Respected kaumātua Dr Kihi Ngatai, QSM, is being laid to rest today.
The Bay of Plenty Times is looking back at the stories of 2021. Here's what made headlines in August.
August 4
Close to 1000 mourners gathered to farewell respected kaumātua Dr Kihi Ngatai, QSM, who was being laid to rest.
Ngatai, of Ngāi Te Rangi and Ngāti Ranginui, died onAugust 1, aged 91, surrounded by whānau.
Turi Ngatai made the crowd laugh as he opened the eulogy for his father. He said he didn't have anymore tears and spoke fondly of the partnership between his parents, and the legacy Kihi left behind.
Mayor Stuart Crosby and Kihi Ngatai take a stroll along the just opened board walk on Pilot Bay.
August 5
It was announced the Tino Rangatiratanga flag would soon fly from regional council buildings in a move its last surviving designer said was "a long time coming".
The Bay of Plenty Regional Council's Strategy and Policy Committee voted to fly the Māori flag alongside the New Zealand flag daily.The decision followed a request from the council's Komiti Māori in which councillor Toi Kai Rākau asked for an investigation into the option of flying the Māori flag on a daily basis.
The council's old policy was to fly the Māori flag only on special occasions.
Two former students of Whakatāne High School racked up more Olympic gold medals than half of the countries competing at Tokyo 2020.
Ōhope-raised Lisa Carrington became New Zealand's most decorated and successful Olympian ever after winning the women's K1 500m event in August.
Carrington has five gold medals to her name, three of which she has won in Tokyo and one each from London and Rio de Janeiro. She also has a bronze medal from Rio.
The other student, Stacey Fluhler, won gold with the Black Ferns Sevens and was back in managed isolation in New Zealand.
Whakatāne High School students gather in the school hall to watch former student Lisa Carrington paddle for gold. Photo / Supplied
August 12
A solo mum in emergency housing at a Mount Maunganui motel offering panoramic ocean views said it was a "blessing" — but some people judge her because of who she is and where she is living.
Chanel Waho and her two children were one of seven emergency housing households living in the Aqua Beachfront Motel on Marine Parade.
When she spoke to the Bay of Plenty Times Waho had been in emergency housing for the past two years, leaving her job and moving from Whanganui to Tauranga about three months ago "for a better life" for her and her kids.
She told the Bay of Plenty Times she sometimes felt judged by people who walked past and saw her at the motel.
Chiropractor Kellee Fisher is living in Young in New South Wales and has almost doubled her wage. Photo / Supplied
August 18
The latest Covid-19 lockdown was described as a "punch in the face" by a motel owner and another said businesses were set to lose thousands of dollars in revenue.
New Zealand moved into a snap lockdown on August 17 after a man from Auckland tested positive for Covid-19.
Tauranga's Wanderlust NZ owner Sarah Meadows had six cancelled bookings overnight but was most worried about group bookings for the AIMS Games.
Rotorua's Cleveland Thermal Motel co-owner Brij Gurm said their phone had been ringing off the hook with cancellations.
"It's like a punch in the face because this money we lose, we never get back again."
Tauranga's Wanderlust NZ owner Sarah Meadows. Photo / George Novak
August 27
Tauranga butchers lent their weight to calls to be allowed to open at alert level 4.
Among them was a butchery which lost $60,000 in four days, another with revenue down 70 per cent and a third who lost thousands of dollars during the lockdown.
One of the butchers said he was determined to survive to ensure his 20 staff weren't put out of work.
The butchers said they were not coming close to making enough to pay for their overheads despite being able to process online orders.
