Waihī Beach School Tūhua project
Waihī Beach School’s vision is that all tamariki (children) who come through the kura (school), will receive the koha (gift) of visiting and exploring Matā a Tūhua (Mayor Island), this local and national taonga (treasure).
Matā a Tūhua is an iconic and sacred taonga that our students see from a distance every day. Matā a Tūhua is imprinted into our school logo, our school pepeha, our school waiata, but yet many families and students have never been there. We believe that children need to have their places of belonging in their environment, so they may learn about them and bring them to life.
Matā a Tūhua is a significant landmark that sits on the horizon of Waihī Beach and is ingrained in the history and pūrakau (stories) of the region.
It is no small task to make a trip like this happen. Matā o Tūhua is 25 kilometres away by sea, and we have 29 to 45 ākonga (learners) that need to get there. There is much planning and considerations that are necessary, not to mention the cost of hiring a charter boat to transport the tamariki to this sensational destination.
In October 2020 Waihī Beach School approached Greg and Melanie Sheppard from Harcourts Gold Star Waihī Beach about supporting their vision to get their tamariki to Matā o Tūhua and the rest is history.
On 24th November 2020, Waihī Beach
School Year 6 students embarked on their maiden voyage to Matā o Tūhua and it was made possible by the generous koha from Harcourts Gold Star Waihī Beach.