In sport, he was Hawke’s Bay Rugby Committee and local sub-union delegate as well as chairman of the Aotea Rugby Club, also being involved in the local golf club as president and chairman of the Southern Hawke’s Bay Māori Golf Association.
Hepa received the Order of Meritorious Service OMS from the Dannevirke St John’s Vestry for his many roles in the Church.
He played roles in organisations like the Dannevirke Lions Club, Rawhiti Freemason Lodge and South School Jubilee Committee, helping set up organisations like CYPS and helping manage farm corporations like Owahanga.
All of the above earned Hepa a NZ OBE but this meritorious honour merely reflects his community role.
Above all, Hepa was a family man, he and his wife Rene raised three children and accumulated many mokopuna who were his focus, especially later in life.
The importance of this can only be illustrated adequately by an ode written and presented by his nephew Brian Paewai at his service:
An Ode to Hohepa Mei Tatere.
Uncle Hepa passed on last week,
“Pegged out,” that’s what he would say.
We cried, we laughed, we remembered
He was different!
Young Hep threw his shoes in the bush, where they belonged
He belonged to the Makirikiri shoeless mob
He belonged to us, he was different!
Carved a track in a deep dark forest
Rawhiti Free Mason Lodge, that mob
Education too, I’ve been everywhere man
South School, Sir! What mode of transport today?
The Jeep? The Model T Ford? Harley maybe?
Darn it’s the little red Barn, that’s his favourite.
No it’s not, Aunty Rene, she’s the one, the only one
The ticket, the rock ... Mum - He’ll miss her
and that ratbag mob Richard, Denise, Brenda
and those mokos too.
Mob, club, which club? Dannevirke Golf Club - in the GUR
Out of the rough, into the rough
Dannevirke Borough Council, Dannevirke District Council, Tararua District Council
What’s in a name?
Deputy principal, deputy mayor, should have been mayor
Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit
“Donga” he called it, OMS too, cut a deep track did Uncle Hepa
Laid to rest on King’s Birthday weekend.
There’s a name - King Heps!
Committee after committee after committee
Komiti! where the two streams mingle and merge, Ngaawapūrua.
Where the waters conversation occurs, it mingles, it swirls, it merges and the new river is born
That’s Uncle Hepa, mingling, merging, new beginnings
Slightly bigger, slightly stronger, slightly better
Komiti after komiti after komiti
And next time you swim at Wai Splash
Just remember
He added the Wai – Why? Because he was different
He made a difference, he made a difference to all of us
“Farewell old friend,” some would say
“What took you so long Tatere?” - Uncle Barry would say
“Thank you Uncle Hepa” - that’s what I want to say, “Thank you for being different
Thank you for cutting a track, thank you for letting the light in
and making our district, our world a little bit bigger, a little bit stronger
Thank you Uncle Hepa for making our place a little bit better for us all.
Rere atu rā e te kopara iti, rere atu ki te kāuru o te kahikatea, ki te kahuitanga o te hunga wairua,
Haere, haere, haere atu rā.”
