in Queensland. At 14 he's got his eye on the 2020 Olympics. But bein...
Marcia: Two Sides Of Me
On the Roller Derby court she's the revered 'Meat Train', but Marcia is starting to lose her hearing...
My Perfect Family: The Fergusons Part 2
Last week we met the Fergusons, a family of five who communicate using NZSL. Here, we join the Fergu...
My Perfect Family: The Fergusons Part 2
Last week we met the Fergusons, a family of five who communicate using NZSL. Here, we join the Fergu...
Being Me: Sarah
Though born with CHARGE syndrome, 22-year-old Sarah Dalton doesn’t let it define her. She’s an avid ...
Amanda Cameron
Twenty-year-old Architectural Technology student Amanda Cameron can't help but smile since she's lea...
Brothers and Sisters
The unique perspective of those closest to us, our brothers and sisters.
Lip Service: The Third Language
Why should you learn sign language? Getting to know a dynamic young guy like Mark Berry is one reaso...
Inside Outside: Rachel Berry
Rachel Berry lives with her flatmates in Christchurch, where they’re often out exploring. Three out ...
Being Me: Jared Flitcroft
Jared Flitcroft is a filmmaker, businessman, family man, and he is Deaf. Overcoming barriers to achi...
