Memory Lane
‘She was the glue that kept our family together’
Thursday 5 January 2023 | Written by Melina Etches | Published in Features, Memory Lane, Weekend
E puera tiare kua takupe, Ki te ara tiroa o Takitumu, E tiare Maori kakara.
A year of ‘marked progress’
Saturday 31 December 2022 | Written by Cameron Scott | Published in Features, Memory Lane
A memorandum presented to the Houses of the General Assembly in New Zealand by the Minister for the Cook Islands, Maui Pomare (he had yet to receive his knighthood), gives a fascinating insight into life on Rarotonga back in 1923. A trained doctor, Pomare presented the report following his first visit to the Cook Islands for almost five years, noting the changes that had taken place since his earlier visit.
Reiner’s declaration of love for Raro
Saturday 19 November 2022 | Written by Melina Etches | Published in Features, In Depth, Memory Lane
Reiner Gatermann’s love for Rarotonga has brought him back to the island an incredible 21 times. He chats with senior journalist Melina Etches.
‘We will remember them’: Armistice service for fallen Cook Islands WWI heroes
Friday 11 November 2022 | Written by Supplied | Published in Features, Local, Memory Lane, National
At the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month – we will remember them. Today is Armistice Day which marks the agreement to end World War I with peace negotiations that began at 11am on 11 November 1918.
Remembering Cyclone Martin: ‘Many took that flight and never came back’
Saturday 5 November 2022 | Written by Matthew Littlewood | Published in Features, Local, Memory Lane, Outer Islands
It was a cyclone like no other, and its impact is still felt by those who lived through it. Rebecca Hosking-Ellis talks to Cook Islands News senior journalist Matthew Littlewood about her memories of Cyclone Martin and the toll it took on the Manihiki community.
‘We are resilient’
Tuesday 1 November 2022 | Written by Melina Etches | Published in Local, Memory Lane
On November 1, 1997, Cyclone Martin struck the island atoll of Manihiki with waves higher than the highest coconut tree, claiming 19 lives. Today marks the 25-year anniversary of the destructive cyclone – the most catastrophic storm to hit the Cook Islands. Anna and Willie Katoa and their daughter Katarina are some of the survivors. Ana was five months pregnant when the waves struck, tragically they lost their seven-year-old daughter Maureen (older Maureen) who was presumed drowned. ‘Resilience’ is the word that springs to Anna’s mind when she emotionally recollects the surreal fight for survival during their three days at sea from the devastation of Cyclone Martin.
Remembering Cyclone Martin: ‘It still makes me cry today’
Saturday 22 October 2022 | Written by Matthew Littlewood | Published in Features, Memory Lane
Cyclone Martin was one of the most devastating events in the Cook Islands history, but nearly 25 years on, Niki Rattle remembers the resilience of the Manihiki community. The former secretary of the Cook Islands Red Cross and current Cook Islands Ombudsman talks to Matthew Littlewood about the event.
What the story of Mātini teaches
Saturday 22 October 2022 | Written by Supplied | Published in Features, Memory Lane, Opinion
Twenty-five years ago, Cyclone Martin hit Manihiki. Rachel Reeves, the author of ‘Mātini: The story of Cyclone Martin’ writes about why we should remember.
Marjorie Tua’inekore Crocombe – An exceptional life
Saturday 30 July 2022 | Written by Rod Dixon | Published in Features, Memory Lane
Marjorie and Ron Crocombe lived up to exacting standards in their personal and professional lives and their combined efforts impacted and inspired uncountable others. We were privileged to know them, writes former USP director Rod Dixon.
Rarotonga’s elusive railway and locomotive
Saturday 25 June 2022 | Written by Sian Solomon | Published in Features, Memory Lane
The Cook Islands' first ever railway track and locomotive is as elusive as it is amazing.
RSM Maitai: A rusty remembrance
Saturday 23 April 2022 | Written by Sian Solomon | Published in Features, Memory Lane
One hundred and thirty years ago, the Royal Mail Service (RMS) Maitai ran aground off the island of Rarotonga, stranding 43 people and entwining the lives of others forever.
‘He loved and lived life at full speed’
Saturday 12 March 2022 | Written by Melina Etches | Published in Features, Memory Lane
Tributes flowed and the island mourned for the most popular, sociable and sporty ‘pa’paa lawyer of the Cook Islands’, who was buried yesterday at his home in Avaavaroa.
Ross Hunter: The man of iron and steel
Friday 11 March 2022 | Written by Melina Etches | Published in Features, Memory Lane
Well-known local businessman Ross Hunter passed away recently following a debilitating stroke two years ago.
JP retires after two decades of service
Saturday 8 January 2022 | Written by Melina Etches | Published in Features, Memory Lane
After 20 years on the bench, Justice of the Peace (JP) Rima David retired from court duties in September last year. She shares her experience with senior journalist Melina Etches.
Earthquakes and tsunamis – the Cook Islands experience
Saturday 30 October 2021 | Written by Rod Dixon | Published in Features, Memory Lane
What does history tell us about the frequency of earthquakes and tsunami in the Cook Islands?
Mangaia’s great vaccine experiment of 1866
Saturday 16 October 2021 | Written by Rod Dixon | Published in Features, Memory Lane
The story of how Davida Numangatini’s abduction into slavery in Peru led to Mangaia’s great vaccine experiment of 1866.
Salt in their blood - The story of early Cook Islanders at sea
Saturday 18 September 2021 | Written by Rod Dixon | Published in Features, Memory Lane
Cook Islands sailors were highly respected for their seafaring skills. As competitors in Australian surf boat carnivals, they were unbeatable.
Resting in sunlit seas
Saturday 28 August 2021 | Written by Melina Etches | Published in Features, Memory Lane
Olly Silk sailed into Rarotonga in 1959 and 62 years later she was returned to the deep big blue, with her burial at sea on Wednesday.
80 years of ‘hard but good life’
Tuesday 10 August 2021 | Written by Supplied | Published in Features, Memory Lane
Eighty years ago, a time when war dominated world affairs, a baby girl was born in Reureu; colloquially known as Reureu Te Mata o Teerui – a village situated on the western side of Aitutaki, far removed from the turmoil of war-torn Europe.
The ‘Ponder houses’ of Harley Street
Saturday 7 August 2021 | Written by Rod Dixon | Published in Features, Memory Lane
Several houses and schools in Rarotonga share a link with Scott Base in Antarctica and Auckland International Airport in Mangere, having been designed by the same man, architect Frank Ponder. Gradually disappearing, Ponder’s Rarotonga buildings retain important heritage value.
