Inā te mahi nui a Te Puea Herangi i roto i te hītori o tēnei whenua. Ki ētahi i tōna wā, he kaikaiwaiū ia nā tana whakahē i tā te kāwanatanga here i te Māori kia tukuna ki te pakanga tuatahi o te ao. Heoi, ko tōna mana wāhine i ngā tau o te ono tekau, o te whitu tekau ki te hiki i ngā tūmanako me te oranga o te Māori kei te pīkauria tonutia i te marae kei te tonga o Tāmaki e whakahōnore nei i tōna ingoa.
He tohu pea i te nui kē atu o ngā hua e haere ake nei.
“He pūnaha pai mō te oranga o tō tātou nei whanau Māori ahakoa kāinga kore, pouritanga, ērā mea katoa,” i kī atu a pouarataki o Manaaki Tangata e Rua a Hurimoana Dennis.
Hei tā te poutiaki i te marae hei tā Mona Kingi ahatia kāore anō kia tutuki i ngā hiahia katoa, he pai tonu te mahi.
“I hope we're doing Te Puea's job all these years and I'm quite proud to carry on her work,” i mea atu ia.
E toru rau e toru tekau mā rua ngā whānau kua āwhinatia e te marae mai i te puaretanga o ō rātou kuaha ki te āwhina i te hunga kāinga kore i te tau rua mano tekau mā ono.
Wheoi, ehara i te mea ohorere, e whakahōnore ana te marae i ngā mahi nā Te Puea i kōkiri.
Ko te manaaki i te hunga pōkai kaha, te hunga kāinga kore te ito o ngāna mahi.
I whakahē a Te Puea i te kāwanatanga o te wā me te tautoko i ngā tāne o Waikato kāore i te hiahia ki te whaiwhai i te pakanga tuatahi o te ao. I tapania ia hei kūpapa, wheoi i kōkiri tonu ia ki te hanga i te marae o te motu ko Tūrangawaewae, hei whakatīnana atu i ngā mātāpono o Te Kiingitanga.
“Ko te ngako, kei te whai i te marae i te mahi a Te Puea,” i korero atu a kairangahau matua takirua a Jenny Lee-Morgan.
“Ko tā rātou mahi te whakatīnanatanga o ōna moemoeā, ōna mahi, ā kia tutuki pai i ngā hiahia o te whanau rawakore.”
Ā ka haere ake te kotahi rau e rua tekau mā rima tau, he nui ngā mahi kua kōkirihia e ngā mareikura hei pāinga mō ngā wāhine, wheoi he nui tonu te mahi.
