Father's joy in iwi and community activism shared through book

A book about the late Mitai Rolleston's passion for Ngati Whakaue will be released next month. Photo/File

A Rotorua man's passion for his iwi will be remembered in a book set to be released next month.

Mitai Rolleston, He Kanohi o Kitea o Ngati Whakaue documents and pays tribute to the past 25 years of Mr Rolleston's life and the work he did for Ngati Whakaue. The 77-year-old died from liver cancer last July.

His daughter, Toni Cummins, has compiled and written the book which features 39 contributors who gave personal tributes or were interviewed remembering the contribution Mr Rolleston made to the iwi, his passion for education and his role as a respected kaumatua. Among his many roles, he was closely involved in the set-up and administration of Ngati Whakaue Taumata, and was its former chairman. Within his role, he helped set up the Ngati Whakaue early learning centre, Te Ao Kapurangi, in Pererika St, and then the early education centre, Te Puna Akoranga o Ngati Whakaue, in Ranolf St.

He was a husband, father of five, grandfather and great-grandfather. Mrs Cummins said she and her siblings all made a promise to their dad before he died to step up and make him proud of the legacy he was leaving behind. She said they had all found success in their chosen paths and she was fulfilling her promise through writing.

"I was always going to write about Dad, writing is one of the things I love to do but I just wasn't sure how to do it. Whether it was a family book about the man on the paepae," Mrs Cummins said. "About a month after [his death] my brother saw the notice in the newspaper for applications for the Ngati Whakaue writers' grant and said, 'That's what you should do'."

Mrs Cummins said at the heart of the book was her father's love for Ngati Whakaue and the initiatives he was involved in. It featured many who spoke at his tangi and those who worked alongside him in his role as kaumatua or as chairman for the Taumata.

"This to me is a book reflecting a great love he had for Ngati Whakaue, a lot of them shared his passion for education, te reo Maori and on the paepae," she said. "He was a dedicated father and grandfather, he used to take his mokopuna [grandchildren] to polytech every day before he passed, and he loved that his mokopuna were learning in te reo."

Mitai Rolleston, He Kanohi o Kitea o Ngati Whakaue will be launched on July 13, the first anniversary of Mr Rolleston's death, at Tunohopu Marae, Ohinemutu.