He aituā! Kua mate a Meagan Joe, President Māori Womens Welfare League
He aituā! He aituā!
Oioi te whenua! Oioi te pō! Oioi te ao!
Tākiri manawa ki runga ki te rangi!
Tākiri manawa ki raro ki te whenua!
Ki te ara whano ki te pō!
Te pō nui! Te pō roa! Te pō kerekere!
Te pō tiwhatiwha! Te pō matirerau!
Te whaiwhai ariki!
Ka maranga ki runga o Ranginui, o Rangiroa, o Rangiwheturau!
Takoto mai rā i roto i tō whare taua!
Ka mokaia ngā tai mihimihi, ka pania te iwi e!
Kua mate rā a Laurice Meagan Joe, te perehitīni o Te Roopu Wāhine Māori Toko I Te Ora. Kua roa e pāngia ana e te mate, ā
nō te weherua i huri atu ai ki Hokinga-kore-ki-muri tē hoki mai anō ai.
I whānau mai a Laurice (Meagan) Joe i Ahuriri. Ko ngā hapū o tōna pāpā a Dennis Hēnare Joe, ko Ngāti Pāhauwera, ko Ngāti
Te Kōhera (Ngāti Tūwharetoa) me Ngāi Te Māhurehure (Tūhoe). Ko tōna māmā a Te Maari Joe, nō Ngāi Tai ki Tōrere, Ngāti
Hikairo (Ngāti Tūwharetoa), Ngāti Hineuru ki Te Hāroto me Ngāti Hinepare ki Mōteo.
I tipu mai a Meagan i Mōteo. Ka whitu tōna pakeke, ka nuku mai tōna whānau ki te tāone o Ōtātara nei noho ai. I kuraina
a ia i te kura o Taradale me te kura tuarua o Hukarere. Mutu ana, ka haere ia ki Ākarana ki Ardmore Teacher’s College,
ā, ka tū nā hei kaiwhakaako, arā, i Pōneke, Pāmutana, Waiōuru, i roto tonu o Ahuriri nei me Singapore, i te New Zealand
Forces School.
Kotahi tau te roa o tana noho hei kaiārahi mō ngā mahi o te Roopu Wahine Māori Toko i te Ora. Mai i tērā, ka meatia nā
hei Māori Advisor – Inclusive Services Special Education. Nō muri mai, ka riro i a ia te tūranga, Pouwhakataki mō te
Tāhūhū o te Mātauranga.
Nō te tau 2002, ka tohua a Megan kia noho hei kaitakawaenga mō Te Roopu Wāhine Māori Toko i te Ora, mō te takiwā o
Ikaroa. Ka hipa te toru tau, ā, ka tū nā hei Vice President mō ngā tau e toru. Ka haere, ā, nō te 2008, ka meatia ia hei
Perehitini ā-Motu mō Te Roopu Wāhine Māori Toko i Te Ora. Ko ia rā tēnā i te wā nei, ā, tae noa ki tā rātau hui ā-tau ki
Ahuriri nei hei te mutunga o tēnei tau.
Nō te tau 2009 a Meagan i tau mai ai ki Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated ki te whakakaupapa i te tūranga Kahungunu
Cultural Standards. He tūnga rā tēnei, he mea whakamana tahi e Te Tāhūhū Mātauranga rāua ko Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc.
Koinei te Kahungunu Cultural Standards Project, arā, hei whakatutuki i ngā whāinga o te Iwi, arā, kia noho tonu ko ngā
hītori, ko te ahurea, ko te reo Māori me ngā tikanga o Ngāti Kahungunu tonu hei tāhūhū mō ngā mahi ako i ngā kura
kōhungahunga me ngā kura auraki o te rohe. Ko tōna kaupapa, kia angitū ā tātau tamariki Māori i roto i ngā mahi
mātauranga, ā, kia ekea hoki ngā taumata e tika ana. E te tuahine, e te pakihiwi kaha, kāre i ārikarika ngā mihi.
Sadly Meagan Joe, the President of the Maori Womens Welfare League has passed away. She has long been sick and passed
away in the early hours of this morning.
Laurice Meagan was born in Napier in 1953. She is of Ngāti Pāhauwera, Ngāti Te Kōhera (Ngāti Tūwharetoa), Ngāi Te
Māhurehure (Tūhoe), Ngāi Tai ki Tōrere, Ngāti Hikairo (Ngāti Tūwharetoa), Ngāti Hineuru ki Te Hāroto and Ngāti Hinepare
ki Mōteo descent.
Meagan was raised in Moteo, Hawke’s Bay. When she was seven years old her whānau moved to Taradale where she attended
Primary School and later Hukarere Māori Girls College. She went on to train to become a teacher at Ardmore Teachers
College. She taught in Wellington. Palmerston North, Waiōuru, Napier and in Singapore at the New Zealand Forces School.
Meagan worked extensively in the Māori Womens Welfare League. Her roles included Māori Advisor – Inclusive Services
Special Education. She was later employed by the Ministry of Education as the Pouwhakataki mō te Tāhūhū o te Mātauranga.
In 2002 Meagan was nominated as the Ikaroa delegate for the Māori Womens Welfare League. She became the Vice President
for three years and in 2008 she was elected National President of the Māori Womens Welfare League. Her three year term
was due to end in August 2011.
In 2009 Meagan was seconded by the Ministry of Education to Ngāti Kahungunu iwi Incorporated to develop and manage the
Ngāti Kahungunu Cultural Standards (KCS) project. The aim of the project is to strengthen the relationship between main
stream schools and local hapū to ensure local hapū knowledge is embedded in school curriculums. The KCS Project enhances
Māori Education success. Meagan worked tirelessly toward the aims and goals of this project right up to the time of her
passing. She will be greatly missed.
Meagan will arrive at Pukemokimoki at 2pm Wednesday 27th July where she will remain until Friday noon. On Friday 29th
July Meagan will be taken to
Waipapa-ā-Iwi Marae, Mōhaka, where she will be buried at 11am Saturday 30th July 2011.
Ka waiho ake rā mā tēnei waiata i titoa mōna hei whakatepe i ēnei mihimihi ki a ia:
This song was composed especially for Meagan.
Tērā te rā te kokomea
Ka hoki ana ki te rua
Pūkatokato te ao
Tiaho mai a Rēhua
Kia ui noa ake te ngākau?
He aha nōu? He aha nōu?
Auē tē uruparetia!
Waiwai ana ngā karu
I te tirohanga atu
Tangata ākona i te kāinga
Tū ana ki te marae - tau ana
Kua kore rā tō momo
Tūwhitia te hopo!
Aue, me aha rā?
Ko koe he wahine marae
He wahine rerehua
Tē kitea anō ai
Puritia ngā rau mahara
Inā huri tō waka
E kore rā e mokemoke
Auē, he ao anō kei tua!
Mā te wā anō tātau
E tūtaki anō ai
Ehara tēnei i te haere rā
Kia kī noa ake hei raurangi
Tauhōkaitia ana
Ki reira taukapo mai ai
Auē, hei raurangi e!