The Māori Women's Welfare League is mourning one of its stalwarts and former presidents.
Dame Georgina Kirby, an advocate and leader for wāhine Māori for decades, died in Auckland Hospital on Friday at 85.
She was elected league president in 1983 and she established the Māori Women's Development Fund, aiming to help wāhine Māori into businesses. That fund now has more than $4 million in assets and has helped hundreds of wāhine into businesses.
A funeral service is being held today at Te Māhurehure Marae in Point Chevalier in Auckland.
Māori Women’s Welfare League president Prue Kapua said the legacy the influential kuia had left was the establishment of the Māori Women’s Development Fund, (now MWDI), which had helped Māori women into business for many years.
Kapua said Kirby was very assertive and had a challenging way of taking issues on for Māori.
When the Mana Enterprises Scheme was established, it largely assisted Māori men. But Kirby headed to Wellington to fight for wahine and managed to secure $250,000 in seed funding.
“That became the basis for women starting in businesses because at that time they couldn’t get loans without either their husband's approval in those days with the bank or women were just not regarded as being able to go into business,” Kapua said
Kirby was also instrumental in launching Te Rapuora Māori Women’s Health Survey and health and wellness clinics throughout the country 40 years ago, which was a struggle.
“She also launched The Decade of Māori health, which is what it was called through the league, and that was to look at issues like weight, auahi kore - the cease smoking programmes, all began during that decade that she was absolutely committed to doing something about our health.”
Kapua said that not only was Kirby an entrepreneur but also an artist, from painting to composing waiata.
“She was a remarkably talented woman but I will always remember those incredible outfits. Wherever she appeared, she looked absolutely stunning.”