Families meet in reconciliation meeting over racist voicemail left by Tauranga car salesmen

Mike Farmer, the managing director of Farmer Auto Village, and his family met with Narelle Newdick, pictured, and her whanau at a reconciliation hui in Te Puke on Friday.

A reconciliation meeting has been held between a Maketu nurse and the owners of Tauranga car dealership after a salesman accidentally left a racist message on her voicemail.

Mike Farmer, the managing director of Farmer Auto Village, and his family met with
Narelle Newdick and her whanau at a reconciliation hui in Te Puke on Friday.

Farmer's formal apology to Newdick aired on TVNZ1's Marae programme on Sunday morning.

Newdick had visited the Farmer Auto Village with the hope of buying a car until she discovered a message a staff member accidentally left on her phone.

At the hui, Farmer told Newdick that Tauranga Farmers Autovilllage "sincerely and unreservedly apologises for the hurt and distress caused to her and her whanau by the inappropriate comments made by two of our staff members".

Newdick told Marae there was a still a lot of anger and hurt, particularly regarding the part of the message that described her as a "f.....clever Maori".

"I was offended not only for myself but he has lumped us all into that box," she said during the Marae interview.

Farmer said without question the previous week had been the hardest week he and the company had ever experienced.

Te Tuinga Whanau Support Services Trust executive director Tommy Wilson said the Farmer family had asked if he would help facilitate the reconciliation meeting

Wilson said Tauranga Farmers Auto Village had been a long-time supporter of the trust.

He said the incident did not reflect the wider culture of the company.

The Farmer family had asked for forgiveness from Newdick, "and the reconciliation has begun", Wilson said.

Newdick said she accepted the apology and bore no ill will towards the rest of the team at Farmer Auto Village.

She also urged people to speak out about racism or sexism in the community.