Those ese life-altering events, within six weeks of each other, made her assess her life.
A job at the Hub Café on the EIT Tairāwhiti Campus led her to realise studying further was a way forward.
“Working there, I met heaps of students, and especially adult students,” Keepa said.
“It inspired me to realise that I could still study at my age, and that I was determined to do better - not only for myself, but for my whānau.
“I always thought I’d love to be a midwife, but I put it in the too-hard basket as I thought that it would be terrible to go back to school as an adult student.
“But working at the Hub Cafe, meeting all those people, I was like: ‘Man, I am actually going to do this’.”
Because she had been out of study for so long, 37-year-old Keepa first had to enrol in the NZ Certificate in Study and Career Preparation (Levels 3 and 4).
“I didn’t think I needed to do Level 3, but I’m so glad that I did. It helped transition me into Level 4.
“These courses prepare you so much more for further study at degree level,” Keepa said.
“They take you back to the basics, which I needed as I wasn’t at school long enough to even learn those. I actually did way better than I thought I would academically, too.
“My tutors were amazing, and all the staff at EIT are so encouraging. It’s a very close-knit community at EIT.”
Keepa is in her first year of a Bachelor of Midwifery through the Waikato Institute of Technology (Wintec).
With her first semester completed, she was pleased to announce she received straight As, and hopes to continue her learning journey at a high level.
Keepa, who is married and a mother to five children, said her experience with her stillborn son Kyrei had been a big part of her midwifery journey.
While she realised she wanted to be a midwife when her daughter was born 12 years ago, it was the birth of Kyrei that pushed her to make it happen.
“I always thought that it would be an amazing career to have and to be part of that moment in a woman’s life.
“What held me back was that I did not do too well at high school. School was never for me, I’m much more of a hands-on person.
“But then after everything with Kyrei, I thought: ‘Gosh, how many women could I support through their healing process if I actually was in this career?’
“I definitely want the good part of midwifery. I love babies and I love seeing women’s empowerment, but also having that other perspective as well is super-important because as a midwife you never want to become complacent. It’s about awareness. A lot of whānau don’t know, or women don’t know, the warning signs, so now I can pass that on through education.”
EIT’s study and career preparation programmes provided the foundation for Keepa to fulfil that ambition.
With three more years to go of her degree after this one, Keepa is keen to learn what is needed to become a midwife and to equally care for and work in partnership with all women, and give back to the Tairāwhiti community.
EIT’s acting head of school Education and Social Sciences Mandy Pentecost said Keepa’s story was a shining example of the way the study and career pathway courses were doing a great job getting people ready to enter higher-level study.
‘We wish Hailey every success as she continues to pursue her dream.”
EIT Tairāwhiti campus manager Waata Shepherd said staff had appreciated Keepa while working at the Hub Café where she provided great service and interacted positively with students.
“Despite losing Hailey, we are so pleased that she was pursuing a midwifery career and completing her initial studies at EIT before studying at Wintec.
“EIT Tairawhiti strongly supports any student who continues to study and develop themselves, despite their age, as Hailey has shown here.”
