Hemi Maaka is my grandfather. My father is Wati Heemi Maaka aka Wati James.
My journey started when I realised that my father was a Maaka not James. I said to my mother why didn't dad put me under Maaka instead of James. She said why. I said James not our name. She said that is his name. Yes his second name not his last name.

It is nice to have this information for my children. I have always felt lost to my whanau on this side of my whanau. Now I see it all here so excited.

My father is Maaka Heemi - his father is Maaka Heemi - His father was Wati James - I believe Hemi Maaka was Wati's father. To know that our whanau name is not Heemi but actually Maaka was a revelation My father told me when I was a young girl that when my grandfather first joined the army and went to serve in Korea and I think Vietnam - He changed his name - from Hemi Maaka to Maaka Heemi - He added an extra 'E' to Hemi to make it different - and I heard they had a habit of using their first names and swapping it around to be their last name so its always an interesting story when people ask me Heemi...are you from the bay? and I reply well actually I'm not a real Heemi...I'm a Maaka from Ahipara. That always seems to raise a few eyebrows as I explain it to them.