About
Our Story
Pepeha
Ki te taha o tōku pāpā
Ko Ngāti Hine, Te Rarawa ngā iwi
Ki te taha o tōku māmā
Ko Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Manuhiri, Ngāti Wai,
Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Tahu, Ngāti Whāoa, Raukawa ngā iwi
Ko Ngāti Kāpo, Ngāti Turi ōku iwi atawhāi
Ko Raumati Paraha tōku ingoa
Ngāti Kāpo · Ngāti Turi
Raumati is affiliated with Ngāti Kāpo (Blind) and Ngāti Turi (Deaf), iwi atawhāi that connect the disability community within te ao Māori.
The Founder
Raumati Paraha — Kaitakawaenga
Raumati Paraha is a raukura from Kōhanga Reo, Kura Kaupapa, and Hato Petera College. Immersed in te ao Māori from a young age, she is fluent in te reo Māori and guided by the whakatauki:
“Mā te ahurei o te tamaiti arāhia tō tātou nei mahi.”
Raumati was diagnosed with optic atrophy at the age of eight, a hereditary vision impairment where the optic nerve does not grow. Her father and older sister both have the same condition, and her son has recently been diagnosed as well.
Her whānau supported her to access learning support and provided the foundations for her to have opportunities in both te ao Māori and Pākehā worlds. Known to whānau as Tutu, the mischief-maker and explorer, she went on to spend twelve years as a kōhanga reo teacher.
Today she works for the Ministry of Education as a Kaitakawaenga, empowering Māori and Pasifika children with learning support needs. She supports tamariki and their whānau to access and connect with the specialist services around them, working collectively with aroha, manaakitanga, and whakawhanaungatanga.
Her sister is an NZSL interpreter. Her brother-in-law is Deaf. Her nephew is neurodiverse and nonverbal. This kaupapa is not abstract. It is woven through the fabric of her whānau.
The Vision
Te Pō: The Realm of Potential
The name Te Pōtential draws from Te Pō, in te ao Māori the realm you inhabit before birth. It is the space of becoming, the womb of possibility. Te Kōre, Te Pō, from nothingness to potential.
Ngā Rongoā Sensory Atua Kits grew from conversations with whānau, educators, and community members navigating sensory challenges and learning barriers. While sensory tools can support regulation, very few reflect Māori identity, language, or stories.
This kaupapa was shaped by the belief that wellbeing tools should also strengthen connection to culture, belonging, and mātauranga Māori.
“I believe in you more than you may believe in yourself.”
Te Pōtential Creators is planting a seed, one that may grow far beyond what we can see today. From sensory tools for tamariki, to wānanga retreats, to indigenous innovation on a global stage, the vision is limitless.
E tipu e rea mō ngā rā o tō ao
Ko tō ringa ki ngā rākau a te Pākehā hei ora mō tō tinana
Ko tō ngākau ki ngā taonga a ō tīpuna Māori
Hei tikitiki mō tō māhuna
Ko tō wairua ki tō Atua, Nānā nei ngā mea katoa.