Ngati Rangi come together at festival

Bubs Hibbard bowls for her marae, Raketapauma. PHOTOS/ LAUREL STOWELL

Sport, health and togetherness were the themes of the fourth Ngati Rangi Festival held at Ohakune's Ruapehu College on Saturday.

Hundreds of people from 13 marae in the Ruapehu and Whanganui districts socialised and played sport in blustery, then rainy, conditions.

"This is an awesome day that brings everyone together. There's a family come from Australia just for this," Johanne Patel said.

The day began with karakia and a march past by the marae, many in uniform T-shirts. The games began at 9am, after the pukaea (traditional wooden trumpet) Paretetaitonga had been blown to the four directions.

Teams showed their skill in touch, basketball, netball and volleyball. For the less physical there was euchre and indoor bowls.

Children had sessions of organised games, including a modified form of playground favourite bullrush.

Maori tertiary institute Te Wananga o Aotearoa had a tent set up, promoting its Certificate in Waka Ama Level 4 course. Co-ordinator Shayna Blake said 32 people graduated from it this year, and she's looking for at least 10 Ruapehu enrolments in 2014.

Also present were food stalls and Oho Ake Ltd, a Maori healing business. It was offering mirimiri (massage) and rongoa (traditional medicine) in exchange for a koha (donation).

Fierce wind gusts tore at tents, but people played on to the finish, even after rain started around 2pm.

After that taonga (trophies named after significant places in the tribal landscape) were given out to winning marae, and there was a hangi meal and entertainment from each marae.

The festival happens every two years.

This year's was the fourth event.

Its aim is to increase health and wellbeing for Ruapehu iwi Ngati Rangi and the greater Whanganui area, through a mix of sport and culture.

Ngati Rangi chairman Kemp Dryden said the iwi had about 8000 descendants and 2500 registered members.

Only 15 per cent still lived in the Waimarino.

About half of the rest lived in Wanganui, and the others were spread throughout New Zealand and the world.