To whoever.I am the great,great granddaughter of King Tawhiao and his wife, Aotea and I want to congratulate you on your policy of protecting all things pertaining to our heritage. All these sites are our window into our past and are there to remind us of who we are and where we came from. The people have passed on but the wairua they have left is there for us to embrace, and they must always be acknowledged, and remembered." Kia niwha te ngakau ki te whakau i nga mahi atawhai " >>>>>>>>>>> Moyra Te Ariki Bramley <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Kia ora e te whanau Your website sends out a beautiful message of dignity, intelligience and creativity that is motivating to people like myself. I have often visited your site and been so proud of Aotea. Keep up the excellent work. Arohana Taumaha
Tena koutou te whanau, e tiaki mai na i nga taonga a o tatou tupuna. I au e kohikohi nei i ngetehi o nga websites, katahi au ka kitea i tenei na. No reira, ahakoa te poto o aku korero, ka tukuna tenei, hei tautoko i te website o Ngati Te Wehi. Naku noa, na tetehi o nga uri o Karuwhero, o Ngati Te Wehi, me Ngati Reko. Te Warena Taua.
Teenaa koutou katoa, e tino tautoko ana ahau i teenei kaupapa whakahirahira. He tino koa te ngaakau ki te kimihia te whakaaturanga nei. Ki toku mohio, noo koonaa toku Tipuna Whaea. Ko Paretuhirangi toona ingoa. Ko ia te Whaea o tooku Koroua, ko Tiare Jacobs(Hakopa) toona ingoa. Mehemea ka taea e teetahi o koutou teenei uri te awhi, teenaa imeera mai. OOtira, kei a koutou ngaa mihi nui rawa noo reira, teenaa koutou katoa. He karere maa koutou noa iho teenei. Maa te atua koutou e tiaki, e manaaki. Naaku naa, Justin Jacobs. 
Your website is excellent. Very informative. So glad you folks are fighting for the Hector's. They have a special place in our hearts too. Aloha, Sue http://www.earthtrust.com/hector.html
I appreciated finding your Aotea Harbour website, quite by chance, and hope it achieves the results you seek. There's nothing I would like better than to come to watch the sunset ANY evening over that beautiful place. I grew up at Oparau, went to school there and at Kawhia and have lots of good memories of the places and the people. Rich blessings on you all for the coming year. Judith Harper
The look of your website looks great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. The pictures were excellent, sharp and were of high quality. The pictures loaded very fast. Love the new entry about Okapu Marae. The 'flying bird' graphics, photos, is very impressive!! You're doing a marvelous job on the website. Keep up the good work and let the world know about Aotea Habour. Congratulations on your award for the best website. I hope to see more of those!!! GO HARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Maharas
Thankyou for allowing me to browse this web site I would love to do the same with our marae Wharauroa here in Taumarunui. Cheers Robert Jonathan
Tena koe Manawhenua Found your web site and am really impressed with the work and info on the site. Aoraki te maunga Waitaki te awa Ko Hawea Rapuwai Waitaha Kati Mamoe me Kai Tahu te Iwi Te Hapa o Nui Ti Reni te marae Arowhenua, Temuka te kaika Waipounamu te whenua Mandy Waaka
I would like to support your campaign by pledging my support to stop commercial fishermen fishing in Aotea Harbour. Please send a response as to what I can do to help your cause. I would like to know what you are currently doing to stop commercial fishermen from fishing in Aotea Harbour, I will be willing to help in the future should problems arise.Yours faithfully Jeremy Te Puhi.
Tena Koutou Katoa, e te Iwi, E tautoko ana matou, tou koutou mahi e pa ana ki enei kaupapa ataahuae here nei i a tatou. Koutou ma - kia kaha, kia u, kia toa, kia manawanui! Ma te Matua-nui-i-te Rangi, hei manaakitia i a tatou katoa! No reira, noho ora mai ra i raro i te maru a o tatou Kaihanga, Ko Io - te timatanga me te mutunga o nga mea katoa! Naku noa iti, Na Kimihia Omipi-Waka
Kia ora, e te whanau We have enjoyed your website, and what spectacular and beautiful pictures of Okapu Marae and the harbour. Congratulations on an excellent website. Keep up the excellent work..... Arohanu iJason, Lorna, Shaun & Dylan Tauranga
Please accept this letter of support from we in the Rohe O Mataatua.It was with great sadness and concern that we stand behind you wholeheartedly for the gross injustices being done to you folk. I have on several occaisions (never could get that word right) had the privilege of visiting Okapu Marae, and it is everything that your page portrays it to be. Naku noa Maaewa Hunt
Ka mau te wehi! Whakatinanatia te rekanga kanohi! Kokiritia te kaupapa! Kiingi Ngāti Hikairo, Ngāti Puhiawe, Ngāti Horotakere, Ngāti Apakura
 I fully support the banning of commercial fishing in Aotea harbour. I am not a local, but as a keen recreational fisherman from Hamilton I regularly surfcast at both Aotea & Kawhia harbours. I think commercial fishing should be banned in all harbours, as these are important breeding grounds for many species. Regards & Best Wishes for your campaign, Dave Lean
Kia Ora, You have a wonderful informative and educational website, helping all who visit to be aware of the history and culture of the beautiful Aotea. Congratulations on the website presentation and the highest praise to you for the great conservation and cultural kaitiaki effort you maintain. You are ideal role models for our rangatahi to follow and emulate.Aileen G McKay
Kia ora te whanau The look on this website is very excellent and the pictures are excellent as well, love the new entry of the marae it is very good. I am very impressed with everything that has been done with the web site. Well done, keep up the good work and keep doing some other things because so far it's going good. I’m sure everyone will want to know more about the marae and the background of it and also the background of Ngati te Wehi and how everything became about. Talk a lot about the ancestors and the caves around the back. There should be a lot of other things that should be on this website. Go hard, and keep it up Tino pai to mahi Kia ora Na te whanau Tapara
Kia ora te whanau Yee haa! ! ! ! This web site is the bomb Yee Haa! ! ! ! We would like to congratulate you on the web site; you did a very good job on it. Many thanks to Davis for his work on looking after our harbour, Okapu has a lot of interesting things about it - No reira te whanau, kia ora Na Gena Tapara me Hailee Awhitu
Kia ora koutou katoa, I grew up at Kawhia and have had many associations and memories of the Aotea Harbour: the local maraes; especially boat fishing there in the 50s / 60s with my father, who was born in Kawhia in 1914; the local maraes with whom my father had long association.Commercial fishing has simply destroyed coastal and harbour along the west coast. About 20 years ago I remember Sandford boats coming down from Onehunga and cleaning out large schools of schnapper, literally taking them away by the truckload as more and more trawlers were ordered down from the Manukau.Thus all my support for any efforts to curb commercial fishing in the Aotea Harbour. Kia Kaha, John Reeve
Kia ora My name is Teena Lawrence, and I am the niece of Pani Moke. I have visited Okapu Marae on about 3 occassions, the last time at the 100 yr Poukai. I am writing to you to say, hey, great web site. I found it while searching for Ngati Te Wehi. Regards, Teena Lawrence
 Hello people of beautiful Aotea!... I first saw this website back in January and was most impressed at the amount of information it supplied. Thank you. I find Aotea to be a wonderful place with a quiet and deeply spiritual feeling to it, hopefully it will stay that way...Regards, Janne Perry 
Tena koutou katoa Nga mihi. All the best in your mahi and education of others. I wish you well. Kia manawanui. Kia kaha. Arohanui, Mahinarangi Tocker
Kia ora koutou te whanau o Ngati te Wehi. Kei te tino pai rawa tou mahi whakamohio. Kia kaha koutou. No reira tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa. Eileen Fenton
Kia ora koutou te whanau o Ngati te Wehi. Kei te tino pai rawa tou mahi whakamohio. Kia kaha koutou. No reira tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa. Eileen Fenton -- Tena Koutou te Whanau, Ko tooku kuia no Okapu, ko Pare Tuhirangi toona ingoa, ko Aroha Webby tooku ingoa. Ka nui te mihi ki a koutou katoa. Tino tumeke tenei website. What an awesome website! It's been amazing to see Okapu on the web. I haven't been there for quite sometime since we took my grandfather's kawe mate. His name was Tiare Hakopa and his mother was Pare Tuhirangi, who is buried at Okapu. Myself and members of my whanau are keen to come back and reconnect with the wahanu at Okapu is there any hui coming up where we could do that? I'd really appreciate if someone could let me know. Kia ora Koutou Katoa E-mail: A.Webby@massey.ac.nz
Excellent kaupapa...keep up the good work! We will support you in any way WE can & thanx again.The team from ARTSEEN 
Kia ora Keep up the good work, it's going to take me a long time to get thru all the information on your site. I can't wait to get back to Aotea ... when I next Visit New Zealand aka Aotearoa. Regards Alvin Booth
I am emailing to pledge my support. I think the council should pay for the trees transportation and pay compensation of some kind. Susanne Van der Heijden, Darwin AUSTRALIA
I am e-mailing in support to stop commercial fishing in Aotea Harbour petition. Naku noa, Merle Anderson, Murupara
Your website is really awesome, I am the granddaughter of Kaura George Waitere I sympathise with you concerning Aotea Harbour. My mother (Zoe Ogle nee Waitere) remembers as a child going with her father Kaura to visit her Grandmother Pare Waitere at Aotea and seeing all the flounder tied two together with Harakeke running along a length of the fence. They were plentiful forty years ago, also the pupu. My mother and I will be visiting Kawhia this friday for the ceremony of the ancient Maori burial site, We hope to see all the Whanau up there.Arohanui Katarina and Zoe Ogle!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kia ora whanau I have been looking through the website and I am extremely impressed at how fast the website has evolved containing a wealth of knowledge, that it vital to the education and preservation of Aotea. Keep it up Kia ora Aroha and Renate Apiti Aroha Apiti
Hi, I'm Zoe Waitere and I am the Grandaughter of Pare Waitere of Te Papatapu Aotea , Im pleased to have come across this web site... Kia ora Zoe
Paimarire Kia kaha o koutou mahi rangatirae tautoko ana koutou ko tatou tenei - Puukaki Marae
Dear Sirs As a great lover of smoked eel I would like to thank you for the information at your site. My late father was a butcher/smallgoods maker from Germany and migrated to Launceston Tasmania back in 1953 and he knew how to smoke anything. As I was only 7 years old when we arrived I was shown then how to do it but 50 years down the track all was lost... Kindest regards Kurt G. BeyerManager/Licensee Legana VineyardAustralia
Just a note of thanks for your great description of the cooking of Karaka kernels. We saw some Karaka trees while we were walking on Mangakiekie. I was telling my children how they could be cooked - I learnt so much from your description.Regards, Matthew Laurenson, Auckland
Kia ora WhanauThe website is soo massive its very exciting...The pictures are kool!! I'm very impressed with the work you have done on this website its PHAT!! Keep up all the good work...Ngati Te Wehi is the bomb....Tilena
Kia ora koutou. I was just writing to congratulate you on your excellent website, it is THA BOMB MAN. I come from Aotea Kawhia. My hapu is Te Papatapu... Sincerely Katarina Waitere.....Otaki
Re: Commercial Fishing Ae Tautoko! Marita Laurenson
Tena koe, Tenei te mihi aroha mo ou matou mahi, tikanga hoki ki te rohe o Aotea Moana o te iwi ko Ngati Te Wehi. He tama tenei a Miki Apiti, ko Moka (Aaron) tenei. Thank you very much for an excellent informative site... Kind regards Moka Apiti
People of Aotea Harbour, I just want to thank you so much for your really well done website. I am very new to this country, from the United States. I do not believe what is going on there and after my husband (who is from New Zealand) got his draft card in the mail (the US could have called him up for military service at any time) we felt it was time to move here. It has been very difficult adapting- but with informative and interesting sites like yours, I am learning. I located it while looking for information on kumara, one of the tastiest tubers I have ever tried. I have a profound respect for New Zealand and it's people and wished to share this with you, as well as my appreciation for your care of the earth where you live. It is my hope more people understand before it is too late that this work should belong to every one- our intelligence does not grant us free reign to do as we please- if any thing it gives us more responsibility. If there is anything I can do to help your valiant and important efforts, please let me know. Best Regards, Erin Wood Waiheke Island
Mauriora! He rawe to koutou waahi ipurangi....te maha hoki o nga hua. E rangahau ana te whakapapa o toku kuia - he whaipaanga tona ki Raoraokauere aa, kua riro kee atu i raro i te ture Pakeha. Anoo te pai ki te moohio ko ona hononga.Ko te tumanako ka tae-a-tinana atu ki to koutou poukai hei tera tau. Nei noa ake ra, aku mihi tautoko moo ngaa kaupapa i puta ake nei mo Aotea Moana.Naku iti nei Maria Graham
 Hello there Davis and everyoneI have been doing some whakapapa research and it was really nice to discover the Aotea website. It was good reading about the activities to stop plundering of depleted kaimoana in this beautiful harbour. I too want to stop any more of this and support any conservation efforts. Jane Taylor
Nga mihi. Primo website - kei te tautoko ahau mo nga kaupapa i Aotea Moana. Me te whakaaro nui Arohanui Te Rina MokeResource Development and Community Liaison CoordinatorSPINZ - (Suicide Prevention Information New Zealand)Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand)
Keep up the good fight and one of these days I'd like to come to your beautiful country to say hi and hello in personTake care and have a great day humble regards,Marcus Jacobs Voice of Guyana Internationalwww.voiceofguyana.comOne Nation. One Station. One Voice! Radio Guyana International UKwww.megajams.com
 Thank you for the information of the smoking of the eel. Jackie Rhind
Hi there. You have a wonderful website. Kathleen - Australia
Kia ora, What an excellent site - thank you for the privilege of seeing it. Ka kite, Anthony Opie
Tena koe Davis, I admire the wonderful work you are doing for the Hector dolphins. Kia kaha. You have my support. My name is Irirangi Kopa, I am of Ngati te Wehi hapu my marae is Te Tihi o Moerangi
Kia ora ano koutou E tautoko ana au i: The tikanga of gathering kaimoana should be observed. Ko nga tikanga, kaua e keria ki te hoo, tikina kia nawhe ma te whanau, kaua e kaingia nga kaimoana ki te wahi kohinga, kaua nga waahine me o ratou mate waahine e takahi ki runga i nga waahi kohinga kaimoana, nga mahinga kai, me nga waahi tukunga kupenga mo te hao tuna. Kei koina atu ano wetahi atu o wa tatou tikinga, engari ko tino pakeha ke wetahi o tatou maori. K.M.James
Kia Ora from a homesick Kiwi..and just to say that the Maori Medicine is really interesting.Selah Weingott
Kia Ora, I recently had the honour of meeting Davis Apiti at the launch of Pete Bethune's Earthrace Conservation group in Christchurch; before then I was unaware of the depletion of the Aotea Harbour by commercial fishing. What is happening in Aotea Harbour seems to be one example of what is happening all over New Zealand: quite simply, money made from commercial fishing, for fish usually sold abroad, will eventually lead to hunger for our descendants - what will we do then, import fish?! It is an absurd situation when healthy food from the sea, once readily available and capable of feeding families all year round, is now so scarce that expensive and often nutritionally dubious food becomes the only alternative - food which in turn can lead to obesity and diabetes. When is progress not progress? When it becomes so destructive that nothing is left to feed the local people. As a Native American Cree Prophecy highlighted so many years ago: "Only after the last tree has been cut down, Only after the last river has been poisoned, Only after the last fish has been caught, Only then will you find money cannot be eaten.". I would therefore like to pledge my wholehearted support for the total ban of commercial fishing in Aotea Harbour and also for finding local solutions to local problems throughout all of New Zealand. Let me know how I can help, and I will do so to the best of my abilities. Marianne Robson
Good Afternoon I am a first year student for Bachelor of Nursing, and preparing an assignment on the differences on Traditional Health Beliefs and practices between the Maori culture and my own, Kiwi Europen.This web site has allowed me to refer to some of the Traditional herbal remedies, and treatments that my own western culture does not have. Thanks Sharon -- Kia-Ora Congratulations on a great website, being from Aotea I am very happy to see the efforts you people are putting in to keep this place so special. Best Regards Wayne Hohua -- Hi there,My name is Mini and I wanted to say I found your website really interesting and educational. It is nice to see a site detailing knowledge of native plants and I am glad to see the Maori usage is still being kept alive for people to learn and be informed. Regards, Mini Prasad
Hi there Not only do you have my total support let me tell you... Years ago I had the worst case of dermatitis you've ever seen. My arms from the elbows to the tips of my fingers were red raw, not good changing nappies & trying to manuevour the pin through the. Anyway a good friend of the family, Helen K went to our local tip & brought back a heap of Kawakawa & (as per your very same instructions) boiled it up & when cold enough bottled the juice (for which TOTALLY healed my youngest of her asthma) & with the leaves she wrapped both my arms & hands then put banadages around them. By the next morning (I kid you not) there was a layer of skin on both arms & hands. Just amazing, our local doctor had sent me to Auckland to see umpteen specialists to get umpteen jars of useless cream that didn't do a thing, in fact, most of them "fed the problem". By the end of a week I had all layers of healed (OK so my arms & hands were a little dark till the stain wore out) but I felt a million dollars. Thankyou so much for having this on your site, I had only just the other day suggested it to a guy who has a bad reaction (yep, dermatitis) to the treatment they are using for tanalising. So in the big smoke (concrete jungle) where would one find the Kawakawa tree? Kind Regards Jan Marsden
Tena koe Davis This is a very good site, fast and very interesting. God bless, Marlene
 Absolute support from the Awhitu family in West Auckland
Dear Sir/Madam, I would like to express my appreciation for your efforts to save the North Island Hector's Dolphin from extinction. I believe every species has a right not to be infringed on by human activities as far as they jeopardise its absolute minimum requirements for survival on the planet. Secondly, all life deserves to be treated by us with respect as it is unique and we can never re-create what we destroy. Also, it contributes to our own continued well-being through the health of ecosystems. In addition, because the Hector's Dolphin is a highly sentient species I would argue that it ought to be valued according to our human-centered ethics. According to that norm, the current practices of commercial and so-called recreational fisheries are equivalent to genocide. Thank you again for all your work. Kia Ora, Alex Alex Lautensach School of Science and Veterinary Nursing Otago Polytechnic "Common sense tends to override the other five." (Terry Pratchett)
Kia ora, Just a note of support for the above (support to stop commercial fishing) and also to congratulate you on an excellent website.Jaqueline Henry (Ngati Maniapoto / Ngati Wairere / Ngati Mahuta)
Tena Koutou e te Iwi Ngati te Wehi. Ka nui nga mihi atu mo tenei mahi o te taonga Tuna. Beautiful Tuna, what a face. Good pic. Na Gab
Yes, we support you in the protection of the Hector's Dolphins in New Zealand coastal waters. Rik and Antje Buurman
Hi My name is Pam Brown. I am from the Heiltsuk Nation on the central coast of British Columbia Canada. I recently came on to your site and was very impressed. I am working with my community on an Economic Development Base study and we are looking at management strategies like the use of your research permit and your fishing permit. We are looking at the options including the Haida Gwaii Watchmen program and other ways to protect the resources in our territories. I would like to use your research and fishing permit as a example to show my community. Would I be able to download a copy in word. Thank you for your consideration. Again your site is impressive and helpful for us as we look at ways to manage economic development in our territory. Respectfully Pam Brown http://www.alaska.net/~aknafws/2001conf.html - interesting conference and publications - Alaska http://www.nativeweb.org/ Native web sites http://www.nativeweb.org/resources/travel_tourism/http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/hpaied/index.htm Harvard School of economicshttp://www.ahrdcc.com/ aboriginal human resource canadahttp://www.afn.ca/ Assembly of First Nationshttp://www.island.net/~nuuchah/ Nuchahnulth websitehttp://www.heiltsuk.com/ - this is my community - the Heiltsukhttp://www.luco.gov.bc.ca/[[ http://www.luco.gov.bc.ca/slupinbc/qcharlot/3.htm#3.9 - some info on Haida Gwaii| http://www.luco.gov.bc.ca/slupinbc/qcharlot/3.htm#3.9 - some info on Haida Gwaii]]http://parkscan.harbour.com/gwaii/watch.htm Info on the Haida Watchmen program
Nei ra te mihi,Ka titiro atu au ki te āhua o nga rārangi whakaahua me ngā kupu kārero kei tā whārangi i runga i te rorohiko, ka whakamīharo au. Hoki tonu mai te maharatanga o ngā mātua tūpuna o mua, me te āhua o te whenua nei i te wāi ārātou. Kei te tautoko kei te manaaki atu i ngātikanga kua whakatakotoria e koutou o te marae o Okapu me te iwi kāinga o tānā rohe a tatou te iwi Māori o Aotearoa, he koanga ngākau ko koutou kei te awhi kei te tiaki i āna taonga whakahirahira. Kia mau, kia kaha. Anā rā te mihi me te aroha atu nāku iti nei Kui Pirikahu. na Taumaha
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