Te Hautū Kahurangi mourns the passing of Dr Huirangi Waikerepuru.

Tertiary Education Union members and staff, past and present, mourn the deathtoday of Dr Te Huirangi Waikerepuru.

Dr Te Huirangi Eruera Waikerepuru CNZM (Taranaki, Ngāpuhi) passedaway at the Palmerston North hospital in the presence of his Waikerepuru whānauincluding daughters Ria and Te Urutahi.

Dr Waikerepuru was instrumental in the Ngā Kaiwhakapūmau ite Reo Māori movement, leading the case through the privy council that NewZealand should recognise and protest Te Reo Māori as a taonga under te Tiriti oWaitangi, and lobbied for the establishment of Te Māngai Pāho, iwi radiostations and Māori Television. He was a Companion of the New Zealand Order ofMerit, was awarded a lifetime achievement award at the Māori language awards in2016, and a life member of Te Hautū Kahurangi|Tertiary Education Union.

Huirangi, along with Katerina Daniels who died only a briefthree weeks ago, was one of the Kaumātua for ASTE Te Hau Takitini o Aotearoafrom 1988 and then for TEU Te Hautū Kahurangi from its inception in 2009.

Our hearts break at this time not only for the passing ofsuch a leader but also at a time when we cannot share our grief with his whānauand friends and colleagues.

Huirangi’s clarity of leadership and the compassionate andthoughtful way he led our union on its journey of discovery, which has builtour relationship with Te Tiriti o Waitangi, will always be cherished.

As TEU Tauheke, Huirangi composed the TEU karakia in 2009,which has since opened and closed TEU events, identifying and locating members withour people, place, and purpose.

Te hono a wairua, whakaputa ki Te Whaiao, ki Te Ao Mārama

The merging of spirits, out in to the World of Light, life, knowledge, and illumination.

Huirangi and Māori members of TEU informally referred to theunion as Te Ū. The concept of Te Ū derives from the union’s logo and refers tothe two centre koru at the heart of the logo which represent the voices ofgeneral staff (left red koru) and academic staff (right gold koru). Combined,they form Te Ū (short for ūkaipō) or the original source of sustenance forhumankind. The concept also refers to, the heart, mind, and soul of the union,and its diverse membership, ethnicities, and cultures mutually supporting eachother – emotionally, physically, intellectually, and spiritually.

The values on which our union rests and the paths that wechoose now are ones that he has guided us to, gently but clearly.

Huirangi has made so many contributions in so many otherspheres that he has been active in through all of his life. In the union space,his patience and skilful teaching has had an enduring impact that means the TEUwill continue to be shaped by his values and philosophy long after his death.The sign surely of a true and inspiring leader.

E kara Huirangi

Me pēhea e tāea te rāranga ake i te kupu kōrero hei takapau tākai i a koe ko riro tahae i te pō inanahi. Tē tāea te rārangi ake i ngā hua maha ko whiwhia e tō whānau, ō hapu, ō Iwi, tō Iwi Māori, ngā hunga puta i te motu whānui, i te ao katoa, i hakapaungia e koe tō kaha me ngā werawera i maringi iho i tō rae, hei painga mō tātou katoa. Tēnei mātou tō whānau o Te Hautū Kahurangi o Aotearoa, te tangi atu, te poroporoaki nei, te mōteatea nei, te hakamau i te pare kawakawa, te noho mokemoke i te raungaiti o te noho mō koutou te momo ira tangata ko rūpeke ki tua o maumahara. Te wehenga ngātahi atu kourua ko te kuia nei a Kā, i maimoa kourua ki a kourua, ā, ki a mātou me mātou hoki ki a kourua, i ngā rangi tata ko taha ake nei. Otirā, kia takitahi te hoenga o te waka, kia kaua e tīkoki, kia māunu te teretere o tō kourua waka ki runga i te te awa tapu, ki tāpoko o te rangi.

Haere mai, haere, kia aupikitia atu rā te toi huarewa i pikitia atu rā tō tupuna a Tāwhaki-nui-ā-Hema, hakamaua te aka matua, puta tara, puta tara i te wheiao ki te ao mārama. Kia pahure ake rā koe i te ao o ngā Māreikura o Rauroha, kia tae atu rā koe ki te ao o ngā Whatukura o Whitireia, kia kuhu atu rā koe mā te pūmotomoto o Tāwhirirangi, kia puta ake koe mā te koropīhanga o te whare ki te ao ka tomokia e koe, ki Mātangireia ki a Io nuku, ki a Io rangi, ki a Io matangerengere, ki a Io matua, ki a Io matua te kore.

Haere mai haere, kia takahia atu rā koe te ara tiketike. Ko te ara tēnei o Mahuru i eke atu rā ki runga ki a huarau, ki a Whātua Mangonui, tihāoa te kaukōpuni, pahure i reira ko te kāhui kura. Ko te kura ko riro ki tāpoko o te rangi, ko te kura ko riro ki te anu o te mātao, ko ngā kurakura o Hine-nui-i-te-pō. E tomo rā koe ki roto ki tō koutou whare ki a Rangiaio, takoto mai rā ki roto o wharepapa, o huaki pōuri. Ko te whare tēnā i tītaria ō koutou tinana, i kāwhaki ai koutou ki te au kume, ki te au rona, ki te au hīrere. Hīrere ki te pōuriuri, hīrere ki pōtangotango, hīrere ki te mate. Ehara koutou nō raro nei, erangi nō ngā kūrae o hau mātao, ka rapu puku te aroha i haere i te haumihi ata, i tau ai te rangimārie o ngā mahi aroha katoa. Haere i te ia, haere i te ōru e kume atu ana ki te ao o te mate. E hoki atu rā ki tua o tāwauwau, ki te wāhi e kore nei koe e huri muri mai, erangi ko mātou ēnei ka anga atu. E moe, e moe, e moe mai rā.

Matua Hōne Sadler, TEU Kaumātua