Justice takes a wider role in Kawakawa

Tu Tangata, Issue 11, 1 April 1983, Page 30

Justice takes a wider role in Kawakawa

Wigged judges and learned counsel are rarely seen in the Kawakawa courthouse, that is unless they want to learn how to carve bone or weave flax. Because you see the Kawakawa courthouse is now the Community house. Co-ordinator, Lori Dodds says the changearound was due to a community survey carried out by volunteers to establish community needs. From this survey the need for a community centre was evident and with the practical, financial and moral support of the Justice Department, the Kawakawa courthouse assumed a new role. “We aim to provide people with mental, social and physical support and the climate to learn new skills as well,” says Lori Dodds. Local writer Ani Hona-Bosch compiled this report for Tu Tangata.

The activities offered by the House are proudly posted on the notice board, and every day is accounted for. I was interested in two of the classes the Bone Carving on Mondays and the Flax Weaving on open day, Thursday. Lori went on to say, “To establish a need for the community, we did a survey of fifty families from two country areas to establish problem areas. We had an 100% return, using six local interviewers. The sample were aged from 14 to 80 plus. Of these 50% were pakeha 40% were Maori and 10% classified themselves as Others, being part Maori. Their occupations ranged from students to professional. The full range. Three problem areas emerged. Stress and how to cope with it; Family budgetting and Marriage enhancement and by this they mean; How to make their marriages as a whole better and more satisfying. Perhaps this was the main area as it involved stress, family money and life. This House is for the people. It belongs to them not to the Justice department or the Health department. It is a place where they can drop in for a chat a cuppa or a rest. It is also a place

where they can have a go at the activities offered. We are offering a Marae type situation and there is a lot that goes on here that can and do involve people. We have a nursery or play room and other facilities. Although we are involved with redecorating at the moment, the House is still being used. We’ve had good publicity from our local papers, yet there are still those that don’t know we exist.” I returned for the Monday class of bone carving and met the people for whom the house was named. To the sound of bone being sawn and filed, I became aware of what Lori meant when she said, “people need to be involved. To work together and side by side.” I met the weaving tutor learning to carve bone from a young man. People encouraged each other and praised each others work. The House hummed with the sound of people. I remembered Lori’s words of the interview. “We suspected that there were homes around that had a lot of stress in

it as part of their life style. There had to be. With the economic climate of today, children not knowing where they were going or what they were going to do jobwise, there had to be. We didn’t think the survey would show this up so strongly. To provide some answers to these questions, we hope to run support groups with speakers and caring people to advise those who need help!” Lori sees her role as that of a coordinator. “I am merely a shadowy figure in the background. I make sure that the House is used and used fully and that my voluntary workers are happy. If they are happy then those that come here will be too. We have a steering committee who meet regularly. We have a co-ordinator who looks after the play room an activities co-ordinator and I look after all the others. We involve the local college students and we have local people who spend a lot of time working around here. We have been open since May 1982. In that time I have often wondered if we are heading in the right direction in terms of our fulfilling a need. I think it is happening, but it’s happening slowly. The most satisfying thing that I personally did was when last year, I taught

a Maori lady how to do taniko weaving. She came to the House to find someone to teach her and I was here. A Pakeha woman teaching a Maori woman. She has since made three taniko belts.

I believe that if the voluntary workers were paid workers, they would give better service, work harder and feel their worth.”

Lori is well respected and loved. She was described by many I spoke to as ‘sincere, caring and a very good person.’

This is a Community effort for a community need. Their house belongs to them. The programmes will only stand as strong as the people make it. Yet, it stands. Kia kaha, kia u, kia manawanui.

One of the people teaching weaving in the Community House is Ngapuhi Brown. Ani Bosch talked to her about early-life in the area.

AnirKo tetahi o nga kai mahi o te Community House i Kawakawa, ko Mrs Ngapuhi Brown o Pokapu He kainga kei muri atu i Otiria. Ko tenei wahine i whanau ki Pipiwai i te tau 1931, na no muri ake i te matenga o tana papa, ka haere ratou ki Motatau, a i reira ia e tupu ake ana, He wahine i tupu ake i roto, a, i waenganui hoki i te reo rangatira nei i te reo Maori. Ngapuhi “There were 11 of us in our family, six girls and five boys. I’m the second to last. Anyway, ko te reo Maori tonu to matou reo i te kainga. Ko te korero hoki, 12 years koe e haere ai ki te kura kite ako i te reo Pakeha. Tae mai koe kite kainga, korero Maori”. I a maua e korero ana, e rere ana nga ringa ote wahine nei kite whiri potae korari. Ko nga korari ko te variegated a te Pakeha. Koia hoki tana mahi i konei. He whakako i te tangata, wahine ranei kite whiriwhiri korari. Tokorua ana tamahine i tana taha. Kua mohio ke ki tenei mahi. Ani:Ka patai atu au ki a Ngapuhi, “Ka mutu, na wai ke koe i whakako ki tenei mahi?” Ngapuhi:“Na taku mama ano ra hoki. E nohinohi ana ano au, ko taku mahi he wati (matakitaki) i a ia e mahi ana. No tetahi ra, ka patai penei mai ia. ‘Hena, e hiahia ana koe mau tenei mahi e ko?’ Ka penei atu au, ‘Homai koa kia tarai ake au?’ Pai tena. Kua mohio koe, kua mohio katoa o hoa kite whiri korari i a koe iaianei’.

Na, koina taku mahi, he whakako. I tetahi ra, ka noho maua ko taku hoa i te taha ote rori i Pokapu kite mahi paro. Pai mutunga a Lori kite mahi nei. Kihai i roa, patere ana a maua paro mo ta matou hangi hei mahi moni mo te Community House nei. Ani:Ka hoki ano ana korero mo nga ra i a ia i te kura o Motatau.

Ngapuhi: “I aua ra, hore kau ke matou i whakaetia kia korero Maori i te kura. Mahara ana ahau ki aua ra. No te taenga mai o te Maori Culture, katahi ano matou ka waiata i nga poi, te haka mete waiata-a-ringa. Ko Miss Paraha, ara, Mrs Witehira ra iaianei, raua ko Bill Hohepa. Pai noiho ta raua korero Maori. Engari matou nga tamariki, kore rawa.”

Miss Ngapuhi Hoterene married Pouwhare Tiari Brown in Pokapu in 1952. She says, “I have lived there all my married life. We never left the farm, and they have been my happiest years too. We have 10 children, four girls and six boys. The eldest would be 30 now if he was alive, my youngest is 13.”

When I first met Mrs Brown, she was in the Bone carving class. She was actually trying to saw through a piece of whale bone, and had started her piece of carving. I asked her how she came to be the tutor for weaving.

She replied, “Since Lori grabbed me in the street. I’ve been here since the beginning. I love it too.”

So Mrs Ngapuhi Brown has become a vital part of the Community House and it’s band of dedicated workers. A woman who is quiet, caring and comfortable to be with and near. To people like her, and her kind, “I thank you for allowing this story to be printed, these photographs to be shown and most of all, mo to aroha kia matou e rapu nei i nga taonga tuku iho a nga matua, a nga tupuna. Tena koutou katoa.”

“E hoki ki o maunga kia purea koe e nga hau o Tawhirimatea! Te korero e whai ake nei, he korero e pa ana ki nga ingoa o te wa kainga mai i Te Wainui tae noa ki Matauri. Tu ana ahau i runga i te pa, Kauae-o-te-rangi. E ai ki nga korero a kui ma, a koro ma. “Ko Kauae-o-te-rangi te kanohi o te iwi nei o Ngati Ruamahue,” Korua ko to tapu. Ngutukoi, nga torere o mua. Ka korewha oku kanohi, a, ka tau taku titiro ki runga i a koe e Maungatu-pohatu, te matapuna o te awa Whitirau. Heke iho ahau i roto i nga roimata o Ranginui e maringi ana i runga i a Papatuanuku. Aue, taukuri te mamae! Ka tere ahau i runga i te ripo o Whitirau, tae atu kite awa Ngamoki. Ka huri, ka rere, ka pirori, pahure atu i a koe ete tupuna whare, mete papa kainga o te iwi o Te Wainui, Ngati Ruamahue. Haere tonu ahau, a, ka puta atu i te korokoro o Ngamoko i te taha o te pa Te Rawhitiroa. I huiana ia e ratou ko Te Rawhitiroa, na te mea “Whakapaetonuhia kia puta te ra, e kore e ngaro, a, torongi noa kite moana.”

Ko te onepu o Te Pahi ki taku taha maui, a ko Motupareira tera e tu mokemoke ana i waho. Ka kake ahau ki runga i toku waka, a, ka hoe. Piri tonu ahau ki nga pari o Te Rawhitiroa, a, ka hipa te one o Piapia. Haere tonu a ka kite ahau i a koe e Te Kauri, e Omorere me koe noki e Paihia, nga kete kaimoana o te iwi. Ka paea ahau ki uta i runga i nga ngaru o Tangaroa. Ka tau, ko te kuaha o te takotoranga tuturu o oku koiwi tupuna. Moe mai e koro e Maru i te moengaroa. Moe mai ra i roto i nga pirautanga o te ao kohatu. Haere, haere, haere atu ra. Ka titiro atu ahau ki roto o te awaawa o Te Ngaere te kainga o te iwi Ngai Tupango. Oho ake ahau, ka timotimo haere ko te huarahi o oku tupuna, tae noa atu kite marae kainga o te iwi nei. Huri taku haere kite rawhiti, ko Whakarara tera maunga, nga torere puritanga koiwi a ratou ma. Ka rere ahau ki reira, a, katahi ka anga taku haere ki nga hiwi, a, ka whai i te taupae i te tarawhenua, tae atu kite pa Te Tapui, te pa o te iwi Ngati Kawau. Whakaeke ahau i te marae rongonui ko Ngapuhi. E hoki ana oku mahara ki nga ra o mua ki tau ingoa ake Ngapuhi Taniwharau, a, kite whakatauki nei,

“Ko Matauri te kainga Te Tapui te marae Ngapuhi te whare.” Ka kopikopiko taku haere kite wahi takoto o ratou ma kua pahure atu ki tua o te arai. Ko te tinana tena o toku tupuna he mea tanu ki roto i a Whakauruuruhau. E Papa, e Ruru. E kore e taea te whakatakoto kupu mo nga whakaaro i roto i taku ngakau. Na reira, e Papa. Moe mai ra koe, moe mai, moe mai ra. Ka whai atu ahau i te huarahi ki raro, a, tae atu ko te moana o Matauri. Ka kanuku ahau ki roto i te moana. Powhiri kau ra nga ringa rapa o te rimu. E noho ra koutou. Ma te ia o te moana ahau e kawe ki waho o Waiaua. Ka tau ake ahau ki runga o Kiha te kohatu i takea mai enei kupu pepeha. “E hara kiha whitinga ra A patao Mapuna, ko te ripo kau tau o te moana e kite ai.” Katahi ko matoto ahau ki waho ra i runga i te ia, hei poi ma nga ngaru, ki nga ringa e tuwhera mai ana o ratou ma. Na Tuihana Hona nei.