Ms Tangohau was brought up by her grandparents, Toko and Rawinia Te Kani as well as by Apa and Ema Te Kani, who in their time were influential in being the voice for whānau, hapū and iwi development in Te Tairāwhiti.
“Our Nan Materina lived a simple life and was a toiler. She was active at the pa, in the community and loved to garden and would use the maramataka to indicate which days were most suitable for her to do certain tasks relating to growing kai and harvesting.
“Her hands were like men's hands, but she too carried the same values. She devoted much of her life to Te Hāhi Mihingare and maintaining the upkeep of the Mihaia Church. To us, her mokopuna, she was a great leader and inspired us in many ways.”
Ms Tangohau said she and her brother were privileged to be in their care.
“My grandparents had a lot to do with places such as kohanga reo, kura, Māori Land Inc, organisations like The Blind Foundation, and Turanga Health. They spent a lot of their time looking after our marae (Te Poho o Rawiri) and they were also involved with numerous kapa haka groups.”
She remembered the time when she was studying at Gisborne Girls' High School when her grandparents worked to change names of GGHS and GBHS kapa haka groups to Tūranga Tāne and Tūranga Wāhine.
“Through my grandparents' influence we saw the shift in the names to reflect the region we live in. Turanganui-a-Kiwa is a place hugely based on its cultural identity.
“Hence, the name change was massive for us.”
“Through those connections and relationships, I was able to have a really good insight into our region, in terms of kura (school), and cultural development.
“I was privy to their mahi. I drove them and went alongside them in their role as kaumātua to various hui including at organisations such as Gisborne District Council.
“I saw the connectedness — values of manaakitanga, aroha and kotahitanga (working together) were instilled in me at a young age.
“Those are the values and relationships I can draw upon in my life as an adult, particularly in the mahi where I am now.”
Ms Tangohau said for her the value of relationships and connections was really important.
“It is important to understand who is in our region and community, and what matters to them.
“There's a number of gaps in our community at the moment, around accessibility.
“We need to enable our people with information about services because a lot of whānau don't know what support exists, or how to access it.
“In the end, you only know, what you know, which is why my role is crucial. I can share information, give whānau the opportunity to discuss what they need to become independent — more sovereign, motuhake.”
Ms Tangohau said Supergrans Tairāwhiti was an organisation whose values resonated with hers. They used a non-judgemental approach which was commendable.
“When relevant information is not explicitly available to whānau, that in itself becomes a barrier. For example, if someone lives in Kaiti and they don't have access to the internet or a car or healthy kai — it is a barrier. I know for instance there are people who shop predominantly from dairies because they cannot afford to get into town to get value for their money — get more kai for less.
“We live in a community that has a high percentage of Māori and low-income households.
“A lot of members in our community suffer from chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and obesity, which can be prevented.
“Supergrans Tairāwhiti is an organisation which values whānau voice — this is what really matters to them. Not just giving food packs, but also helping whānau get educated on food literacy. They mentor whānau one on one, and provide referrals to other agencies if required.
“It is a hand-up, not a handout approach, providing meaningful support.”
Her role is funded by the Ministry of Social Development. It came out of the pandemic response, to provide targeted support to whānau who have Covid-19, are in isolation and to those who have recovered from it and are transitioning back into the community.
“We are seeing many examples of when people are isolating, the impact is quite significant. One example I saw on the internet was of a couple who took up addictions while they were in isolation.
“It wasn't so much about the symptoms coming from Covid, but the dynamics that were happening when they were living in isolation together. If we think about the first lockdown, there were so many barriers too and each story is different.
“My role is to understand whānau's perspective and be their backbone so to speak. What's going on for them? What are their struggles? And what are the barriers they are facing? How can I provide support for them?
“I have the capacity to connect with those whānau and they have an option to reach out to me.
“I can advocate on their behalf when they are struggling to communicate with their employers, broker that relationship and take that pressure off whānau.
“I am currently mapping out some stuff to understand from those whānau who have been on the front line and have been working with our whānau for the last two years to learn from their experience of gaps and how we can provide resources to fill them.
“I know when I had Covid, I didn't know that this support existed. In fact, I thought it was only there for people on benefits.
“At that time, I wanted to have a conversation with someone about education and what we were experiencing in isolation with my son. He's part of that 40 percent who have been impacted, and was unable to attend school consistently this year and that is something I could support as well through my new role.
“Covid has shown us there have been some grey areas where we have been testing and trialling a lot of stuff.
“For me it's really important that whānau who have Covid stay home. If they are having issues, please reach out to me because there's more to it than just providing essential packs. This discussion is private and it is confidential.
“If I cannot provide the right support, I will do my best to connect them with the right people.
“I want to acknowledge all those who have been doing their best and continue to provide support to our community during these times.”
