William Wereta's grave

Athough both have passed on, my heart aches painfully everyday along with the endless flow of tears for all of our tupuna who were part of the Maori Battalion Contingency during the war and tragically lost their lives for 'MAN, KING COUNTRY' however, the pain I feel is the pain for my aunty Minnie and her tamariki whom I was very very close to and still feel that same closeness today, who never got to see her dear husband and her tamariki my cousin Topsy and my uncle Bill who was a whaangai (my dads youngest brother), young toddlers at the time also never got to see their dad William (uncle Bill) again. The reality of great loss felt by me at this time is unimmaginable, wondering how my aunty Minnie felt and what she was going through at the time whilst her husband was on duty during the war. At this point and time I wonder whether the pain I'm feeling right now equates anywhere near what she was feeling. Understandably not! My expression of emotion is due to my findings of letters from my uncle to his wife and family which, unknown to me and to them existed until just recently has been in my possession for over 20 years through inherited contents attained by me after my aunty Minnies youngest half sister died in 1990. On first finding these letters I was unaware as to what affects and the impact it would have on me personally until reading the letters and realising the names mentioned were closer to me than I realised. Immediately a pain in my heart was felt and tears streaming down... Putting the letters to one side and taking a moment ... and to gather my thoughts I went onto Facebook page to check in with my tamariki which is a daily routine for me only to find photos of aunty Minnie uncle Bill's mokos (Bill Gardner whom I was brought up with and haven't seen since we were little Andrea Wereta) on my page still not realising how close 'William Wereta' was to me. When first sighting these photos on my home page I immediately felt an overwhelming sensation inside of me and knew I was about to find out more about 'William Wereta'. I immediately sent a message to my nephew Bill and my cousin Andrea which they responded to.  It was when I went onto Bills facebook photo page when I saw the photo of the head stone and the caption beneath 'My mums dad koro William' I realised that 'William Wereta' was my aunty Minnies husband. Aue te mamae ka tangi hotuhotu ai te ngaakau!I am pleased to say that after 71 years the letters were returned to his daughter Topsy and family. The letters will give my cousin Topsy and her brother a clear understanding to how their father was feeling and how he pined for them and their mother. Naa R Pirikahu

Rene PirikahuIt brings satisfaction to my heart and soul knowing that since returning the letters that were written by Uncle William Wereta, to his daughter, my cousin Topsy has brought closure for her and her brother Bill. It has also reconnected us back together again.