Mr Richard Rakena, QSM, Thames.
For services to Māori and the community. Mr Richard Rakena is a senior kaumātua in the Hauraki region. During the last 30 years he has been instrumental in founding key organisations in the region, including the Hauraki Māori District Council, Te Kaunihera Kaumātua o Hauraki, Hauraki Māori Trust Board, and the Hauraki Festival Committee. He has been a member of the Hauraki Kapa Haka organising committee since 1974 and is a volunteer fireman. He was appointed as a Locomotive Fireman in 1942 and retired as Locomotive Engineer Supervisor for the Waikato and Bay of Plenty area in 1982. Following his retirement, he was appointed Chair of the Hauraki Kaumātua Council. He chaired the Hauraki Māori Trust Board from 1998 to 2008, encouraging the development of the Tikapa Moana mussel farm, which is now the largest private Māori-owned marine farming company in New Zealand. Mr Rakena was involved in Waitangi Tribunal submissions for the Hauraki Treaty claims.