He tau koe i whakatara nei i te hunga, i whakawehi nei i te rahi, i whakapōrauraha nei i te mano, erangi tonu, kua whawhaotia te puna mōhiotanga me te puna wheako e koe.
He maunga tūparipari e whēuaua ana te piki, a nāwai rā, kua tae ki te tihi. Mai i te anga whakamuri, ko ngā taimaha hārukiruki, waiho i konā, a, ki te anga whakamua, ma ērā wheako katoa tātou e arahi, e turuki.
He ao te rangi ka uhia, he kai te whare wānanga ka tōroa.
Nō reiraka – e te tau hou, whakatau mai rā. Kei kōnei mātou e rite ana mō ngā ahuatanga katoa ka puaki.
He mihi ki a koe e te tau hou me te whakatenatena hoki, kia pūharu rā koe, kia ora ai tātou
Tīhei mauri ora, tīhei whānau ora!
2020 was a year which challenged us, scared and confused us but ultimately you taught us about ourselves, our relationships and our ability to reach out help – and receive help too.
Now as we turn to face you the new year – we use those learnings to guide us and to make us stronger.
So, to the new year – here we are, ready to face what you bring us.
We greet you New Year and encourage you to be the best you can so we can be the best we can.
The roadway North from Kaikoura set my sights high, as I looked up towards Tapuae-o-Uenuku, our landscape adorned with the spiky defiance of the tī kōuka and the purple vibrance of the hebe. Setting our sights high is very much part of the commitments that I know so many of us are making in relation to 2021.
One of our Whanganui leaders, the late Rangitihi Rangiwaiata John Tahuparae, left behind a legacy of words that I find really encouraging. He said:
Ko au te taupa, kihai i puāwai ōku moemoea
I am the only boundary, to the fruition of my dreams
In many ways, this concept was epitomised through the utterances of well known artist, Fayne Robinson (Ngati Māmoe, Ngai Tahu, Ngati Apa ki te Rā Tō, Ngati Porou).
“Once you’ve created a standard, that standard is with you forever and anything you try you’ll always want it to be the best that it can be. But if you accept average, mediocare, then that’s all you’ll ever be. I think we are better than that”.
Fayne inspires us to aim high, to dream big. For Fayne, his dream was always to build his whare, contribute to his tribal legacy. And so it came to be that Fayne was able to carve Mahitahi in 2005 and Tūhuru at Arahura in 2014.
“It’ll be really cool for the generations to come to see that we didn’t stagnate, we were always trying to gain momentum, to gain knowledge, to better educate not only ourselves but others around us”. [Te Kai a te Rangatira, Leadership from the Māori world, 2020, Editors: Rawiri J Tapiata, Renee Smith and Marcus Akuhata Brown, pp 296-299]
In the spirit of new enterprise and renewed optimism, in this first blog of the year we want to share with you soe of the new initiatives that have been funded through Wave 12.
Cirko Kali
Ka tiripou taku manu kāhu ki te keokeonga a Aoraki, kua tae mai te kāhu ki te whakaraupō moana.
Juanita Hepi is a graduate of Toi Whakaari: NZ Drama School (Bachelor of Performing Arts, Acting). Their Wave 12 initiative, Cirko Kali, involves the creation of three performance shows, offering a glimpse into a past where generations of their tīpuna and ancestors have made their homes in and around the Ngāi Tahu takiwā of Te Waipounamu. The performance will be enhanced by music from the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra and devised using Cirque techniques with Māori components. One of the performances is for school children.
COVID has posed unimaginable hardships and difficulties especially with the entire theatre arts community being in limbo. Then our families and the hardships through losing mahi amidst this rocky time has been trying. This application seeks to bring a united glow in a much needed area of Māori theatre and sharing the positivity to our whānau whānui. The wellbeing of Māori in theatre across all artistic disciplines helps grow the wellbeing of our people to get excited about something uplifting, inspiring and whānau wholesome.
The Tūmahana kaupapa is focused on whānau by theatrically sharing a tūturu Kāi Tahu story. It’s an uplifting and special kaupapa that we want to ensure access is equitable for all Māori.
Book now: https://cso.co.nz/events/tumahana
Ōtākou Health
Ōtākou Health Ltd will provide the legal structure to support Hinerangi and Barry, two kaimahi who work tirelessly to support the needs of whānau. This funding will provide wages for Hinerangi and Barry to continue supporting whānau to nuture and care for their tamariki. This includes advocating on behalf of whānau who are involved with Oranga Tamariki.
Ngā Kaitiaki O Kaikōura Wātene Māori Trust
Ngā Kaitiaki O Kaikōura Wātene Māori Trust will hold wānanga to support whānau and rangatahi. They will also work one-on-one with whānau and rangatahi to help whānau deal with challenges and strengthen whānau resilience and their connection with their culture.
Mauria te Pono
Mauria te Pono in Nelson is an eight-week course for rangatahi in a farm setting with animal-based therapy included. For three hours per week the group will be immersed in animal interactions, care, group projects, connecting with whenua and enjoying natures treasures while also taking part in general farm duties. Individual sessions are available on request by group members if required.
The programme includes two overnight stays on the farm, one personal discovery night and one group celebration stay. Culminating in a full whanau gathering of celebration in recognition of believing in themselves.
Te Whare Puāwai O Tokomairaro
Te Whare Puāwai O Tokomairaro is leasing a community venue in Milton, with view to purchasing this whare. Te Whare Puāwai O Tokomairaro will run various activities from the whare, including pūna reo (one day a week). Other activities may include a raranga wānanga, establishing a maara kai, monthly whānau kai hui, learning how to put down hangi, establishing and building a community pātaka and hunting and gathering wānanga. They will create a safe space for whānau to come together to pursue their aspirations. The whare will also be used as a multifunctional event space which whānau and community groups can hire, a there is no marae in Milton
New Whanau Ora Navigator:from Mohua, for Mohua
This week’s special features comes from The Golden Bay Weekly – 24 December 2020; published on Dec 22, 2020
“It’s helping whanau to thrive, not just survive,” says Taria Mason, Golden Bay’s new Whanau Ora Navigator. Photo: Ronnie Short.
Manawhenua ki Mohua has recently employed Taria Mason as Whanau Ora Navigator for Golden Bay. Taria is of Ngati Tama, Te Atiawa and Te Arawa descent and grew up in Mohua, where she is affiliated to two of the three iwi of the area. This has helped Taria with the process, connections and engagement needed to do her job. She works from home, although the Onetahua Marae provides a base if she needs it.
The ultimate concept of Whanau Ora is people and agencies working collaboratively to meet the health, social and educational needs of whanau. It’s about whanau being
supported to take control of their future. “It’s helping whanau to thrive, not just survive,” Taria explained. Kaiarahi (navigators) play a major role in Whanau Ora (family health). They work closely with whanau to identify their specific needs and aspirations, then help align them with the services, education providers or employment and business opportunities to best meet those needs. Referrals come from Mohua Social Services, direct from whanau, together with police, schools, word-of-mouth, Te Whare Mahana and Golden Bay Community Health.
“It’s not necessarily a crisis-type intervention, although whanau do come to us in crisis. The key focus is to support them to build their own skill set and use the strengths within the whanau to prevent further crisis,” said Taria.
Taria gained more insight into the diversity of her role when she connected with all 100+ South Island Kaiarahi at a hui in Dunedin. There are Kaiarahi working with whanau in the community, in prisons, Women’s Refuge, Oranga Tamariki (Child, Youth and Family) who are marae-based, iwi-based and agency-based.
The objectives of the Whanau Ora Kaiarahi are to guide whanau to be:
Pou tahi (1) Self-managing and empowered leaders
Pou rua (2) Leading healthy lifestyles
Pou toru (3) Participating fully in society
Pou wha (4) Confidently participating in te ao Māori (the Māori world)
Pou rima (5) Economically secure and successfully involved in wealth creation
Pou ono (6) Cohesive, resilient and nurturing
Pou whitu (7) Responsible stewards of their living and natural environments
Taria is very happy in her new role. “It’s a really lovely role and it’s just awesome that I can do it here in my own rohe (area) for my own iwi (tribal group), helping to elevate the wellbeing of whanau.”
New Year, new wave
We are on a mission to promote our latest round of funding Wave 13, which is now open. We know that whānau throughout Te Waipounamu have amazing ideas about how to overcome the challenges that face them, and to realise the aspirations they hold for themselves and their communities.
We want to connect them to the funding they need to create innovative solutions, so that they may flourish in their own image and on their own terms. Wave funding gives whānau the opportunity to do just that, by bringing their vision to life.
We would really appreciate your help in promoting this kaupapa to your networks across Te Waipounamu. We have included a link to our Facebook video which you can share on your own social media accounts.
He Rau Mahara: Mākete Po – Night Market
He Rau Mahara’ is a Māori night market event that is being held to commemorate the launch of the Te Āwhina Marae Book and the 30th anniversary of their wharenui Tūrangāpeke on Saturday the 9th of January 2021.
He Rau Mahara’ will be the first night market held at Te Āwhina marae, and will feature headline acts by Ria Hall, Pere Wihongi, Awatea Wihongi as well as several local Māori artists. ‘He Rau Mahara’ is a collaboration between Te Āwhina Marae, Ngāti Rārua Ātiawa Iwi Trust, Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Rārua, Te Ātiawa ki Te Waka a Māui Trust, Motueka Mai Tawhiti Kapa Haka and Te Puni Kōkiri. Te Pūtahitanga o Te Waipounamu is also proud to sponsor the event.
He Rau Mahara, the book launch for Te Awhina marae, will begin with a pōwhiri at 11am followed by the book launch and hākari. The night market will commence at 5pm and finish at 9pm. I hope to see many of you there!
