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ABOUT US

MŌ HE ORANGA WHĀNAU

Rauawaawa Kaumātua Charitable Trust is quality accredited under the Te Wana Quality Health Programme and recognised across multiple service delivery sectors. We have over 700 Kaumātua registered on our database. Eighty percent are reported as Māori, while 65 percent are female and 35 percent male. The key reasons identified by Kaumātua for accessing support from Rauawaawa are health, education and information, and socialisation. The overarching aim of Rauawaawa is to enhance the quality of life and wellbeing of Kaumātua.

HISTORY

Established in 1997, Rauawaawa Kaumātua Charitable Trust was founded by a group of Kaumātua who identified a need for Kaumātua culturally focused and accessible health, social and community-based activities and services.

Since 1998, Rauawaawa has been based at Te Puna o Te Ora, a facility that occupies over one acre of land in Frankton, Hamilton. While Rauawaawa celebrates more than 25 years of service delivery, Te Puna o Te Ora has been providing services to the local community for more than 80 years.

The lack of accommodation for Māori in Hamilton during the 1930s lay the grounds for active members and organisations in the community to advocate for the establishment of a Māori hostel. The birth of the complex Te Puna o Te Ora was initiated in 1938 with the incorporation of the Waikato Māori Hostel Society (WMHS).
Foundation members specified in the WMHS Trust Deed were Princess Te Puea, Eliza Oraihi Whatu, Hamilton Borough Council, Waikato Hospital Board, Hamilton Rotary Club, Waikato, Waipa, Raglan, Kawhia, Otorohanga, Matamata, Piaka and Waitomo County Councils, Te Kuiti Māori Association, Sisters Frances and Nicholl, Dr Turbott, Mr Valder, Mr Findlay, Mr Dillicar, and many more significant change makers to the history of Māoridom in Hamilton.
Te Puna o Te Ora was officially opened on the 23rd August, 1941 and has served Māori from throughout Aotearoa during its history, firstly as an accommodation facility for Māori moving into Kirikiriroa from rural areas for work (1941 – 1970), then as an accommodation and training centre for trade trainees (1971 – 1990). After that initiative ended, Anchorage inhabited Te Puna o Te Ora and ran its residential alcohol and mental health service (1991 – 1997).
After Anchorage, Rauawaawa acquired the management of Te Puna o Te Ora. The Waikato Māori Hostel Society then led by renowned Kaumātua, Dr Hare Puke, gifted the land and assets of Te Puna o Te Ora to Rauawaawa on 30 May 2006.

TE PUNA O TE ORA UPGRADE

The upgrade of Te Puna o Te Ora was driven by a need to create a safer, warmer, earthquake compliant and more accessible place for Kaumātua to come. Integrated technology throughout the upgrade will ensure Kaumātua can access our programs wherever they are. In a hui held with stakeholders and Kaumātua in 2014, it was decided that the upgrade would at a minimum set the goals of creating an age-friendly and dementia-friendly community based facility for Kaumātua.
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Since taking up guardianship of Te Puna o Te Ora, Rauawaawa has with the support of Trust Waikato, Lottery Grants Board, Ministry of Health, Hamilton City Council, Waikato District Health Board, Pinnacle Midlands Health Network, Te Kohao Health, Ageing Well National Science CHallenge, Building Better Homes,Towns and Cities National Science Challenge, Healthier Lives National Science Challenge, The University of Waikato, The University of Auckland, The University of Otago, Ministry of Social Development, WEL Energy Trust, Glenice & John Gallagher Foundation, Community Organisation Grants Scheme, Len Reynolds Trust, Centre for Research Evaluation and Social Assessment, D.V. Bryant Trust, Te Puni Kokiri, Te Rūnanga o Kirikiriroa, Te Whatu Ora, Transpower, ACC, Te Rau Ora, Te Oho Whakaita, Waikato Tainui, National Health Coalition, Te Tari Kaumātua, Te Aka Whai Ora, Department of Internal Affairs, Waikato Housing Hub and many more generous contributors completed partial upgrades to make the facility more suitable for Kaumātua.
Although Te Puna o Te Ora is no longer an accommodation complex, it continues to be a gathering point for Kaumātua and their whānau.