Kāi Tahu whānui, tēnā koutou katoa! Nei rā te mihi manahau o Kāti Māhaki ki Makaawhio ki a koutou.
Nei rā hoki te mihi poroporoaki ki kā mate huhua kua hika mai, kua hika atu. Ki a rātou o ia whānau, ia hapū, ia iwi kua haere atu ki tua o te ārai, haere, haere, haere atu rā. Moe mai koutou i te rakimārie. Rātou ki a rātou, tātou anō ki a tātou.
Tēnā anō tātou katoa. The weather continues to be unsettled here on Te Tai o Poutini with rain and wintery blasts interspersed with mild and warm spells.
Our first Hākari Kaumātua at the marae was a great success and we have had a steady flow of manuhiri at our marae. Unfortunately we had to postpone our Wānaka Marae, planned for Queens Birthday Weekend when a whānau illness called our tutors away. A new date will be set for summer.
Hākari Kaumātua
Our first kaumātua dinner on the marae, held on 10 May, was a great success. It was a new addition to our traditional kaumātua dinner held annually in Hokitika (where the majority of whānau live these days), and although there were the last minute withdrawals from a few locals, 16 kaumātua sat down to dinner.
Our wharekai Poke was sparkling and looking at its most beautiful, thanks to the decorations and fineries provided by the Wallace whānau. They carried an aotea-colour theme throughout and the result was memorable.
Just as memorable was the kai from Chez Karamea (aka Kara Edwards) – from the ‘horse durvs’ of whitebait, pāua patties and crayfish mornay to chicken and mushroom canapés, seafood chowder followed by a mains of glazed ham and roast beef, roasties, honey glazed carrots and all the trimmings. Served with a side dish of tītī and repi (Māori potatoes from Makaawhio).There wasn’t a lot of room for the five choices of delicious desserts.
We had our rangatahi and kōtiro waiting on the tables and the celebrations continued with the guitars around the ‘ahi kā’ fire pit, with well-deserved marshmallows for the tamariki. Altogether, tino pai rawa atu.
Sunday of course, was Mother’s Day, and we celebrated this with a champagne breakfast at the marae for all the mums – porridge and cream, followed by bacon and eggs, whitebait and pāua.
Neville Tahuaroa, Richard Wallace and Paul Wilson, Mother’s Day chefs.
Happy Mothers’ Day.
Kaumātua taking a break between courses.
The main kitchen crew, Rachael Forsyth, left, Susan Wallace, Chez Karamea, Helen and Ian Rasmussen (obscured).
Maramataka
We have a number of wānaka and hui coming up over the next few months, so please save the dates, mark your calendars Nau mai, haere mai.
Wero Mātauraka-Winter Reading Challenge
The winter reading challenge (5-20 Toru – July), requires tamariki and rangatahi to read each day of the school holidays, marking off a form to confirm their participation.
There’s no criteria on what you read or an expectation that you read a book each day, just that you set aside time to read each day. Every entry receives a prize and all go into a draw for the major prizes. Contact the office for entry forms.
Communication
You can keep up-to-date with what’s happening via our web site: www.makaawhio.maori.nz, on Facebook, at makaawhio.blogspot.co.nz, on Twitter: @makaawhio, or pick up the phone and give us a call on phone 03 755 7885 or 0800 955 007.
Finally, we have a long list of members who have not updated their contact details and for whom we have been receiving returned mail. Please contact the office if you need to update your details or want to discuss anything. Mā te Atua koutou e manaaki, e tiaki hoki. Mauri ora.