On 13 January, myself and four rangatahi – Liam Ellison, Te Anahera Parata, Te Anihana Anderson and Whaipono Herewini, started our trip up to Te Taitimu Camp, held at Camp David near Hastings.
The pōwhiri and the rangatahi on the Mōhaka River featured on the news. And you will be able to see it later in the year on a new TV series that Nigel Latta is making, as he was doing a story on Zack and Georgina Makaare.
The first day everyone went off to Waipukurau pools. It took four big buses to get everyone there. Water safety is a big part of these camps so they learn how to stay afloat and stay alive.
They also had Ōtāne and Hastings Fire Service teaching Firewise, ki-o-rahi going on in the gym and other fun stuff to fill in the day. The second day was at Waimorama Beach.
Workshops included surfing, surf life-saving, sustainable thinking and beyond, and more ki-o-rahi. We had a BBQ tea at the beach and Te Ururoa Flavell from the Māori Party came to have a talk with the tamariki and have dinner with us. We got back to camp around 9pm that night so there were some very tired tamariki when we finally got to bed.
Day three was based at camp with workshops on E Tū Whānau and the NZ Police. After lunch it was time to work on skits for that night’s entertainment. The theme was around water safety and was presented by Te Hāmua Nikora, a very funny man. He used to host Homai te Paki Paki. Then we watched the slide show of the camp (you can watch this on Te Taitimu Trust Facebook page or on YouTube).
The last day of camp was clean-up, prize-giving and the poroporoaki. Our last night in Hawkes Bay was spent at Pukehou Marae with the Hawaiian crew and TTT whānau. The next day we started our journey back home, stopping in Wellington and Cheviot to break-up the drive.
This year, I was in the kitchen instead of being a group mentor (I’ve earned my stripes apparently) and Liam Ellison and Te Anahera Parata have joined the new rangatahi leadership team. This will involve them going to Hawkes Bay a couple of times a year for wānanga with the futures group. We will also try and get them to the World Indigenous Youth Summit in June. All in all this was another great, well run camp. Nā, Aroha Ellison
Te Hāmua Nikora, Liam Ellison and Rob Hewitt at the camp.
The Ōtepoti crew at Te Tai Timu Trust’s school holiday programme in Hastings. From left, Dan Wallwork, Aroha Ellison, Sam Feeney, Whaipono Herewini, Tom McFarlane, Liam Ellison, Te Anihana Anderson, Chanel Phillips. Front, Te Anahera Parata.
Nigel Latta with Liam Ellison.