Celebrating Māori excellence at the Ngarimu Awards
14 outstanding Māori individuals from across the motu | country have been awarded prestigious Ngarimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial scholarships and awards at a ceremony held at C Company Memorial House in Gisborne.
The Ngarimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarships and Awards is an annual event that recognises Māori learners who are undertaking tertiary study and who demonstrate characteristics that align with the values of the 28th (Māori) Battalion.
The awards commemorate Victoria Cross winner, Second Lieutenant Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa Ngarimu, and the brave men of the 28th (Māori) Battalion who served on the battlefields of Greece, Crete, North Africa and Italy between 1941 and 1945.
The winners of the 2023 Ngarimu video competition and the recipient of the prestigious Manakura Award were also celebrated at this year’s award ceremony.
C Company Memorial House was chosen for this year’s award ceremony in honour of the men of C Company who served in World War II, and for its affiliation to this year’s Manakura Award recipient.
This year’s awards ceremony began with a pōwhiri lead by Ngāti Porou who welcomed the Ngarimu Board, scholarship and award recipients, whānau and friends to C Company Memorial House.
Watch the ceremony
Watch the ceremony on YouTube:
Ngarimu awards 2024 – YouTube(external link)
Scholarships and awards recipients
The awards were presented by Minister of Education Erica Stanford and Willie Apiata VC.
Learn more about each recipient:
Winners of the 2023/2024 scholarships
Manakura Award
The Manakura Award is the highest accolade of the Ngarimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarships and Awards. It is presented every 3 years to an outstanding Māori leader.
This award was last presented to the late Tā Wira Gardiner in 2021.
This year, Minister Stanford announced Dr Monty Soutar ONZM (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Awa, Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, Ngāti Kahungunu) as the recipient of the award.
About Dr Monty Soutar ONZM
Renowned as New Zealand's leading Māori military historian, Dr Soutar dedicated 15 years of his life to documenting the history of the 28th (Māori) Battalion in his award-winning book, 'Nga Tama Toa – The Price of Citizenship, C Company, Māori Battalion'. Nga Tama Toa is considered to be the most definitive account of C Company's role in the World War II.
The Māori translation of the book was launched at the opening of C Company Memorial House in Gisborne on 15 November 2014.
Dr Soutar's exceptional contributions to education, Māori history and the 28th (Māori) Battalion define his legacy, which was recognised with the 2024 Manakura Award.
Undergraduate scholarship
Undergraduate scholarship recipients are awarded $10,000 per year for up to 3 years. This year's winners are:
- Heremia McGarvey (Ngāi Tūhoe)
- Maraea Coleman (Ngāti Porou)
- Pounamu Wharehinga (Ngāti Porou, Tūhoe)
- Te Atamihi Papa (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, Waikato Maniapoto).
Master’s scholarship
Master’s scholarship recipients are awarded $10,000 per year for up to 2 years. This year's winners are:
- Ashton Thrupp (Tūhoe, Te Aitanga-ā-Māhaki, Ngā Ariki Kaiputahi)
- Miria Haora (Ngāti Pūkenga, Ngāti Ranginui, Ngai Te Rangi, Ngāti Whātua)
- Jade Davis (Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, Ngā Tai, Te Whakatōhea)
- Melba Pakinga (Ngāti Tamaterā, Ngāti Hako, Ngāpuhi).
Doctoral scholarship
The doctoral scholarship recipient is awarded $20,000 per year for up to 2 years. This year's winner is:
- Aramoana Mohi-Maxwell (Te Arawa, Tūwharetoa, Ngāi te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Ruanui).
Vocational education and training
Vocational education and training scholarship recipients are awarded $10,000. This year's winners are:
- Te Atawhai Kaa (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Porou)
- Te Hiiri Ponga (Te Ātihaunui-a-Pāpārangi, Tūwharetoa, Te Whakatōhea, Tumango, Ngāti Apa).
Ngarimu video competition
Congratulations to the 2023 Ngarimu video competition winners.
Learn more about the winners:
2023 Ngarimu video competition winners
Te reo Māori video: 'He Raumahara'
By Hinemaiaia Pitiroi (Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāpuhi).
Bilingual video: 'Iti rearea, teitei Kahikitea ka taea'
By Ngaawaimarino Simpkins (Ngāti Rangiwewehi, Tūhourangi, Ngāti Wahiao, Ngāpuhi).
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