The Star: October 04, 2018

The Star Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi
Thursday October 4 2018 23
made Kate Sheppard proud
How long have you been a
nurse?
I went into nursing school
when I was 17 and finished when
I was 20. I am now 48-years-old.
So for a long time. In saying that,
I didn’t nurse that whole time. I
had children and had other gaps.
I have done nursing for about 15
years.
What’s it like working in
youth mental health?
Mental health has been
something that has been
around me all the time within
my nursing, regardless of what
avenue I was working in. What
brought me to this space is that
I love working with youth. It is
always a privilege and an honour
to be working with families and
young people during a crisis
point in their lives, because it
is not something I take lightly.
Being a mother of teenagers, you
have that ability to feel for them
and relate. I suppose that is what
I love about nursing, being part
of that intimate and harrowing
time for families. But also being
part of the richness of recovery
and hope. If you can provide a
little bit of hope to the family
that is going through really
tough times, then it is incredibly
rewarding. Working in mental
health has a bad wrap in the
media at the moment – it is not
encouraging. I would encourage
more nurses to consider
working in mental health for the
knowledge and the skills and the
width of what you can learn in
those environments.
Your life sounds very full-on.
Tell me about your family and
being a mother of five?
They are very busy – teenagers
are full-on. The only way I can
do all of this is by having an
FAMILY TIME:
Kelly Tikao’s
children (back
left) Wairaamia,
14, Maio, 8, and
Karamuu,17,
joke around,
while Toi, 12
Hinekaea, 12,
Ms Tikao and
her husband
Rihari Taratoa-
Bannister play a
card game.
PHOTO: ALAN
DOVE
incredibly supportive partner. We
are into fitness and the outdoors
because it’s the only way we can
remain on top of things. I have
a 17-year-old and 14-year-old
at Cashmere High School. He’s
into basketball and she’s into
competitive dancing. I have twins
and my youngest is eight-yearsold.
The younger three are at
Kura Kaupapa Maori, a Maori
language immersion school.
Do any of your children want
to follow in your footsteps?
I think I have completely put
them off. What I always keep
saying to them is ‘don’t be like
me and leave this so late’. Yes,
there is a time and place for some
mature students to be doing their
PhD, but not when you have five
kids and are looking after your
father and are involved in too
many jobs. This has all come
about because I am a late learner
and didn’t do as well as I wanted
to at school. My words of wisdom
to them is to do it right at school
CELEBRATION: Maori
Women’s Welfare League
former national president
Aroha Reriti Crofts (left)
with Mayor Lianne Dalziel,
Kelly Tikao and Kate
Sheppard Memorial
Award Trust chairwoman
Judith Sutherland at the
presentation ceremony.
PHOTO: SARA TEMPLETON
so you are not constantly trying
to gain back what you lost in
those really crucial school years.
I hope they are inspired and
know that no matter what age
you are, you are never too old for
learning. Previously, I didn’t want
to attend one of my graduation
ceremonies for my degree. My
husband said to me, and rightly
so, this is not about you, it’s about
us, your children need to see
you receive it to know there is a
completion and to know this is
what happens when you work
hard.
I understand your husband
also studied recently? What
does he do and how do you guys
juggle your lives?
He is an early childhood
teacher, which is huge. There is a
huge cry out for more men and
more Maori and Pasifika men
in early childhood. He is going
against the grain coming from a
background of theatre, film and
cooking. He decided one day to
put it all together into a teaching
degree. He is an incredible
teacher and has a huge amount
to offer. We don’t juggle it very
well. Some days we go ‘wow, we
managed to get through that day’.
We have pretty long days. We
have to be pretty strict around
the logistics of the household. We
live off the smell of an oily rag
and are very efficient with what
we have, that’s come from years
of fine-tuning. We are certainly
not perfect, we totally blow it in
the sense of energy output. We
always try to eat together when
we can, eat well and do sports.
Wai: We care
"Every day we do things that have a negative
impact on our rivers, so it’s great to be able to do
something that has a positive impact"
Helen Caley –
Christchurch West Melton
Zone Committee member
Nine of Canterbury’s ten water zone committees are looking for new
community members (Waimakariri will call for new members next year),
visit ecan.govt.nz/waiwecare before 8 October and let us know wai you care.
Canterbury’s water zone committees work with the community and councils to deliver
sustainable benefits from our water resource and enhance natural values.
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