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Kōrero: Shelford, Charles

Whārangi 1: Haurongo

Shelford, Charles

1920–1984

Nō Ngāti Porou, nō Te Whakatōhea; he tangata kaimahi, he hōia, he kaikari awa

I tuhia tēnei haurongo e Melvin Taylor, ā, i tāngia tuatahitia ki Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau i te 2000. I whakahoutia i te o Mei, 2012. He mea whakamāori nā Ngā Tangata Taumata Rau.

Nō te 21 o Ākuhata o te tau 1920 i whānau ai a Charles Shelford – i tino mōhiotia whānuitia ko Charlie – i Te Kaha i Te Moana-a-Toi-te-huatahi (Bay of Plenty), te tama a te kaimahi rā, a Thomas George Shelford, rāua ko tana wahine, ko Marauahātea Te Ōwaina Kirikiri. Ko te mārena tuarua tēnei o ōna mātua tokorua. Nō te taha ki tōna māmā i pā ia ki a Te Whakatōhea me Ngāti Porou, me Te Arawa hoki i te taha ki tōna pāpā. Nā te taha ki tana tupuna whaea, ki a Iritana Shelford, te tupuna rā o tana pāpā, i pā anō hoki ia ki a Ngāti Ruanui o Taranaki mē Ngā Puhi, hōrapa atu hoki ki a Ngāti Tūpaea, ki a Ngāti Tānewai me Te Whānau-a-Apanui.

Nō te matenga o tana pāpā i te tau 1932 me te whanonga hārakiraki o tōna māma, i tuaritia a Charlie rātau ko ērā atu o ā rāua tamariki mā ētahi atu whānau kē e whakatipu mai. Riro ana nā Ātareta rāua ko Paratene Tūhaka a ia i whakatipu. Kuraina ake ana a Charlie i ngā kura Māori o Te Kaha, o Waiomatatini me Tikitiki i Te Tai Rāwhiti, ā, mutu noa ana tana kura i te karaihe tuatoru. I a ia e tāmanga ana, he mahi miraka kau, mahi whakarata hōiho āna, ā, he kaimahi ia i te ākau i Wainui e tata atu rā ki Tūranga (Gisborne).

Nō Tīhema i te tau 1939, e ruarua marama nei i muri mai i te pakarutanga ake o te Pakanga Tuarua o te Ao, i haina ai a Shelford ki te Ope Taua 28 (Māori), arā, te 28th (Māori) Battalion, te hokowhitu Māori rānei. I tāna hainatanga i kī a ia ko te 22 o Ākuhata 1920 tōna rā whānau. Ka tīmata ake ana te akoranga i a ia i Te Papa-i-ōia (Palmerston North) i Hānuere o te tau o muri mai. Kāore i tau pai ki a ia te noho a te hōia, ā, hē ake, hē haere tonu tana whakaraupapa i a ia. Ā, koia anō hoki te take i mahue whakarau mai ai ia, ka wehe atu nei te hokowhitu ki tāwāhi i Mei o te tau 1940. I te mutunga ake o tana akoranga i te puni hōia o Papakura i haere atu ia mā runga waka i te marama o Noema ki Īhipa, he karanga hōia noa tōna tūranga. I a ia i te pakanga i mau tonu tana kore e whakarongo ki ngā mana whakahaere. Ina koa rā, nō te marama o Mei o te tau 1941, e rua tekau mā waru rā a ia e mau herehere ana, he kangakanga, he haurangi nei te take. Ahakoa rā, kitea ana ko te kauhanga riri te paenga mārika hei karawhiu māna i tana hiahia ki te whawhai.

I te pō o te 14 o Tīhema o te tau 1941, i te whakaekenga o Gazala i Rīpia e te hokowhitu Māori, i tino kitea ai te kōhure o te māia, hautoa kē nei o Charlie Shelford ki te whawhai. Nō muri i te hinganga mai o ngā awarua tuatahi o te hoariri, i mau tonu te haere atu o tōna wāhanga ki tētahi hiwi, e toru rau iāri te tawhiti atu. I konei mahue taratahi ake ai rātau, karawhiu mai ana te pūhia ake o te taha mauī, me ō muri anō o te taha matau o tō rātau tira. Tono ana a Shelford māna noa e kōkiri atu te toru rau iāri ki te tūranga o ngā Itāriana, whakangaro rawa atu ai. Ahakoa te kaha o te pupuhi mai o ngā pū waka taua, pū mīhini, pū paku noa, kapi ana i a ia te wāhi te oma atu, hīkoi haere atu nei tana ahu atu ki te hoariri, mau ana te pupuhi atu o tana pū mīhini i tana hope. E rua tekau iāri noa tana tawhiti atu ka karawhiua ake nei ana waewae e te maha iho o ngā pohū. Ahakoa tana whara, me tana pōro hoki, i ngana tonu ia ki te pupuhi i tana pū mīhini, inarā kua tū kē tana pū i te matā, kua pakaru kē nei hoki ko te reke. Ahakoa te kaha o tana mamae, i tana whiunga atu i tana pohū ki te rua o te hoariri, hui katoa tokowhā ngā āpiha me ērā atu o ngā kārangaranga hōia, toru tekau mā ono nei rātau i mau i a Charlie Shelford. Nā te whakahaurarotanga o te āpiha whakahaere o ngā Itāriana i mutu noa te pakanga a te hoariri i taua takiwā.

I te mutunga o te whakaekenga atu, i whakaritea ngātahitia e te āpiha whakahaere o Kamupene D, e Rūtene F. R. Logan, me te āpiha whakahaere o te paratunu, me Rūtene Tuarua Hēmi (Jim) Matahaere, e tika tonu anō kia whakawhiwhia a Shelford ki te Rīpeka Wikitōria (Victoria Cross), ā, nā rāua i tuhi ake te kupu hautoa. Otirā, kotahi marama ake a Shelford i te hōhipera, arā, nō te 16 o Hānuere o te tau 1942, i whakawhiwhia a ia ki te tohu toa DCM. Nō muri mai pū ai te whakaaro o Logan mō tana kore i mōhio he aha te take i whakahekea ai tā rāua tūtohutanga i a Shelford mō te tohu toa VC. E ai ki tā Logan, kotahi noa te tangata pērā rawa te hautoa i a Shelford, ā, ka tika tonu te mihi ki a ia.

Nā te matareka o Shelford ki te whakangaro noa i a ia te take nui i papatu tonu ia ki ngā mana hōia; kāore noa i pau te rua wiki o te rironga mai i a ia o tana tohu DCM, e whā rā ake anō ia e ngaro atu ana. Ki tōna whakaaro he aha ake te pai o te noho noa ake i te hōpuni, i te tari matua kē rānei, arā, me ka kore anō he pakanga, ka kore hoki he parakete. Mana kore noa ana tana hari noa i ngā waka ake o te ope taua o Aotearoa, urutomo noa atu ai ia ki te puta taua o ngā Tiamana, hone ai i ngā parakete tino pai kē nei. Inarā i mōhio tonu ia kei tēhea wāhi kē ngā pītara me ngā raiwhara Tiamana he ngāwari noa te hokohoko atu. Noho ake ana te taonga huna, arā, ngā rākau whawhai nei a Shelford hei kōrero pakiwaitara, he mea whakakao mai e ia hei hoko atu māna i ngā mākete pokanoa o Īhipa, hoko atu hoki i ngā pītara ki te hunga whaitaua o Aotearoa, ka nui kē te moni e riro mai ana i a ia. Otirā, kātahi te mahi mōiriiri rawa atu i kitea ko tēnei, arā, tēneki mahi rā a te ope taua Māori, i hau ai te rongo mō ēnei tū mahi. Mau haere tonu te tino kino kē o ngā hara o Shelford tae noa ki te wā ka hoki mai nei ia ki te kāinga i Oketopa o te tau 1944.

I muri i te whakawāteatanga mai i a DCM Charlie – ko tēnei rā te īngoa karanga i a ia – i te ope hōia i Pēpuere o te tau 1945, he waoko nei tana mahi i Mamaku, i te taha uru mā raki e haere atu rā i Rotorua. Nō te 3 o Hune o te tau 1948 i moe ake ai a Charlie i a Lilas May Beazley i Ākarana (Auckland); he maha ā rāua tamariki. Tata atu ki te toru tekau tau a ia e kari awa ana i Ākarana. He tangata pūhihi, āhua tōroa noa nei tōna hanga. Hau ana tōna rongo hei tangata hāngū, tangata taikaha. Ā, whai atu i tēnā he kata ‘hāte-kēhi’ nei tana kata, he kaha kē nei tana reo waiata, me te ātaahua kē nei o tana pai ki te kanikani ā-whare kanikani. Nō muri mai i tūao ai tana mahi ake mā Te Ūnga Waka, te pokapū o te Hāhi Katorika Māori o Ākarana, ā, i noho pānga anō hoki a ia ki te RSA o Te Tītūtahi (Newmarket). Nō tōmuri rawa ake o te pō o te 7 o Mei o te tau 1984 i ngā tapa tāone o Ākarana, i mate ai a Charlie Shelford i te motowaka i a ia e whakawhiti haurangi atu ana i te huarahi. Nō te tau 1976 i mate ai tana hoa wahine, ā, mahue mai ana tokowaru o āna tamariki.

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārangi:

Melvin Taylor. 'Shelford, Charles', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 2000, updated o Mei, 2012. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/biographies/5s14/shelford-charles (accessed 20 March 2024)