Obituary: Te Aopehi Kara

CNZM, JP, Kaumatua. Died aged 75.

Like his tribal elders, Te Aopehi Kara had a dream to have more Maori involved in education and learning their own language. So at the age of 38 the former shearer trained to be a teacher.

He taught Maori and social science at Te Aute College in Hawkes Bay and Colenso High School in Napier, and was one of the first to teach Maori language in a school.

He later moved on to work for the education department in Wellington and became national coordinator of the drive to recruit more Maori and Pacific Island teachers.

Mr Kara, of Ngati Kahungunu and Tainui descent, was a board member, vice president and kaumatua of Te Kohanga Reo National Trust, a Tainui Te Arataura (executive) board member, and kaumatua for the Health and Disability Commission for 11 years. He was also patron of the Maori Golf Association.

Te Arataura chairman Tuku Morgan described Mr Kara as "probably one of the tribe's most respected cultural historians".

"His wisdom and his measure of calmness were the kind of qualities which are very rare in people," said Mr Morgan. "The thing about the old fellow was that he was always immaculately dressed."

Education did not feature greatly in Mr Kara's early life. Born in Wairoa in northern Hawkes Bay, he was working as a baker further down the island when he saw all his mates having fun in shearing gangs. He had always wanted to be his own boss, so he started a gang and by the time he left shearing he was employing 70 to 80 people.

The main ambition of his career in education was to have more of both Maori and non-Maori speaking te reo and keeping it alive. He felt that this helped his people make decisions for themselves.

"One of the most important things in my life has been getting our people into the position they are in today," he said last year.

He was made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit last year, for services to Maori.

Mr Kara is survived by his wife Waiariki. The couple raised 10 children.