11/09/2024
The noho was a wonderful opportunity for the C4C group to be together before the closing of the current programme.
For many of the tamariki and mentors this was the first time they had experienced a pōwhiri, which they described as an honour and privilege to be part of.
Kirsty and her 20 year old son Reuben played a major part of the process/tikanga. Kirsty returned the karanga on our behalf (the visiting tribe) and Reuben was our spokesperson once we were on the paepae. The paepae in this case was the wharenui as it was raining.
Reuben later on explained the korero that was spoken at the pōwhiri and Paora Trim gave a riveting talk about the history of the marae. I don't think either of them really wanted to leave the noho!
Reuben took the group through a couple of different activities including making their own tiaha for the Ariki game. This opportunity meant some of our mentees that struggled at other group events or did not really like to get totally involved, were shining! The Arikik game can be quite brutal, but Reuben managed some over-exuberant participants very well. It was wonderful that in the end the losers won the event -namely Tania! Tania who has back issues and takes painkillers- couldn't be stopped, she did suffer for it but said it was worthwhile.
A couple of the tamariki did not stay the night for various reasons with one becoming quite unwell and was taken home by Jo. Jo didn't need to stay the night but came back anyway! The comments at the end of the event were things like Arikik being the favourite, many felt the tikanga learning was most special, one mentor (Corran) said he had never been welcomed onto a marae and he felt this was very, very special. Tania who is Maori but has not experienced much in the way of tikanaga was also overcome with emotion and felt very blessed to have had the opportunity.
There was a lot of organisation for the noho to run smoothly, however it was felt this was well worth it with the impact that this event had on the C4C group. It was really informative to see the difference in behaviour and involvement from the tamariki compared to the camp at the beginning of the programme. You could see the growth in the tamariki, their relationship with their mentor and a general growth in personality which showed in the respect for Paora, Kirsty and Reuben and the tikanga and wairua of the event. Some of the more over-active or difficult mentees were more considered in the way they behaved-- and showed more consideration for others- they did not need to over-act to get attention.
