Parekarangi Trust - Parekarangi Trust 560 State Highway 30

Our Journey.

Parekarangi has a long-standing history interwoven with the Ngati Wahiao Tribe which spans hundreds of years. Ngati Wahiao stayed in the warmth of the geothermal fields of Whakarewarewa Village during the winter, sustained by the food stores of root vegetables and native birds that they harvested during the summer months from their farming and hunting at Parekarangi. The block is one of the closest blocks to the village. Members of the tribe would camp on these lands for months only to return with enough food to see the whole tribe through the colder winter months. After the eruption of Mount Tarawera in 1886, Ngati Wahiao welcomed their Tuhourangi relations into the village and made sure they were fed as well.

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One of the most profound changes for the tribe was the creation of land titles. Whereas in the past, the tribe believed in the community as a whole owning the land, individual families were given title to smaller holdings on the Block.

These families went about cultivating and harvesting their own parcels of land, they could then sell some of the produce for an income. One thing that did not change was the necessity to bring food home for the ones left at the village that were less able to cultivate and harvest food for themselves.

Eventually the economic climate at the time meant that these smaller units were no longer viable. The smaller family units could not sustain their own family let alone their larger extended families back at the village. This is when the decision was made to aggregate these smaller blocks into larger holdings.

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Parekarangi Trust was formed when five families agreed to aggregate to form our Ahu Whenua Trust of which we are so very proud of today.

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We offer our owners a yearly dividend and are also pleased to support our owners and their descendants with Educational Grants.