Getting outside and connecting with nature is one of the best ways we can improve our hauora.

And what better place to do this than the West Coast of the South Island where locals have an array of outdoor activities at their doorstep.

A programme for female rangatahi has been developed on the West Coast to get young people into nature and connecting with others.

It’s called Te Ora Heke ō Mawhera and was created by Greymouth locals, Rasela Barrow and Robbie Barrow with the help of Sport New Zealand’s Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa Funding.

“Te Ora Heke ō Mawhera is a vision that came to life after receiving Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa Funding from Sport New Zealand. I've wanted to run a youth surfing programme for a few years now, it's only been a matter of time. When my uncle told me about this fund, we began networking with local youth, community organisations and passionate people driven to help our people and rangatahi,” says Rasela Barrows.

“I've experienced the highs and lows of living an active lifestyle - recreational surfing has been a part of that journey. Recently, surfing therapy has been praised for helping heal and bring positive change to individuals' health and wellbeing. I wanted to introduce local rangatahi to Greymouth's local surfing culture so that they could continue using the tools of surfing for better mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing,” she adds.

The initiative began on December 14 and ran over five days (three days the first week and two days the second) with two sessions each day – morning or afternoon. The 14 rangatahi who signed up for the course headed along to Kahuna Boardriders Club in Cobden for a three-hour surfing session during one of the time slots in the first week and then again during the second week for a second session. The first workshop included both theory and practical elements as well as time to reflect and journal their experience and emotion. Participants were then invited back the following week for a second session, where they were given the opportunity for a more practical surfing lesson. 

The end goal was to not only give these young women the opportunity to try surfing and to gain confidence within themselves but to also gain confidence in the water and find a new hobby and outlet that they can turn to in times of unease.

For this reason, as a participant of Te Ora Heke ō Mawhera, all rangatahi who attended these sessions will receive a paid junior subscription/membership for the Kahuna Boardriders Club 2021/22 season. This will grant them access to the KBC boardroom (learner's wetsuits and surfboards) for the remainder of summer. 

“Rangatahi who participate in Te Ora Heke ō Mawhera gain understanding and experience in water and surfing safety, particularly relevant to Cobden Beach, Greymouth's most popular surf-spot. It is an opportunity that provides rangatahi with the tools and knowledge to continue building their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual strength through a unique surfing journey,” she says.

Sport Canterbury’s Active Recreation Lead headed along to one of the sessions and got to experience first-hand the feeling of getting into the water and focusing on new task.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for our young rangatahi females to get outdoors and into nature, gain some confidence in themselves out in the water and also just experiencing something different that they wouldn’t have tried before,” she says.

“I’ve always liked surfing, but I’ve never had the chance to learn, so this was a really fun opportunity – I like trying new things,” adds one participant, Sophie.

As part of showcasing surfing as an incredible sport to the wahine, Rasela and Robbie took those that expressed interest to the Surf Nationals in Westport on Friday the 14th of January – an experience these girls will never forget. 

Rasela is grateful for the support she has received to enable this initiative to become a reality 

“Thanks to Sport New Zealand and Sport Canterbury for supporting small communities and helping us create opportunities for our rangatahi to express and increase their knowledge of hauora and positive wellbeing.”
 

Find out morre about Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa Funding - Click here 

Article added: Tuesday 18 January 2022