About

Our Story

The E Tipu E Rea Whānau was established following the successful implementation of a teen parent project at Auckland Women’s Centre. This project highlighted the need for an independent, Auckland-based teen parent service.

We began as Thrive, officially established in 2011 to support, protect, and empower teen parents in West and Central Auckland.

The journey to becoming the E Tipu E Rea Whānau came about because of the belief in our whānau in upholding the mana and hauora of young Māori – and using  a kaupapa Māori approach to support people of all backgrounds.  We now work across the Auckland Region.  The E Tipu E Rea Whānau is a movement that brings whānau together, we want you to all to be part of us, you are the E Tipu E Rea Whānau.

E Tipu E Rea, meaning “to grow and to thrive” from a kōrero by Ta Apirana Ngata, encompasses our kaupapa on three levels:

  • Whānau: as we help our rangatahi gain the tools and skills to fulfil their potential and strengthen as a whānau
  • Whakapapa: as our support networks encourage mātua taiohi to reconnect with their hapū, their whenua and their whakapapa, because this has an immeasurable impact on their hauora wairua
  • Te Ao: international teen pregnancy rates are most represented by indigenous peoples, and a colonial stigma victimises and sidelines teen mothers as an economic problem. Our kaupapa is to dismantle that stigma by helping mātua taiohi enact their rangatiratanga.
Follow our journey here

Our Values

Tikanga values are at the heart of our work at
E Tipu E Rea as we serve our community as a whānau.

Aroha

Behind all our mahi is the unconditional love for our rangatahi and our community.

Manaakitanga

As we uphold the safety and security of young parents and their babies.

Rangatiratanga

Acknowledging the strength, potential, and self-determination of matua taiohi and their inherent right to thrive.

Wairuatanga

Knowing and honouring those who walk with us on this journey, we encourage young parents/whānau to connect with their whakapapa.

Our Kaimahi

E Tipu E Rea kaimahi are committed to providing a warm, accepting, and nurturing environment for our taiohi and their tamariki. We challenge the systems that discriminate against taiohi mātua and grow their leadership to enact their own rangatiratanga.

Our team is made up of both public health kaimahi and highly experienced and dedicated social workers who offer a kaupapa Māori approach that is tailored to the needs and challenges of taiohi māmā and pāpā-to-be and new māmā.

Our organisation was nominated for the NZ Community of the Year Award in both 2018 and 2019.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Find out more about our unique services here

Zoe Aroha Hawke

Chief Executive Officer - Ngāti Hako, Ngāti Paoa

Zoe Aroha Hawke

Chief Executive Officer - Ngāti Hako, Ngāti Paoa

Board of Trustees

Te Miria James-Hohaia

Chairperson

Te Miria James-Hohaia

Chairperson

Tribal Affiliations: Waitaha, Ngāti Rangiwewehi, Ngāti Whakaue, Te Arawa.

Te Miria is currently self-employed in the area of health and wellbeing and is passionate about supporting people to improve their quality of life for themselves and their whānau.

She has a wealth of experience in supporting non-Māori organisations to improve Māori outcomes through the implementation of the Treaty of Waitangi. She spent 10yrs in the Ministry of Health (MoH) as the Strategic Advisor Māori public Health and was a member of both the Senior Management Team and Senior Leaderships groups for the Public Health and Systems strategy Directorates

Te Miria has designed tools to assist with improving Māori health outcomes.  The ‘Whānau Ora’ tool and ‘Whakaritenga Mahi’.  Both tools recognises the validity of Māori approaches to achieving whānau ora and are designed to assist general organisations to implement the  strategic pathways woven through He Korowai Oranga (NZ Maori Health Strategy 2002).

She has experience in community and people development, Senior Management, Māori Policy Development, People Centred and culturally appropriate Services.

Natalie Vincent

Former Chairperson

Natalie Vincent

Former Chairperson

Natalie is currently the Manager of the Auckland Airport Community Trust, General Manager of Nga Tangata Microfinance and a founding Trustee of Littlemore Trust, with many years experience in the not-for-profit sector. She has a degree in Educational Psychology and a background in early childhood education, having worked in this field both in New Zealand and overseas. Natalie has a passion for social justice, collaborative community led development and working to enable communities and families reach their goals. She is a mother of two adult children and proud to be part of the E Tipu E Rea Whānau team.

Josie Smith

Josie Smith

Charlene Fitisemanu

Charlene Fitisemanu

Charlene Fitisemanu joins the board with over 14 years experience working with international and local NGO’s and charities.

Charlene has developed her career around acting on her passion to drive positive impacts in our communities and for our environment.

She currently works at Oxfam NZ as the Corporate Relationship Manager, and brings experience in corporate social responsibility, sponsorship and partnerships, sustainability and project engagement.

Having been a young parent herself and knowing firsthand the challenges faced, Charlene is excited at the opportunity presented by E Tipu E Rea Whānau Services. She has a particular interest in supporting young parents into opportunities to ensure they have a positive future for themselves and their tamariki.

You can hear from our Board of Trustees in our monthly pānui and annual reports

To learn more about our services and how we can help you or your loved one, connect with our team.