Te Rūnanga o Kaikōura chairperson Hariata Kahu (left) joined with Hurunui Mayor Marie Black to cut the ribbon at the official opening of the refurbished Soldiers’ Block on Anzac Day. Photo: David Hill / North Canterbury News
Excitement is building ahead of the opening a new whare at Hanmer Springs' Soldiers' Block.
Te Rūnanga o Kaikōura chairperson Hariata Kahu says the new whare-iti, which will be unveiled on Saturday, 29 November, will celebrate the connection of Ngāti Kurī to Hanmer Springs and the former Queen Mary Hospital.
''It's been an aspiration for us for a long time, so we are quite excited.
''When it was the rehabilitation centre we had a very close relationship with the hospital and month about they (patients) would come over to Kaikōura for a weekend on the Marae and cultural experiences.''
The whare-iti will be named Te Aroha o te Hauangiangi, which was the name of the Taha Māori programme at Hanmer Springs.
A whare-iti is like a wharenui, but it has a different purpose. It will be used for conferences and wānanga - education and gatherings, Kahu said.
The Rūnanga received a $100,000 grant from the Rātā Foundation to pay for the fitout and some cultural artworks to display on the wall, and has been working closely with the Queen Mary Historic Reserve Charitable Trust Hanmer Springs.
The Soldiers' Block was the first building at Queen Mary Hospital and opened in 1916 to rehabilitate soldiers returning from World War 1, and was later used as a drug and alcohol treatment facility.
Māori had a cultural connection long before European settlement, with people travelling from all over Te Wai Pounamu / South Island to experience the hot springs, long valued for healing qualities.
''We even have a story of how the healing waters came to be, which will be recited on one of the carvings in the whare,'' Kahu said.
The official opening will begin with a dawn blessing with events held throughout the morning.
Both Hurunui Mayor Marie Black and Kaikōura Mayor Craig Mackle have been invited to attend.
The unveiling follows the official opening of the refurbished Soldiers' Block on Anzac Day.
Long term, the community plans to turn the Soldiers' Block into an interactive museum, bringing the stories of the soldiers back to life.
The Queen Mary Historic Reserve Trust has been working with Weta Workshop on the design but will need to raise around $6m.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
