Interview with Danielle Amon

Interview with Danielle Amon, born at Helensville in 1951. Refers to growing up on a dairy farm near Kaitaia, moving to Hamilton to work in 1969, marrying, and managing a poultry farm. Mentions getting a job with the Probation Service in 1980, being promoted rapidly, and becoming Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages in Hamilton in 1982. Talks about the job managing a staff of four and a budget, and dealing with the public. Refers to moving to the larger Auckland office with a multicultural team. Comments on reactions to her as a young manager, managing the office as a business, and the need to respect other cultures. Mentions the Registrar's Office being moved from the Department of Justice to the Department of Internal Affairs in 1995. Comments on computerisation, increasing workloads, and staff being replaced with temps. Talks about relations between Head Office in Wellington and the generally younger staff in district offices. Comments on taking redundancy in the late 1990s during restructuring, and to never having called herself a public servant.

Refers to the procedures for registering births and deaths, and having the discretion to reject names. Comments on adoptions and the Adult Adoption Information Act. Explains the procedure for name changes by deed poll and difficulties for people under 20. Refers to the 1995 Births, Deaths & Marriages Act allowing birth certificates to be changed after a sex change. Describes changes in the registration books in the 1960s and 1970s, the process of indexing and searching, and the introduction of microfiche [indexes] in the 1990s. Refers to the lack of cross-referencing between births and deaths leading to some identity fraud. Mentions the introduction of electronic capture of registrations.

Discusses becoming a marriage celebrant and the reasons people married at a Registry Office.

Interviewer(s) - Megan Hutching

Arrangement: Tape numbers - OHC-015797 - OHC-015798

Quantity: 2 C60 cassette(s). 1 printed abstract(s). 1 interview(s). 1.59 Hours and minutes Duration.

Finding Aids: Abstract Available - abstracting complete OHA-5672.

Search dates: 1951 - 2005

Original recordings not available for playback. Surrogate copies will be provided.