Letty Brown
Letty Brown | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Awards | Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, King's Service Medal |
Ereti Taetuha Brown known as Letty ONZM is a New Zealand Māori community leader. In 2008 Brown was awarded a Queen's Service Medal for services to Māori and youth. In 2024 Brown was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Māori and early childhood education.
Life
[edit]Brown was brought up in Te Araroa.[1] She is Māori, and affiliates with Te Whānau-ā-Apanui and Ngāti Porou iwi.[2] As a young mother in Te Atatū in the 1950s, Brown found she was the only Māori mother at her children's Playcentre because other Māori parents were uncomfortable in the predominantly Pākeha environment. She arranged special sessions for the Māori children, which proved popular.[1] Brown went on to help build Hoana Waititi marae, a marae in West Auckland for urban Māori, and founded the Te Atatu branch of the Maori Women's Welfare League.[1] She was also a founding member of the kapa haka group Manutaki.[2]
Brown founded Te Puna Reo o Manawanui, a Māori language immersion pre-school, in 2000. It was one of the first Puna Reo in New Zealand.[2]
In 2016 Six60 performed their song Mother's Eyes for Brown in her backyard for Mother's Day.[3]
Honours and awards
[edit]In 1968 Brown won the Young Māori Woman of the Year contest at the Māori Women's Welfare League conference.[4] In the 2009 New Year Honours Brown was awarded a Queen's Service Medal for services to Māori and youth.[5] In the 2024 New Year Honours Brown was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Māori and early childhood education.[2][6]
Brown received an Honorary Doctorate from Te Whare Wananga o Wairaka in 2016. She was awarded Life Membership of the Māori Women’s Welfare League in 2017.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Harawira, Wena (7 November 2024). "Letty Brown: 'It Starts In The Home'". NZ Herald. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ a b c d e "New Year Honours List 2024 - Citations for Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC)". www.dpmc.govt.nz. 30 December 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ "Six60's touching Mother's Day surprise". NZ Herald. 8 May 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ Walker, Ranginui (22 October 2014), "Māori Studies – ngā tari Māori - Māori studies at Auckland University", Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, retrieved 7 November 2024
- ^ "New Year Honours List 2009 | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC)". www.dpmc.govt.nz. 31 December 2008. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ Panapa, Maioha (10 May 2024). "Kōhanga reo stalwart honoured". Te Ao Māori News. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
External links
[edit]- Waka Huia 2016 Ereti 'Letty' Brown established one of the most successful play centres in Auckland, Letty Brown on Waka Huia TV Aug 22, 2016, via YouTube
- Six60 performing Mothers Eyes (Mother's Day Surprise) for Letty Brown, 7 May 2016, via YouTube