Kaiwhakairo carver Phil Belcher describing what the carving on the pou represents at one of four unveilings in Waimārama on Saturday morning. Photo / Warren Buckland
Kaiwhakairo carver Phil Belcher describing what the carving on the pou represents at one of four unveilings in Waimārama on Saturday morning. Photo / Warren Buckland
Four newly unveiled carved tōtara pou erected at significant sites in Waimārama will share the story of the land with visitors.
They may be just the beginning of a new story, as project organisers look forward to working on pou in other locally significant locations in the future.
A dawnceremony on Saturday morning began with unveiling the new pou standing at the top of a hill overlooking Waimārama village, before heading to the pou at Mokomokouri at the end of Tiakitai Rd, then Kaiwhakatorea in the Pouhokio Stream reserve, and finally the Paparewa reserve.
Jeremy MacLeod, chair of the Waimārama Marae, said he felt the spirit of collaboration throughout the entire community at the unveiling ceremony.
"There was the presence of the entire community, so there wasn't only just the local Māori community - we had our local non-Māori community come along and support us."
He said the Paparewa reserve site was the landing site of the Takitimu canoe, which arrived in Hawke's Bay about 700 years ago.
Kaiwhakairo carvers Nathan Foote (left) and Phil Belcher stand in front of the last of four Waimārama pou to be unveiled. Photo / Warren Buckland
The pou at Mokomokouri and Kaiwhakatorea represented a husband and wife, two ancestors local to the area.
"These are the stories of the settlement of our community of Waimārama," he said.
"They are stories that belong to all of us of that district, and I think it is important that we celebrate those together, and we understand each other's stories, and we understand the significance of those respective sites."
The project began a couple of years ago, run by the Waimārama Marae and funded by Eastern and Central Community Trust, Hastings District Council, and Creative NZ.
Local kaiwhakairo carvers Phil Belcher and Nathan Foote worked on the pou with Rakai Karatiana, who designed the signage, map and area around them.
Belcher said the work of making the pou was about acknowledging places of significance.
"It's about reigniting the names of the landscape, so that the stories associated with those names become accessible, and the history is talked about and thrives," Belcher said.
A pou unveiled as the sun breaks Waimarama's sea horizon. Photo / Warren Buckland
He said it felt good to give back to the community with the pou and provide a visual attraction for all visitors to those spaces.
"It's great to be able to contribute to our people, to the marae, to everyone in the area."
Volunteer fundraiser Bronwyn Harman said the ceremony was an amazing experience.
