Tāne graduate Te Huringa ō Te Ao in Whakatāne

Graduates of the Te Huringa ō Te Ao programme celebrate their achievement from Waiariki Whānau Mentoring in Whakatāne.

In April, we had the honour of celebrating a group of tāne who graduated the Te Huringa ō Te Ao programme in Whakatāne, led by Waiariki Whānau Mentoring. One tāne shared, “this is the first certificate I’ve got in my life.”  In the celebration, we acknowledged “today is about them and the mahi they’ve done.”

Waiariki Whānau Mentoring shared that, “Te Huringa ō Te Ao is more than a program, its a safe space for tāne to express themselves, learn healthier ways of regulating their emotions, do the healing mahi, do physical training sessions, try new things, but most all receive tautoko from other tāne.”  It was great to have whānau, community, and Government coming together to celebrate and support positive change in community.

The vision of Waiariki Whānau Mentoring is to see a stronger and more positive Māori presence and participation in all aspects of Aotearoa which starts with supporting one whānau at a time. Through their Model of Care, Te Wai Āio, they engage with tāne and whānau transitioning them from Wai Pare (referral) to Wai Wātea (release) to allow whanau to stand in their own Tino Rangatiratanga (independence). Waiariki Whānau Mentoring specialise in supporting marginalised communities, including gang whānau, rough sleepers and those who don’t typically engage with services.

In their programme, “Every day starts of karakia, mihi and waiata. We challenge the body, gym, F45, team wero and bush walks. We build strength, discipline and pride. We challenged the mind through workshops, workbooks, check-ins, nutrition and support from our psychologist. Here our tāne face their truth, they understand themselves, they grow. We bring in guest speakers, men who walked the same path and showed their change is possible. We teach that hurt people hurt people, but we also teach their cycles can be broken with awareness, with tools, and with courage.”