Offenders on community work sentences have spent six months helping to restore an East Tamaki marae‘s historic church that was gutted by fire 10 years ago.
The restoration of St Mary’s Church is one of a several projects Te Waka Totara Trust hopes will make Umupuia Marae, near Maraetai, a focal point for the local community.
At the end of last year, the Community Probation Service staff from Papakura were called in to help rebuild the Ngai Tai iwi’s traditional home at Umupuia – with excellent results.
Trust CEO James Brown says there aren’t enough people from the iwi alone to renovate and repair the buildings.
“We are a small iwi overloaded with a lot of mahi to complete,” says James. “Without the help of CPS work parties it just wouldn’t be done.”
The offenders began last August, returning to the marae more than ten times since. Native timbers were used to repair the firedamaged church, and the stained-glass window recovered from the fire has now been reinstated. Offenders have also helped with landscaping, fencing, and gardening around the church.
It’s hoped the church interior will be completed in time for the official opening ceremony at the end of April.
Before offenders started work on the church, James spoke to the group - welcoming the men to the marae and giving them a background to the significance of the work they were to undertake.
“It was important that they felt comfortable here at Umupuia and we wanted to make them feel it was just as much their place as ours.”
James says there is a strong will to regenerate the marae and the whanau decided to tackle the church restoration first because it represented the spirit of the marae.
“Once the wairua is set it establishes a good grounding for the rest of the renovations at the marae,” he says.
In recognition of the different faiths within the iwi, the restored church will be inter-denominational for the community to use. Originally a Catholic Church (one of the oldest in Tamaki Makaurau), St Mary’s dates back to the 1860s, when it was first built at Ararimu. In 1982 the church was donated to the marae and relocated for use as a chapel.
Once the church restoration is complete, the plan is to renovate the whare kai, the meeting house, and bathroom facilities, as well as landscaping the marae grounds.
James is keen to continue the relationship Te Waka Totara Trust shares with the CPS providing work for offenders on future marae developments.
"CPS has been extrenely forthcoming in providing us with help. The results speak for themselves and I look forward to fostering the relationship we have with them," he says.