Mrs Bridget Kauraka, of Wellington, MNZM for services to the Cook Islands community
Bridget Kauraka has been instrumental in Te Punanga O Te Reo Kūki ‘Āirani Incorporated for more than 30 years, a pioneering institution founded to address the decline of the Cook Islands Māori language and childcare accessibility. She has actively participated in the Wellington Cook Islands Society, the Pacific Islands Presbyterian Church in Newtown, where she serves as a deacon, and the Wellington branch of the PACIFICA Women’s Cultural Group. She has helped preserve Cook Islands cultural heritage through the revitalisation of traditional crafts including tivaevae, a hand-stitched patchwork, and ei making, a traditional Pacific adornment. Mrs Kauraka’s crocheted masterpiece, ‘Kapu-tiare taviri’ia,’ is prominently displayed at Te Papa Tongarewa.