Waitangi Day Commemorated in District first

Published on 10 February 2026

Partnership between Te Rūnanga o Moeraki and Waitaki District Council a success.

Over two hundred attendees enjoyed a day of educative talks, explorations of Waitaki’s history, a hāngī lunch – and fun activities for the kids at the District’s first Waitangi Day commemorations held at the Oamaru Opera House and Waitaki Museum and Archive last Friday.

With seminars from Te Rūnanga o Moeraki’s kaiwhakahaere and deputy kaiwhakahaere, Justin Tipa and Awhina McGlinchey, the marae’s CEO Trevor McGlinchey, upoko David Higgins and Kare Tipa, and Dr Gerard O’Regan – the community could find out more about Te Rūnanga o Moeraki, Kemps Deed of 1848, Māori place names in the District and the Willets Collection and Ngai Tāhu exhibits at the museum, as well as the district’s unique Māori rock art. There was also waiata sung throughout the day by the the kapahaka group Te Matahīapo under the leadership of their kaiako Ana Faau, of Moeraki.

Following a powerful mihi whakatau Mayor Mel Tavendale welcomed Te Rūnanga o Moeraki, saying “Our shared history shows that commitments made in the partnership between Crown and mana whenua has not always been honour, but our shared present and our shared future – calls us to uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi and continue strengthening relationships founded on respect, trust and partnership.

I’d like to thank Te Rūnanga o Moeraki for sharing their knowledge with our community, and to everyone who worked behind the scenes over the last few weeks to bring this commemoration of Waitangi Day to life at the Opera House and Waitaki Museum”

Chair of Te Rūnanga o Moeraki, Justin Tipa stated that: ““It was great to see such a wide cross section of the community coming together to celebrate Waitangi Day. Kai, kōrero and whanaungatanga underpinned the day, sharing good food, rich discussion and building relationships ensured a successful event. I am already looking forward to see what we can do next year”

Ruth Davison, an ESOL teacher from Oamaru who attended, shared the following: "I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks for the superb Waitangi Day Commemorations at the Opera House on Friday. I only intended to stay for the morning and hangi, but ended up there all day as all of the presentations were fascinating.

It was great to see such a positive partnership between the Te Runanga o Moeraki and the WDC to share the history and common goal of working together to make the Waitaki District a better place to live. I learnt so much and felt privileged to be amongst such learned and interesting people. The food was fabulous and we could see everyone working very hard behind the scenes to make the event as sustainable as possible. Having food scrap bins was a genius idea!”

ENDS

media@waitaki.govt.nz