Letitia Paul, is the new Food Beverage Manager at Wai Ariki Hot Springs & Spa.
Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
See below for English translation
Ko te whakapapa, ko te rongoā, ko te inu kāwhe me te kaukau waiariki
I whakamanuwhiringia mātau e Letitia Paul. He wahine māia, he māmā hoki. Tokorua āna tamāhine. Wheoi anō ko ia tonu te pūtake o tā māua pahupahu. Ka āta tirohia ngā take i hoki mai tēnei wahine kaha ki Rotorua.
Tuatahi, he ako i tana whakapapa me ngā wāhanga o tōna ao taketake. Mātua ko tana whakahuringa i tana kāta kāwhe hai pākihi tuku ihi kaha ake nei i te haukurunga inu kāwhe kotahi.
‘Ko Letitia taku ingoa. Ko taku matua wahine anake kai te kawea tonutia i te whakahuatanga tika o taku ingoa. Ko Teesh, ko Teesha rānei ki te hapori whānui.
I whānau a Teesh i Te Papaioea, ā, i pakekengia i Tamaki Makaurau. Ko ia hoki te rangatira whakahaere inuinu me te kai mā Wai Ariki Hot Springs & Spa. Ko ōna kāwai whakapapa he mea heke iho i ngā wai wawara o Te Tairawhiti, he Ngai Tahu me Te Whānau a Kai hoki ia. Ko Marshall Paul tōna hoa rangatira, anei tana herenga whakapapa ki Rotorua otia ki te ipukarea o Ngāti Takinga ki te pā taunaha o Mourea.
E rite kaha nei a Teesha ki te nuinga o tātau e kimikimi ana i ngā tātai whakapapa o nehe he ahakoa e pakeke ana. ‘Kātahi nei ahau ka tahuri ki te ako whakapapa, e tika ana hai mahi whakahirahira māku e rangatira e mātau hoki ai aku pēpi, nōku e pakeke ana ka timata hoki ahau ki te ako i taku pepeha’. Tokorua āna tamāhine. Kotahi ngāhuru mā toru te rahi o te kōtiro mātāmua, kotahi ngāhuru mā tahi te rahi o te whakapakanga. I Tamaki Makaurau rāua e kura ana, i te kura auraki e ako ana, he kitenga nō Teesh i te hekenga o tā rāua reo, nā reira i hoki mai rātau tokowha ki Rotorua noho ai.
‘Nō rāua e tamariki ana ka noho i te kura o Whangamarino, ka hau atu rāua ki te kura rumaki ki tō rāua Pikiaotanga.Ko ahau hoki tētehi i peke atu ki te waro ki a mātau mōhio hoki ahau ki taku taha Pikiao. He ahakoa taku ware, hīnawenawe katoa taku tapeha ka ū katoa mātau, nā wai, nā wai kai te whakataetae Manu Kōrero tā māua kōtiro e tu ana, ā, i wikitoria hoki e ia tana wāhanga whakataetae.Kāti kai te poho o Te Mangoroa rāua e tīkapokapo ana.’ Ka iti ki mua, ka nui ki muri, e tau tika ana te tūāpapa o tō rātau whare hou, kua pai te taha ki te Ao Māori kua tika te whare, nā wai rā ko te whakaaraara pākihi e ora ai te whānau, ka hua ake ko Teeshas Coffee.
‘Ko te hoko kāwhe te kaupapa matua o Teeshas Coffee, ki te rori o Te Ngae, e pai ana tēnei mahi hai timatatanga māku. E whiwhi pūtea ana mātau, e wātea hoki nei ahau ki te kohi i aku tamāhine i te kura’. Nō te wā o te māuiui urutā i whakawhanake ai ngā whakaaro whānui nā wai rā ka tahuri tā mātau pākihi hai pākihi hakoke, hai pākihi taka kai. ‘Ka whakaara ake ko tā māua pākihi a Tino Kai nō te wā o te māuiui urutā tēnei.Ka whakahuri i tō mātau kāta, hai weene kawe kāwhe, ka tae ki ngā kāinga huhua e noho tapu ana. Ko mātau anake e whakaaro pēnei ana, ka tapiringia e mātau he pouaka kai, ka tupu ake tēnei mahi hai mahi kawe kai’.
E tupu kaha ana te mana o tana pākihi, katahi a Teesh ka tahuri ki Wai Ariki ki te awhina i a rātau ki te taka kai rangatira. Ka noho kau ēnei pereti kai ki te Wai Ariki anake.
‘Ka āta tirohia aku pereti kai e ngā pou whakahaere o te Wai Ariki ka pai ki a rātau aku pereti, hōtō nā wai rā ka puta he turunga mahi i te wāhanga inuinu me te kai hai pou whakahaere – nā, kai kōnei ahau e mahi ana i nāia tonu nei’. Atu i tana mahi i Wai Ariki kai te kaha tonu a Tino Kai ko tētehi o āna tino mahi he tuku kai rangatira ki Wai Ariki hai whakakīkī i ngā kāpata o te pātaka.
Letitia Paul outside the new Wai Ariki building. Photo / Wai Ariki Hot Springs & Spa
Kai te hāpori tonu rātau e mahi ana. ‘Hai te ono o ngā hāora o te atapō timata ai ngā mahi, he mahi hanawiti, he hua parāoa he aha noa atu, he rongoā, he kawhe, he tunu kai, otia kai ngā taha e rua o te whare mātau e mahi ana, ki te ngāwhā me te puna waiariki. Ko te mea nui ko te whakahoahoa ki te manuwhiri.
Ko te manaakitanga te uho o te whare’. Ko Wai Ariki tētehi o ngā whakakitenga manuwhiri hou e tū nei ki te puku o Te Arawa, he whare hou i whakaaraarangia e Ngāti Whakaue. He whare haumaru, he whare whakaora i te tinana. Ka noho tahi ētehi o ēnei kaupapa me te kaupapa unu tī rongoā. ‘Ko te karanga wairua o tēnei kaupapa i puta mai i te wānanga i whakaaraarangia mā ngā wāhine anake e tētehi, ka toko ake te pātai, kai te tiakina rānei tātau ngā wahine i a tātau anō hoki?
‘Ko taku hiahia ki te whakatakoto he wāhi ki taku mahi nei e hāneanea ai te wairua o ngā pou mahi katoa, tāne mai, wahine mai. Ko te hauora te take puta ai ngā tangata ki konei e hāngai kaha ana ki taku titiro pae tawhiti. He unu rongoā tī tētehi o ngā kaupapa nui i a mātau o tēnei wāhi mahi.
‘E whakaranungia ana he kawakawa, he kumarahou, he tataramoa he kanuka hoki hai unu whakakaha tangata’.
Nō Oku Tea ā mātau tī. He kamupene nō Aotearoa nei a Oku Tea. He rangatira katoa enei tangata e mātau kaha ana ki te whakatupu rongoā.’ Nā reira e noho tauira hoki ahau ki tēnei ao o te rongoā. Ko te tono aroha ki ngā manuwhiri kia unumia e rātau te waiora nei, ki te whakaae te ngākau ka pai, ki te kore te ngākau e whakaae mai e pai hoki tēnā'.
Ki te titiro pae tawhiti anei ētehi kupu āna ki ngā rangatira hou, ara ki ngā whakatupuranga hou.
‘He ahakoa e pirorehe ana ngā pūkahukahu, he ahakoa e kūwhewhewhe ana te rae, e toretore ana ngā kanohi, ko te oranga kai tūā o ngā ngaru tūātea. Mahi e rangatahi ana, e ngawari ai ngā tau pakeke. Me e noho mākihakiha ana e rangatahi ana, ka uaua kē ngā tau pakeke. Whāia te karanga wairua, kia kaha - tukua ngā kāre ā roto ki te ao whānui, kātahi koe ka uru ki te mura o te ahi. Ko te mea nui, kai te haere tu tonu ngā waewae, he ahakoa maunga teitei, he ahakoa mānia tūwhera. Kia kaha rā.
We caught up with mum of three, Letitia Paul, to find out about her journey of relocating her whānau to Rotorua, discovering her whakapapa, and transforming her coffee cart into a business that provides so much more than a daily caffeine hit.
“Only my mum really calls me Letitia, to everyone else, I’m Tesh or Tetia.”
Born in Palmerston North and raised in Auckland, The Food Beverage Manager at Wai Ariki Hot Springs & Spa has whakapapa connections to Te Tairāwhiti, Ngāi Tahu, and Te Whānau a Kai.
Her husband, Marshall Paul, is the link to Rotorua with Marshall hailing from te ipukarea o Ngāti Te Takinga, ko Mourea.
However, like a lot of us these days, learning whakapapa started later in life for Tesh.
“My whakapapa connections have been a new journey for me, I had to dig deep to start so I can have the knowledge for my babies. It was in my adult life that I learned my pepeha.
Tetias daughters, aged 13 and 11, attended a mainstream school in Auckland. Noticing that their daughters’ reo was not being nurtured, the whānau of five made the decision to move to Rotorua six years ago.
“They started at Whangamarino when they were 7 and 5 years old. They went straight in to rumaki to learn their Pikiaotanga. I also jumped in to the rumaki alongside them so I could learn for myself”. I didn’t have an ounce of understanding, so it was a culture shock for the three of us.
“Years later, my eldest was winning Manu Kōrero for her age group and they have both soared in Te Ao Māori.”
While strengthening their understanding of Te Ao Māori, Tesh and her whānau also wanted to lay their roots here, so they bought their first home and started their business, Tetias Coffee.
“All we sold was coffee on the side of Te Ngae Rd. Selling coffee was enough to sustain us at the time and it gave me the freedom to go to kura with my girls.”
It was during Covid that Tetias innovative thinking transformed their coffee cart into a mobile business and catering service.
“Tino Kai catering started during Covid. Lockdown was a big challenge with all the events being cancelled. We stripped our coffee cart and made a mobile coffee van and started going around to deliver contactless coffee.
Letitia Paul, is the new Food Beverage Manager at Wai Ariki Hot Springs & Spa. Photo / Wai Ariki Hot Springs & Spa
“We were the only ones doing that here, we also started platter boxes to go along with our coffee which eventuated into catering.”
With her catering business growing in popularity, Tesh went to Wai Ariki to help create the platters to be served as part of the luxurious treatment packages that are on offer at the spa. “The team here looked at some of my platters and asked me if I could help create the signature platter. At the same time, they just so happened to need a Food and Beverage manager, so here I am.”
“We make everything up, make the signature pastries here and sandwiches.
“We do the Rongoa, coffee, kai and operate in both the spa and outside of the spa.”
Tesh has always known that making kai and taking care of visitors go hand in hand and is second nature in Maoridom.
“It’s all about engagement with our people, which is authentic.
“We naturally Manaaki our Manuhiri. It’s a very empowering space to be in for Māori, it’s lovely to be in such a luxurious high-end space where our natural abilities can shine.”
Wai Ariki invites visitors to explore and experience the legacy of Ngāti Whakaue culture, healing practices and Manaakitanga.
Some of these experiences come with a Rongoa tea ceremony, something that Tesh had previously been inspired to learn more about.
“My inspiration was a wānanga I went to with just wāhine who were there to look after each other in a nurturing, natural and safe space. Wāhine carry a lot and have a lot of responsibilities, but do we really take the time to look after ourselves?
“I want to provide a space in my mahi where we can do the same. People come here for Hauora, peace, wellness, and this aligns with my long-term goals for the future.
“We have Rongoa Tea ceremonies here.
“We have a special blend for balance that’s incorporated with Rongoa Māori such as Kawaka, Kumarahou, Tātarāmoa and kanuka”. The tea supplied at Wai Ariki is from a NZ made tea company, Ōku Tea, who grow their own Rongoa.
The company have taken native Rongoa and infused it with non-Māori Rongoa to create a beautiful blend.
“I’m learning all about that and the health benefits of it. We do encourage all our guests here to try our tea.”
When considering future endeavours, Tesh shares a few words of advice and encouragement for the younger generation.
“As tired as you may get or as tired as you are and as hard as it may seem at the time, it’s going to pay off if you carry on.
“You work hard while you’re young, you live easier when you’re older. But, if you live easy when you’re young, you will live harder when you’re older. If you can follow your aspirations and dreams now, then do it. Keep Going.”
