E hiki ō kanohi ki te pae o Māhutonga!

Nau mai hoki mai ki tā tātou e-pānui, ki konei pānuihia ngā tini kaupapa e hāngai ana ki a Whānau Ora, ō tātou hapori me ngā take nui o te wā. Welcome to our monthly pānui! 

OKETOPA 2025

Pūrongo Matua

INTRODUCING THE MĀHUTONGA INVESTMENT BOARD

We're please to announce and introduce our investment board;

• Te Puoho Katene
• Alex Hawea
• Kiriwaitingi Rei-Russell 
• Dr Mara Andrews
• Kara Puketapu-Dentice
• Chrissie Hape

The Investment Board provides independent governance and oversight of Māhutonga’s investment portfolio, ensuring decisions align with its vision to create enduring intergenerational impact. These appointments bring diverse experience across health, education, finance, iwi development, investment strategy, governance, Māori economic development, sustainability and more.  

Māhutonga looks forward to the contributions of its new Board Members and the opportunities ahead. 

To read more about our investment board members click the button below. 

INITIATIVE FUNDING ROUND CLOSING SOON - KIA TERE! 

❗️CLOSING SOON! Less than One week to go! ❗️

Here's your application checklist:

• Choose your fund (Rangatahi, Cultural Resilience, Emergency Preparedness, or Innovation) - you can choose more than one.
• Gather your documents (proof of legal entity, financial status).
• Explain your kaupapa clearly with links to whānau and community involvement as well as Whānau Ora outcomes.
• Complete your budget.
• Submit before 15 October, 4pm.

He pātai au? Not sure about something? Email us at  mahutonga@ngatitoa.iwi.nz. Our team is here to help.

Help spread the word: share this to your community group, marae page, and local network you're part of.

JOIN US FOR KAI & KŌRERO - ALL THE WAY FROM NASA! 🚀

We're excited to let you know that at our next online lunch session we will be joined by Mana Vautier all the way from NASA! 

Mana Vautier (Ko Te Arawa, ko Ngāi Tahu, ko Ngāti Kahungunu, ko Ngāti Raukawa ngā iwi) 

Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Mana Vautier graduated from Saint Kentigern College in 1997 and studied Physics for one year at the University of Auckland before taking a 2 year break from his studies to serve as a missionary in Southeast Australia for his church. Upon returning from his missionary service, Mana obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics, with an emphasis in Astronomy and a minor in Mathematics, from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. He then attended Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama, where he completed a Master of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering with an emphasis in Orbital Mechanics. In 2008, Mana moved to Houston, Texas, to begin work at NASA's Johnson Space Center, widely considered as the heart of human spaceflight and the home of NASA's astronauts. In the past 17 years Mana has worked in orbital mechanics design and simulation and systems engineering and integration for the International Space Station program, the Human Landing System program, the lunar Gateway space station program, the Lunar Terrain Vehicle unpressurized moon rover project, and most recently the Spacecraft Water Impurity Monitor project. 

In his spare time, Mana enjoys most outdoor activities, watching movies, reading books, running, travelling, learning, and spending time with friends and family. He also serves as a volunteer firefighter, is an active member of his church congregation, volunteers on the PTA at his kids school, is an Ambassador for the Pūhoro STEMM Academy, and is a big fan of the All Blacks and Black Ferns. His proudest accomplishments however, include marrying his wife of 21 years, and the family of seven children they have created together. They remind him everyday of what is most important in life as he continues to navigate his path along the human exploration of space, and progress along this great adventure we call life.  

SESSION DETAILS

• 👉🏼 Tuesday 21 October 1 PM
• 👉🏼 Online Via Teams (Link below)

Hei reira! 

INTRODUCING WHAIORA 

This month, we’re proud to introduce one of our Whānau Ora Providers - Whaiora. Pānuihia ngā kōrero 👇🏽

Ko wai mātou

Whaiora was founded with the vision of a ‘by Māori, for Māori’ community-based health service, first proposed in 1995 at Pāpāwai Marae by Ngāti Moe hapū, Dr Janice Wenn, and Tā Kim Workman. With the support of Wairarapa hapū, Whaiora became an independent Charitable Trust on 13 December 2000.

Today, we provide a wide range of health and social services across the Wairarapa and operate a Very Low-Cost Access Medical Centre in Masterton.

Our Vision:

Whānau Wairarapa, He pae ora 

Our Mission:

He rarapa i ngā āhuatanga e ū ai te hā o te ora 

How has your journey in the Whānau Ora space been so far?

Our journey has been a smooth adaptation to a new way of working. The support and communication from Mahutonga have been clear and timely, which has made the transition seamless for our team.

Our kaimahi are naturally aligned with the kaupapa and have adapted well to the model despite some initial challenges in adopting new reporting methodologies & back office adjustments. It’s fair to say that the biggest growth area has been in the back-office space, as we’ve learned to navigate processes more independently. As we approach end-of-quarter reporting, we’re confident and well-positioned to continue our mahi for whānau.

Where are you based, and how can whānau connect with or refer to your team?

We’re based in Masterton, and partner with Te Pā Hauora to serve the entire Wairarapa region. Whānau can reach us through our website, by calling us on 06 370 0818, messaging us on social media, or just dropping in to kōrero with any of our kaimahi who are often out and about in the community.

Do you have any upcoming events to share?

We’re currently developing two exciting Kaupapa, one is a hauora wananga for survivors of abuse in care, many of our whanau suffered at the hands of these crown led institutions and we’re working to help sow new seeds of growth and development for whanau in this space. Additionally, we’re working to bring to life a fit for purpose mobile hauora clinic that can travel the motu providing assessment, treatment & support for whanau in the community. Our intentions are to reduce barriers to care and take the team to the our whanau rather than making them come to us. Also, our team have been hard at work with local community groups to support the development of Māra Kai as part of our commitment to improving kai sovereignty with whanau. 

Who are the kaimahi in your team and what roles do they carry out?

Both Sean Tamou & Paul Bird make up our team of Kaiarahi. Sean has been with Whaiora since mid 2023 & enjoys working with our kaumātua, tāne & in the kai sovereignty space overseeing a 1 acre māra kai with at Ngāi Tūmapūhia-ā-Rangi Hapū. Paul on the other hand both leads a team with Whaiora as well as supports whanau directly. He’s connections take him back to Te Ātihaunui-a-Pāpārangi & we found out recently that his favourite kai is aihikirīmi! Paul is deeply motivated by enriching the lives of our whānau and he his ahua is very tau. He’s big on manaakitanga & spends his spare time working on his whakapapa journey, strengthening connections to his tūpuna. If introducing Paul to others, his partner Riki would say ‘This is my honey & his most annoying habit is his RBF!”  

You can learn more about Whaiora over on their website below.  

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Want to get in touch with us? Email us at mahutonga@ngatitoa.iwi.nz or free phone 0800 400 150