I was born and raised in Kaitaia, and I went away for a little bit and then I came back again when I had my first son, but most of my life this has been home. I went to Kaitaia Primary School, Kaitaia Intermediate & Kaitaia College. There’s quite a big age difference between my older siblings and me and my two younger brothers. By the time we hit teenage years, most of my older siblings had left home, so it was kind of just us. What I do remember about growing up was that there was always people at our house and always things to do. There was never a moment when you sat down and did nothing – always dishes to do, wood to chop, laundry to get in. All of that kept our home rolling and a routine happening.
My older sisters loved sport, and they were the ones who introduced me to it. They would often take me to netball because Mum was busy, and that was my first experience of that world. It wasn’t necessarily a specific moment of realisation that this was my passion, but the overall experience of actually being good at something, enjoying it and getting out of the house. My sisters would play in the adult competition and I’d be in the juniors, and by the time my game finished, I’d just stay around and watch them. So I had that mentorship of looking up to people and going ‘I want to be like them’. I stayed consistent with netball through my younger years, teenage years and into adulthood. Especially as a teenager it was my time to go out, meet new people, and do stuff away from home. The more I participated, the more skills I learned, the better I got, the more opportunities there were. Not once did I waver from wanting to play sport.
Even when my knee took me out of playing, I found ways to stay involved through coaching, umpiring and administration. Now with my new knee I got earlier this year, I’m still finding ways – ‘two-step tennis’ is my new thing, and bowls too! It really doesn’t matter what it is, for me, it’s about participating – being part of a team, being challenged, being active. Otherwise I go a bit stir crazy.
There’s a big link between being in a big family and being in a sports team. You can’t really be an individual when you’ve got nine brothers and sisters, because you’re all connected in some way. One of the main things my parents taught us is that family is everything. You need to support one another to keep the cogs turning. When I got older and started sports coaching, that’s the kind of stuff you had to teach the team too.
Another thing I learned from my parents was integrity and honesty. You can’t get away with much when you have nine siblings – someone will catch you out if you’re doing something you shouldn’t! I learned to respect my parents not just because of how hard they worked for us, but because they walked the talk when it came to those values, and I carried that into being a mum. I couldn’t expect my children to respect me if I wasn’t able to show them why I was worthy of being respected, just like my parents did for me.
I really do have my dream job. I work for Sport Northland, helping communities achieve their sport, recreation, health and wellbeing goals. I’m based in Ahipara, and we’ve managed to help get awesome things off the ground like the pump track and a new playground. I’m also the president of Te Rarawa Rugby Club, and our role there is making the space available for community, beyond the scope of rugby too. Aside from the Marae, it’s the only place that can host big events or gatherings, and our community needs that. I am so lucky to do this work in & outside of my role, and I believe it’s these sorts of things that help grow a community and make it more resilient.
Before Sport Northland, I worked at Kaitaia College as the Sports Coordinator. I loved that job. The difference you’d notice in kids who may have felt rubbish at English or Maths, but really thrived in sport, was amazing.
When you allowed them that space to flourish, it was the coolest experience watching them grow. Those so-called ‘naughty’ kids would be on their best behaviour for me on sports trips because what they were doing meant something to them. They learned responsibility, teamwork, problem solving, emotional regulation – skills they could apply to their lives. That’s why I believe sport shouldn’t just be considered ‘extra-curricular’, it should be a core component of education.
Sports really is a tool for helping to grow great people, at any age. All my kids had to play sport – I didn’t care what kind, they just had to pick something. My eldest son now does jujitsu, my daughter plays everything, and my youngest is in the UK playing rugby. Being active in life really is so important for so many reasons and I always encourage people to try and find their thing that they love. What you did as a 10-year-old may be different from what you do as a 50-year-old but as long as you’re doing something that keeps you moving, healthy and out of trouble, that’s the main thing.
Becoming a mum at 22 taught me that you grow up quickly when you’re responsible for someone else. I was lucky to have my parents’ guidance – I moved back home with them, and they taught me how to care for a child. Later, when I had my other two children, even when we didn’t live close, they still found their way back to Nana and Poppa. Parenting changes as you go – by the time I had my youngest, my eldest thought I’d gone soft, but really, I’d just learned to do things easier. Having my own grandchildren has been a great experience. My son thinks I spoil them too, but I tell him I’m spoiling them with time and attention. Those moments are really important – that’s my job as a grandparent, to give them pearls of wisdom and spend time with them.
Over the years I’ve always needed an escape from a busy lifestyle, and that’s my home. I talk to people all day, every day, so when I get home I just like to be a hermit in my house or yard and enjoy the quiet. You really have to learn to say no to people sometimes. If you can’t unwind, if you can’t recharge, you’ll burn yourself out – you’re no good to anyone if that happens.”