He Aituā – Darren Wallace

He aituā, he mamae, he poroporoaki

Kua hinga tētahi totara o te wao nui a Tāne. Nō ngā rangi tata nei i tae mai te rongo, kua mate tērā o ō tātou matua a Darren Wallace.

E mahara iho ana ki āna mahi nui hei kaimahi ki Sport Whanganui, hei kaiwaiata me te ringapuoro, hei kaipara anō hoki i ngā hākinakina hauporo me te whiu kōpere.

He mihi aroha tēnei ki te whānau whānui e noho ana i raro i te kapua pouri i tēnei wā.

It is with profound sadness that we share the passing of our friend and colleague, Darren Wallace, peacefully at home.

Darren had worked alongside his partner, Deb, as part of the Sport Whanganui Green Prescription team since 2022. As the Green Prescription Kaiāwhina, Darren supported clients to achieve their health goals through one-on-one coaching and mentoring, leading initiatives such as Active Teens programmes and kaumātua fitness classes. He also worked with community organisations like Te Oranganui supporting tāngata whai ora, or those in need of care or going through treatment processes in mental health.

Darren will be forever remembered by our team for his warmth, positive energy and his deep knowledge and enthusiasm for sport and music. He and Deb were an incredibly special part of our Sport Whanganui whānau and our team is wrapped around Deb supporting her throughout this journey.

We extend our love and condolences to Darren’s whānau, the Sport Whanganui Green Prescription community, former colleagues and the many people whose lives Darren positively impacted through his manaakitanga and friendship.

Kaua e mate wheke, mate ururoa.

The octopus are renowned for their lack of resistance when being captured, however a hammerhead shark will fight bitterly to the end. This is a commonly used whakatuaki to encourage someone not to give up, no matter how hard the struggle is.

Darren embodied this proverb to the fullest and continues to encourage all of us to keep fighting.

Hoki wairua atū rā e te matua. Haere atu rā ki te kainga tūturu mō tātou i te tangata, nō reira haere, moe mai, kāti.