Leading from the front issuu

didn’t know she had all these friends and all this support.
We just thought she was in Pilot City and worked
with Māori Wardens and Tu Tangata. We didn’t know
how much she was actually doing until she passed
away. My whole whānau didn’t know how much she
was valued and they’re still trying to get their heads
around it. It’s like, “Oh my god, she was that important,
she did that much …”
She would keep pushing until she got things right.
When she was really sick she had a bucket list which
she kept adding to every day. The things on the list
weren’t personal, they were for the community and
mostly around getting housing sorted. When she
ticked things off she’d say, “Done.” When she first met
Jacinda, Auntie Cindy she called her, straight away she
said to her, “So what’s happening with housing?” When
Jacinda told her 31 houses were going up in Maraenui,
that made her happy, she was relieved. And she would
be making sure, pushing Aunty Jacinda, to hurry up.
Before she passed away we took a video of the houses
going up. She had these happy tears and said, “Aunty
Cindy didn’t lie to me.” It was like, “Job done, those
houses are getting built.”
[Labour MP] Stuart Nash and [Napier mayor] Kirsten
Wise organised for Minnie to meet Jacinda and I went
along too. It was at a function for volunteers in Hastings
and we were shown into a private room. Minnie
said, this is my daughter, she’s been looking after me.
Then Jacinda thanked me for looking after my beautiful
mother. It was very emotional. Jacinda was hugging
Minnie and didn’t want to leave but the powhiri started
up next door. Then she thanked Minnie again for all she
did for the community.
What were Minnie’s last wishes?
She had a whole plan that she was working on, which
she didn’t quite finish. It was a long list, mostly about
housing and she had jobs for everybody. She made me
promise to join the Maraenui & Districts Committee
and told me I wasn’t allowed to quit. She got my cousin
involved too, Christine Harrison, and Minnie told me to
back her up. There are some pretty good things going
on too. A representative from the council came to
a meeting recently and said, “This is what Minnie was
wanting, she’d been pushing for this and it’s going to
happen.” They revealed plans for the Maraenui community
centre proposed to go up across the road from
the Plunket Rooms and the Splash Pad that’s going up
near the car park. Minnie wanted to bring the radio station
back to Maraenui as well.
Pat’s hikoi, Te Araroa Offers Hope, does your
whānau think these are valuable?
Definitely. They absolutely love it, getting out of Maraenui.
They appreciate having fun and being themselves
without having to be the man or be cool. When Pat first
told me about this respite week he said it was a holiday
for my whānau; that we could chill ax, explore, whatever.
I didn’t know there was a bit of expectation to do
stuff but then I was thinking, if we wanted to sit down
and be lazy, we could just stay home. So getting the
kids out was different for me, getting out to different
places. They’d never been here before and they loved
the hot pools and lake. It’s good for them, they’re not
on devices and I don’t often have the chance to be here
with so many of my whānau.
The first morning we went for a bush walk around a
small lake. It was beautiful but for me it was challenging.
I have two blown knees and my feet hurt all the
time but I still wanted to get out there and join in. If
you really want to do it and you think nature is beautiful
you’re going to want to get out there. I was determined
for the kids to follow me but they ran in front.
They were gone! Minnie did say to me, “If Maxine and
Pat want you to do something, you do it!” so I guess
we’ll be doing more!
THE FUTURE
FOR TAOH
Asking someone recently who knows Pat well;
what they think his lasting legacy might be,
they replied, “The way he takes kids out in nature,
on the trail. They never forget it.”
Although Minnie is no longer here the attraction
to Te Araroa has been passed down to her
whānau, and tamariki. Kaivah, Tanyon, Bronson
and Jake are all keen to get back on the trail and
discover more of Aotearoa and enjoy a change
of scene for a while. Bronson is keen to take the
lead and hopes to plan another hikoi soon but
funding is an issue. Pat, the group’s kaumatua,
says, “You run out of money. The visions are all
there but the money runs out.”
With Minnie’s determination running through
the team though, chances are they’ll be back out
there soon. She left this message: “Just do it. Everybody
just step up!” And when someone leaves
a challenge like that, chances are it will be met!
Minnie Ratima - 1964 - 2020 227