My personal view
Community: Is a place in which you wholeheartedly feel a sense of belonging and kotahitanga. It is the coming together in unison, where people are all treated equally and this in itself helps to strengthen the community. It is uniting everyone to keep everyone safe. It is community watch, it is helping out in natural disasters i.e., tsunami, flooding’s, earthquakes etc.
To enable a community to grow requires empathy, compassion, open communication, interaction and understanding. I believe social media has a big part to play in caring for our community.
Community: Is caring for our environment, the ocean, rivers, lakes, the land, vegetation, plantations, our marae, our Urupa (cemeteries), forests, schools, churches health clinics, neighborhoods, shopping centers, police station, village, residents, society.
Community: Is taking care of our kaumatua (elderly), rangatahi (youth), tamariki (children), our pepi (babies), it is our haapu (sub tribe), iwi (tribe), Whanau (family), tauira (pupils), kaiako (teachers).
Cultural background
In my area there are six marae that I am aware off. All our marae have representatives who are on the board of trustees for our Hauora and their respective marae. To strengthen our community involvement not just with my area but with Ngati Porou runanga at large, an event is run every year whereby they hold “Pa Wars” to engage every marae to participate in a whole lot of activities, from athletics, dancing, card games, tug of war just to name a few. At days end, points are tallied to find out who the winner is. There are forty eight marae in the Ngati Porou area so all areas come together to support their communities and get to know each other.
Each marae have a working committee dedicated to doing chores. They may come together to mow lawns, do gardening, wash down walls and do general cleaning overall the marae. It’s up to each marae committee how often they meet. On occasions when there is a tangihanga (funeral) everyone from that marae participates and helps where needed. Basically everyone knows their jobs and just gets on and does it. There are those who work in the kitchen, those who cook, wash dishes, grocery shopping, cut up meat, peel veges and potatoes, desserts, set up tables and clear tables, make cuppa teas and sandwiches for every ope (visitor) that arrives.
Wharenui: Mattresses and sheets are laid out, along with pillows. Those who stay bring their own blankets. Culturally there is a community feeling throughout the marae whether you are Maori or any other race. All of these chores done on the marae by those who help are taken back into our community and as such are integrated back into the community as a whole. Koha this is given to the haukaenga (people of the marae) by the manuhiri (visitors) these days it’s normally money, whereas in days gone by it was food, taonga, seafood or whatever the manuhiri could give.
How do you define a community?
I will define a community as sharing of resources, helping each other, problem solving, a place where people can share things in common, a place where support is freely given if required and others needs and wellbeing are taken into account if you are unwell. Sharing is caring.
"To create health is by far, more superior, advanced and far better quality than any physician, health center, surgery, or doctor’s office, that is the power of community," Mark Hyman.
What role does it play in my own mental health and wellbeing?
Building resilience and overall wellbeing is very beneficial in healing. It gives me an encouraging sense of my whakapapa (identity) and a strong connection to my community through whanau which in turn is resilient in oranga. (Wellbeing) It is robust in Kaitieketanga (to nurture or care for a person) and is Pono (truthful, honest, real, genuine and sincere).
I use the above principles (Pono, Identity, kaitieketanga, and oranga) which are acronyms, of pikopiko to construct my model as these principles are forever intertwined to provide renewal of life with emerging new growth and healing properties to expose my clients to their own hidden potential.
How does your cultural background shape your understanding of community?
I was bought up by my two grandmothers and named after both. Both my nannies had significant influences in my life and both were matriarchs of their respective whanau. My whakapapa and my personality are a combination of these people. So in many ways these people have molded me into “ko wai a wau” who am I.
Therefore I am proud of my beliefs, values and morals, of which I have learned from whanau and I will continue their teachings consistently. It is through whānau that values histories, and the traditions of my ancestors that were adapted to the contemporary world (Taonga tuku iho) and these gifts were given to me at a young age. I was raised on two active marae, Hinuokoko in Wharekaka and Okuri Marae in Mangatuna until I was sixteen. Both my nannies had papa kainga surrounding their marae. From my marae encounter with my nannies, I learned an important aspect of this rangahau is whakapapa, which is the basis from which interactions and relationships are established, developed, maintained and severed between and among whānau members. For example, this quote, ‘Families are like branches on a tree, we all grow in different directions, but our roots remain the same. So we all have whakapapa regardless of whom we are, it can’t be altered even if we choose other -stigma significant people to be in our lives. So being bought up on these marae has shaped me into who I am and given me the cultural understanding of a community setting.
Are there specific cultural values or practices that influence your views of community and its impact on mental health?
These are all assessments of mental health and are influenced by social media, community approaches and news broadcasts through the representation and
The surroundings of mental health issues. Between public perception and real life experiences of individuals with mental health issues positive media representation can help to de-stigmatise metal illness and bridge the gap. The gap between perception and reality can be bridged leading to improved access to services and an environment for those facing mental health challenges.
The type of support we need and whether or not we decide to seek help at all, when it comes to mental health, the culture of the society that surrounds us influences our attitudes about seeking help. Some people do not view mental health issues as a problem and others see mental health challenges as a sign of weakness and others believe it is in each person’s control and they can take care of it. Some of these views are totally inaccurate and can make it very difficult for some clients to talk about their issues with mental health openly. This in turn can affect their decision to look for help.
Flowers Kaiwai, Coach Ignite provider
I believe Coaching should always be supportive, motivational, positive, inspiring, encouraging, nurturing, holistic, respectful, and caring.
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