Maori and Pacific Islands Awards Evening
Last night more than five hundred community members and staff came together to celebrate the achievements of our Maori and Pacifica students. The awards and the guest speaker’s (Jared Williams) appearance were interspersed with items in a range of genres. The students involved in the evening performed at an extremely high level, delighting their families and staff with Kapa Haka, Barber Shop, Choral and musical numbers.
Miriama Barton (Dean of Maori Students) was very pleased with the turn out, and with the number of nominations for each of the awards.
Interview with Whaea Barton
The leaders that we had last night as prefects stepped up to the mark: Taylor Glassie, Tony Setefano, Cory Wilson, Te Wehi Wright, Mahue Dewes, Jayden Blake – they were amazing. There was more focus on entertainment last night than a number of talking heads. The seven groups that we had performing last night added an exuberance to the evening that was great to see.
The hall was full, and there was great representation from the staff. The parents that I spoke to afterwards were really glad that they attended – it’s one thing to hear about the talent of the boys, it’s another thing to have the opportunity to see their talent in action.
I’d like to take the opportunity to thank Jared Williams, our guest speaker. He gave us a really motivating speech, and as Te Wehi Wright said, Jared talked about Nelson Mandela in his speech – tomorrow we’ll be talking about Jared Williams. Sadly, Toti West is in his final year as our Kapa Haka tutor - I’d like to thank him for the enormous amount of work he put in to our group. We had fourteen all-weekend wananga this year to get the boys to where they are; wherever Toti ends up working next year, they will be lucky to have him.
It was wonderful to see the award winners – they did the school proud. It was also great to have the endorsement and support of HBHS senior management. All of our boys are ambassadors for the school, and the following boys should feel affirmed by our recognition of their achievements:
Prize Recipients:
Service: Taylor Glassie
Academic: Jayden Blake
Leadership: Tony Setefano
Cultural: Selu Fotu
Sports: Joseph Webber
Tama Toa Trophy: Daley Maniapoto, for leadership and skill in Kapa Haka
Greatest Improvement in Kapa Haka: Phoenix Crumby, Rome Nonoa, Tukotahi Te Aoturoa
Service to Kapa Haka: Daley Maniapoto
Honourable Mentions:
Te Wehi Wright: Touch
Mikaere Beattie: Touch
Patrick Harrison: Rowing
Rahiti Teokotai-White: Water Polo
Teina Courtney: Touch
Matiu Pouri-Lane: Wrestling
Tallis Karaitiana: Rowing and Rugby
Isaac Te Tamaki: Touch and Rugby
Nephi Harrison: Football
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