Franklin-based offenders on community work sentences have played a major role in preparing Tainui marae for their annual poukai hui.
A Tainui tradition, the poukai hui are important for hapu to keep the communication lines open between the individual marae.
They are an ideal opportunity to discuss issues affecting the iwi as a whole. Every marae from around the Waikato region holds a hui each year with the Maori King, Kingi Tuheitia, in attendance.
Marae that benefited from the efforts of the CPPS workers included Port Waikato’s Ooraeroa and Tauranganui Marae; Mangatangi Marae; Nga Hou E Wha Marae in Pukekohe, and Whatapaka Marae in Karaka.
Whatapaka Marae was the recipient of a dramatic transformation with the help of groups of community work offenders. Over a four-week period leading up to the hui, offenders worked up to four days a week at the marae to ready the grounds and buildings for the prestigious event.
The work completed by the gangs included general property maintenance such as gardening and painting, as well as the laying of concrete and cobblestones. It was a huge job which whanau could not have completed on their own in the time leading up to the hui.
CPPS probation officer Georgina Richards has organised many work gangs to help marae with their poukai hui preparations and she says the grateful response from Whatapaka Marae is typical.
“The whanau from Whatapaka were overwhelmed by what the workers had done to their marae,” says Georgina. “They’ve asked for further help in the future.”
This partnership is a valued one, with CPPS providing the manpower, the supervision and the right tools to finish the job to a great standard, while the marae provides the materials needed, such as paint and concrete.
Georgina says the offenders were generally proud of the work they completed. Some had affiliations to the hapu which made the work all the more meaningful for them.
“Some knew they had connections to the marae but they had never had much of an interaction with it,” says Georgina. “This was a great way for some of them to identify back to their own marae.”
Other positives for the offenders were the skills they learnt during the time they spent at the marae.
“It was an opportunity for the workers to learn skills such as laying concrete and cobblestones, which they can possibly use in or to gain future employment,” says Georgina.
Franklin-based community work offenders have been working hard to get Whatapaka Marae ready for its 2008 poukai hui.
