“You know, there’s a lot of history between Taranaki and Whanganui, and I’ve read lots of stories of my tīpuna travelling backwards and forwards between Taranaki over generations, so it’s almost like we’re re-enacting that.”
The pair will be accompanied by a support campervan and will carry water, electrolytes, and gel snacks. They will have whānau join them on sections, with the invitation open for anyone who might want to walk some of the way.
Manuirirangi said she thought the hīkoi would bring up “a whole mixture of feelings”.
“Just the process of walking is also something [our ancestors] would have done,” she said.
The Indigenous Health Knowledge and Development RIEL 2025 Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on April 28 to May 2, aims to address critical health issues impacting indigenous communities globally, through a lens of resilience and love.
The hīkoi fundraiser is to cover the cost of their flights, accommodation, and registration fees to attend the conference.
In Albuquerque, Manuirirangi plans to make a presentation on her University of Waikato master’s dissertation which involved discussions with young people living in transitional housing services in Hamilton.
“It was exploring this idea of home for these kids who maybe don’t have a home, and what that looks like for them,” Manuirirangi said.
“In terms of social housing, I was looking at how we support young people who are living away from their whānau and, say, a 16-year-old going into emergency housing without good whānau support and how that plays into their wellbeing.”
The work had been eye-opening for Manuirirangi, but also at times heartbreaking as she witnessed the conditions some young people lived in without adequate housing in Hamilton.
She said her study had made her realise the stark privilege that someone who owned, or had access to, a home was given compared to these young people, and the pervasiveness of the issue of homelessness in Hamilton.
“I’ll be talking about how our tīpuna left Rarotonga and came to Aotearoa; it’s quite a similar story in that they were struggling with housing insecurity and voyaging without a home,” Manuirirangi said.
“I want to look back at how our tīpuna created home for us as people.”
Sampson’s PhD at Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, based in Whakatāne, is looking at the migration story of her iwi by retracing the footsteps of her ancestor - Apa-hāpai-taketake - who came from Hawaiki to live in the Whakatāne area.
Over generations, Sampson’s iwi moved further into the Whanganui-Rangitīkei area.
“Due to the heavy impact of colonisation, a lot of that mātauranga [Māori knowledge] has been lost for us as a people so this journey, and my PhD, is about retracing that journey and trying to understand more about what that looks like for us,” Sampson said.
“To reclaim and strengthen our identity as a people and as an iwi.”
She was looking forward to the conference and the opportunities it would bring to strengthen her indigenous connections overseas.
The pair are currently training for the walk and will be ready to hit the road on State Highway 3 on March 21.
Manuirirangi said she was looking forward to the journey although she anticipated it would be hard at times.
“Our bodies will probably feel it for a long time too,” she said.
Donations to their fundraiser can be made through their Givealittle page givealittle.co.nz/cause/highway-3-to-albuquerque. To keep up with their journey follow their Instagram on highway3_to_albuquerque.
Eva de Jong is a reporter for the Whanganui Chronicle covering health stories and general news. She began as a reporter in 2023.
