Ngarangi Morgan hadn’t heard of Tolaga Bay when she accepted a friend’s invite for a weekend trip to the coastal settlement.Travelling from her native Tainui country, she quickly succumbed to the charms of Uawa and those of her friend’s dashing cousin.

Now an Uawa local, Ngarangi has worked at the Tolaga Bay Inn for 11 years.

Last year, she decided to turn her on-the-job experience into a qualification.  She enrolled for EIT’s marae cookery programme at Hinemaurea Marae in Uawa and passed with flying colours.

She’s now studying the Level 4 New Zealand Certificate in Cookery.

Because EIT is a City & Guilds approved centre, she will be gaining an international qualification.  That will give her the option of working holidays, or she could head down to EIT Hawke’s Bay to complete a level 5 qualification.

“None of us are getting any younger,” she says, “so I came to EIT to do the cheffing course and I love it.  It’s a big passion of mine.

“I want to have my own food truck so I need some more knowledge, especially around costings.  I love food, cooking for people, customer service and seeing people’s reactions, so I found it really enjoyable.”

Cookery tutor Mark Morrell says having someone with Nga’s experience in the class makes his job easier.

“We back each other and bring a bit of manaakitanga to other students here.  She’s got the passion, she’s focused and she’s looking at a career path in hospitality using the tools she will gain at EIT.

“She travels from Uawa to the Tairāwhiti campus, which tells me she’s committed.”

Because there’s a drive to build more hotels in New Zealand, Mark says the demand for qualified people is growing.

The Level 4 programme includes 50 hours work experience in a local hospitality business.  Students also work on productions throughout the year.

“We encourage local hospitality industry employers to come in to see what our students can do and to ask them questions.  That builds their confidence in giving them a job.”

Leaving school when she was 15, Nga had some concerns about how she might cope after her lengthy time away from the education system.  She found her passion for the subject made all the difference.

“I wish I had this attitude to learning when I was at school.  I tell my kids, ‘the world is your oyster, go after what you love!’  There was a long time when I didn’t know, but then it just clicked with the marae cookery programme, and now the level 4.”

Once she’s finished studying, Nga hopes to drive the East Coast in her food truck selling “beautiful kai”.

“I’ve been working for people all my life and would like to try something for myself.  I’ve been lucky with my mentors, and Mark is amazing. 

“Hopefully the universe is good to me and provides me with some bucks!”