Clan Matheson in New Zealand is now on a firm footing for the future, as it is a legal entity rather than an unincorporated society as before.
The legal entity is a trust that has been incorporated as a charitable trust board. The three trustees are Andrew Matheson, Blair Matheson and Graeme Matheson.
The trust is a registered charity, which means that its charitable objectives have been officially recognised. People who donate money to it get a tax credit on the donation, and the trust doesn’t have to pay tax (for example on interest income).
The charitable purpose and objects of the trust are to:
(a) protect, preserve, enhance and promote the history and heritage of Clan Matheson for the educational and recreational benefit of the public
(b) encourage and support research, investigation and preservation of Scottish heritage, history and culture, particularly as it relates to Clan Matheson in Scotland and wherever in the world descendants have migrated
(c) encourage and support the study of genealogy, family history and personal heritage through promotion, information-sharing, training and preservation of material in oral, written or any other form
(d) record, publish and otherwise disseminate the heritage, history and culture of Clan Matheson
(e) promote fellowship and awareness of kinship between all present day descendants of Clan Matheson
(f) provide continuance of interests in perpetuity for the non-incorporated group originally established as the New Zealand branch of the Clan Matheson Society
(g) establish, maintain and administer a fund of money for the use of the trust
(h) work collaboratively with the Clan Matheson Society and its branches anywhere in the world
(i) work collaboratively with other Scottish clan organisations, Caledonian and Highland game societies and family history organisations, to further the objects of the trust.
You can read the trust’s first performance report to Charities Services here.
Clan Matheson New Zealand
Trustees: Andrew Matheson, Blair Matheson, Graeme Matheson
New Zealand Business Number: 9429050807970
Registered charity: CC60849
Contact: trust@clanmatheson.org.nz