Close to 1000 mourners have gathered to farewell respected kaumātua Dr Kihi Ngatai, QSM, who is being laid to rest today.
Ngatai, of Ngāi Te Rangi and Ngāti Ranginui, died on Sunday, aged 91, surrounded by whānau.
Manuhiri were welcomed on to Whareroa Marae to begin the service this morning.
The full funeral service started at 10am before the procession left for Tūtereinga Marae at Te Puna to lay Ngatai to rest at Epeha urupā, alongside his beloved wife Maria Hokimate Ngatai.
Turi Ngatai made the crowd laugh as he opened the eulogy for his father. He said he didn't have anymore tears and spoke fondly of the partnership between his parents, and the legacy Kihi left behind.
Ngatai spent most of his life in the Matapihi peninsula where his governance experience grew from converting the family dairy farm into a kiwifruit orchard.
He also served as the director of the Māori kiwifruit growers fraternity, Te Awanui Hukapak Limited, for several years.
As a trustee of Te Pā o Te Ariki Trust and Maungatapu Marae Trust, Ngatai was involved in the decades-long battle to have Transpower move powerlines in Maungatapu and particularly off Te Pā o Te Ariki, the pā site of Ngāti Hē.