Rangatahi building skills and better futures were celebrated on Friday at a graduation ceremony for a Tairāwhiti-based driving course and freediving and kai-gathering programme.
Atawhai Charitable Trust, a community-run organisation working with youth, hosted the event, attended by East Coast MP Dana Kirkpatrick who presented the awards, and former Gisborne mayor Meng Foon, a new trustee of Atawhai.
Also present were Atawhai chair Whiti Timutimu and representatives from NZ Police.
Atawhai runs the Drivers For Change Programme, funded by NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, and a new freediving and kai-gathering programme under its youth mentoring service funded by E Tū Whānau under the Ministry for Social Development.
Drivers for Change is a kaupapa māori programme designed for young people between 16 and 25, at risk of offending or reoffending.
Participants can go from their learner’s license to a restricted license, from restricted to full, cover defensive driving and other kaupapa.
Shandee Wharehinga got her restricted through the program and plans to get her full license soon too.
“I heard about this from another organisation who put me on to them for a driver’s license,” Wharehinga said.
“I have been sitting on my learners for over five years and I thought it was time to get my ‘a into g’ when I heard about this opportunity.”
She said the process was very quick and it was “awesome” to be graduating.
“I didn’t even have ID, like my physical learner’s license, for a long time so now I have ID which is awesome because I still get asked for it.”
Harlem Ratapu ran the five-day free diving programme for rangatahi, both tane and wahine groups.
He has run three programmes so far, with the pilot being with local youth group Ka Timata.
“I introduced them to the absolute basics, from going through all of the gear they need, all the safety procedures and then teaching them all the things around their body, like when they are descending, equalising, how to breathe in and out of the snorkel.”
“Then we progress to two classroom sessions and two pool sessions Monday and Tuesday, then practice out in the ocean, so I take them for three days out into the moana,” Ratapu said.
“They have some real-life powerful teachings from the ocean.”
He told the audience about how attitudes changed from the beginning to the end.
“Nine times out of 10 they come in through the door being told to come here by their whānau and not wanting to do the programme. Next minute, on the fifth day, they are saying ‘When is the next one? We want to run a two-week camp’.”
Mum Leemo said her 15-year-old son Marcus Tuwairua had greatly enjoyed the freediving and kai-gathering programme because it gave him something to do.
“I wish there was more like this for children, especially youths that aren’t good with schools,” she said.
Gabby learned about the programme through Instagram and signed up her daughter, 13-year-old Chevy.
“She enjoyed it, she actually told [Harlem] he should have his own youth course group because he was easy to understand, they understand him because he has probably been through exactly what they’ve all been through,” Gabby said.
Kerry Kururangi, office manager for Atawhai, said that, alongside the driving and diving programmes, they also run others including a budgeting programme.
“We want to start getting other holiday programmes that will complement [them] so they have started the steps going into work skills,” Kururangi said.
“We didn’t want to reinvent the wheel, we would like to collaborate with other organisations in Te Tairāwhiti that can benefit our rangatahi and benefit them as well.”
She said trustees were all locals, some including ex-workers for the organisation who stayed on.
“We want to have a Tairāwhiti that thrives for our rangatahi and our whānau. You have to have people who are from Te Tairāwhiti and understand what it is like to be in Te Tairāwhiti, that’s my opinion.”