Tūhono

The Matuaokore Whenua Trust was established in 2016 to connect whānau with their whenua.The Trust is working to gain access to their whenua in Tūranganui a Kiwa. The whenua has brought the whānau together and their journey has begun.

(Māori greeting)

Ko Papatu te maunga

Ko Te Arai te awa.

Jayden Hokianga – Matuaokore Descendent: On behalf of the iwi, my connection to this whenua was started I guess at the arrival of our waka.

Keiha Hokianga – Matuaokore Descendent: My mother and her parents and tipuna backwards, inherited that land and passed it on to us. We promised in our own way to take care of it. Whānau and whenua to me mean the same thing. So there’s not a lot of difference between those two words as far as I’m concerned.

Terri Hokianga – Matuaokore Descendent: I was lucky enough to go up the hill with all of our whānau earlier this year and it was beautiful to be up there and see my nanny especially on the whenua, and be able to be up there and reconnect with them.

Keiha: Reconnecting with the land, I’m never away from it. I might be physically away from it but here (touching his heart) and mentally I’m here. I’m on the land that my parents bequeathed to us.

Terri: And it’s important for the rangitahi who come after us and continue to come after us to have a place where they can put their feet down, have their roots and call home as well. No matter where they are in the world they can always come back to our whenua and feel like they’re connected to this whenua.