He kaupapa waka ā-hapori kua puea ake ki Whanganui e tautokotia nuitia ana e ngā whānau waru rau neke atu. Ko te whāinga ia kia whanake ai te reo kōrero mā roto i ngā pūrākau hekenga.
I pērā rawa te nui o te whakaaturanga, kāore i mātua i te whare pupuri taonga kotahi.
E ai ki te kaikōkiri i te kaupapa, ki a Gail Imhoff, "We've been really overwhelmed with the response that we've been getting from whānau its kind of taken on a mauri of its own. It's about encouraging whānau to talk and explore who they are."
E ai ki te kaiwhakahaere, ki a Jen McDonald, "The kōrero that's come through has just been stunning it's been humbling it's had me in tears and the connections that are forming in the community is just absolutely brilliant."
Neke atu i te waru rau ngā whānau i whai wāhi ki Ngā Hekenga, ko te mahi, he waihanga waka hei whakatinana i ngā kōrero hekenga. Ko ngā mātāpono ko te kotahitanga, te mātauranga, me te whānau anō hoki.
Ko tā Imhoff, "I never ever went on a marae until I was in my thirties and people used to say prior to that oh that's a Maori thing but I'd say, but that's how I feel and it's that connectedness and that's what we're finding from here that the people are making connections in all sorts of ways."
Engari he nui tonu ngā mahi kei te aroaro. Kua tono te taiopenga ahurea kia whakaatu rātou i ngā waka, ā, e whakaaro ana ngā kaiwhakahaere ki te kōkiri i te kaupapa, ia te tau.
"I really believe that these stories are only just starting to be told. We've had lots of interest from other organisations saying what do we do with this next."
He wāhanga tēnei o te taiopenga ako ka kawea tonutia tae noa ki te mutunga o te wiki.
