E te whānau o Te Reo Maioha ki Poihākena, e mihi kau atu ana ki a koutou, e aku rangatira, nga kaipupuri o te mauri o a tatou marae kainga huri noa i Aotearoa, i te ao katoa, nga mihi maioha ki a koutou i roto i te wa o te tau kei te patata atu ki te whānau o te Tama a Te Atua, ara, te wahanga o te Kirimete tae noa ki te tau hou. Nga mihinui ki a Io, nana te kore, nana te pō, nana hoki te ao i whakatinana. E mihi ana, e mihi ana.

Thank you everyone who helped make 2006 such a great year for our kura. Our numbers doubled over the year, and with our new tauira came lots of fresh energy, skills and ideas.

We had had two awesome hui rumaki which were marked by the generous support and wisdom of the kaiako and pouako of Te Ataarangi and Te Reo Maioha ki Otaki. Some of our kura were also lucky enough to take part in the hikoi back to Aotearoa for the Te Ataarangi hui-a-tau, which was an amazing experience and source of inspiration for those involved.

And we had heaps of fun, with the hangi fundraiser, a harbour cruise and the Bollywood Xmas party being just a few highlights. Our kura grew stronger, thanks to everyone’s efforts - our kaiako, our tauira, our kōmiti, our kaumatua and kuia, our sponsors – and we all progressed not only in our learning of te reo but in becoming a true whānau of nga hau e whā.

We were honoured to support and take part in some of the awesome take and events in the wider Poihākena Māori community: we wept with our Tainui tauira and te tangata Māori ki Poihākena at the passing of Te Arikinui Te Atairangi i Kahu, and supported our Matua Hira at the passing of his sister. We celebrated the coming of the “Ko Tawa” taonga to our shores, we relaxed and enjoyed whānau time at the annual NSW Māori Rugby League tournament and the inaugural TAMA Open Day. And we partied at the fundraiser for Te Wairua Tapu at Cabramatta Bowling Club.