An evening with New Zealander of the Year 2020 Jennifer Ward-Lealand speaking about her Te Reo Maori journey. Jennifer has been a keen student of te reo Maori since 2008. In 2017, she was gifted the name Te Atamira (The Stage) by Sir Timoti Karetu and Te Wharehuia Milroy. Her journey to learn te reo Māori began in 2008 with kura pō at Pūkenga, Unitec. Since then she has studied at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa and at Te Wānanga Aronui o Tāmaki-makau-rau/ AUT. She is a te reo ambassador for Te Reo Tuatahi.

Since training at Auckland’s Theatre Corporate, Jennifer has worked extensively in theatre, film, television, musical and radio for 40 years. She is also a trained Intimacy Coordinator for stage and screen.

Arrival wine and nibbles to begin and a welcome by Waiheke High School.

This is a part of Te Āhuareka ō Waiheke, Te Wiki o Te Reo Maori, as a fundraiser for Waiheke High School and is supported by Creative Communities New Zealand and the Waiheke Local Board.