Dame Whina Cooper
Also known asHōhepeni Te Wake
Josephine Te WakeBiographyHōhepeni Cooper (nee Te Wake) was born under the shadow of the Panguru Mountain in 1895. Her father Heremia Te Wake was a Catholic Church and community leader. From an early age a defender of causes and her people, Whina, as she was known, became a community leader in her thirties.
Whina married her first husband Richard Gilbert in Rawene in 1917. After Whina's parent's deaths, times were hard for the couple until a Catholic priest leant them money to grow their trading and farm businesses. Whina was a good businesswoman and within three years she had paid the priest back and improved their holdings substantially.
In 1932 she played an active role with Apirana Ngata, in setting up Māori land development schemes in the Hokianga to support Maori to develop the infrastructure of their farms.
Whina's first husband died in March 1935 and she married William Cooper. They lived for a time at Kamo, Whangarei. Whina had six children. After the death of her second husband in 1949 Whina moved to Auckland where she became the foundation president of the Maori Women's Welfare League. By the mid 1950s the League had over 300 branches and 4,000 members. In 1957 the League rewarded Whina with the title Te Whaea o te Motu (Mother of the Nation).
Whina was appointed an MBE in 1953 and a DBE in 1981, giving her the title of Dame.
Whina Cooper is perhaps best known for leading the famous 1975 land march or hikoi from Te Hāpua in the far north to Parliament in Wellington. About 5,000 marchers arrived at Parliament on October 13, 1975, where Whina presented a petition signed by 60,000 people to the Prime Minister, Bill Rowling.
Whina Cooper opened the Auckland Commonwealth games in 1990 telling the international audience, "The Treaty was signed so that we could all live as one nation in Aotearoa".
Whina Cooper died at Hokianga, once again in the shadow of Panguru Mountain, in March 1994, aged 98.GenderFemaleDate of Birth9/12/1895Place of BirthTe Karaka, Northern HokiangaDate of Death26/3/1994Place of DeathPanguru, Hokianga
Josephine Te WakeBiographyHōhepeni Cooper (nee Te Wake) was born under the shadow of the Panguru Mountain in 1895. Her father Heremia Te Wake was a Catholic Church and community leader. From an early age a defender of causes and her people, Whina, as she was known, became a community leader in her thirties.Whina married her first husband Richard Gilbert in Rawene in 1917. After Whina's parent's deaths, times were hard for the couple until a Catholic priest leant them money to grow their trading and farm businesses. Whina was a good businesswoman and within three years she had paid the priest back and improved their holdings substantially.
In 1932 she played an active role with Apirana Ngata, in setting up Māori land development schemes in the Hokianga to support Maori to develop the infrastructure of their farms.
Whina's first husband died in March 1935 and she married William Cooper. They lived for a time at Kamo, Whangarei. Whina had six children. After the death of her second husband in 1949 Whina moved to Auckland where she became the foundation president of the Maori Women's Welfare League. By the mid 1950s the League had over 300 branches and 4,000 members. In 1957 the League rewarded Whina with the title Te Whaea o te Motu (Mother of the Nation).
Whina was appointed an MBE in 1953 and a DBE in 1981, giving her the title of Dame.
Whina Cooper is perhaps best known for leading the famous 1975 land march or hikoi from Te Hāpua in the far north to Parliament in Wellington. About 5,000 marchers arrived at Parliament on October 13, 1975, where Whina presented a petition signed by 60,000 people to the Prime Minister, Bill Rowling.
Whina Cooper opened the Auckland Commonwealth games in 1990 telling the international audience, "The Treaty was signed so that we could all live as one nation in Aotearoa".
Whina Cooper died at Hokianga, once again in the shadow of Panguru Mountain, in March 1994, aged 98.
GenderFemaleDate of Birth9/12/1895Place of BirthTe Karaka, Northern HokiangaDate of Death26/3/1994Place of DeathPanguru, HokiangaScrapbook
Source: DigitalNZ digitalNZ.org.nz
Dame Whina Cooper: Stories in Photos Dame Whine Cooper 25 September, 1975
Whānau
MotherKare Pauro Kawatihi of Te Rārawa and Taranaki FatherHeremia Te Wake of Ngāti Manawa and Te Kaitutae hapu of Te Rarawa PartnerRichard Gilbert of Te Waiariki of Ngāti Wai William Turakiuta Cooper of Ngāti KahungunuDate Married10/5/191721/2/1941Place of MarriageRāwene, Hokianga, HorthlandOtiria, Northland
FatherHeremia Te Wake of Ngāti Manawa and Te Kaitutae hapu of Te Rarawa PartnerRichard Gilbert of Te Waiariki of Ngāti Wai William Turakiuta Cooper of Ngāti KahungunuDate Married10/5/191721/2/1941Place of MarriageRāwene, Hokianga, HorthlandOtiria, NorthlandFurther Information
Dame Whina Cooper . Northland Room Digital Collections, accessed 05/10/2024, https://wdc.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/4931
