Healthy Families Rotorua is thrilled to welcome Mariana Vercoe to the team as its new project coordinator.
Mariana’s no stranger to the Haupapa Street office. She was first employed at Te Arawa Whānau Ora in 2017 as a Collective Impact administrator but left to have her daughter, Waerenga (3), the following year.
She returned four months later as a paeārahi, before taking her final leave 18 months later to complete her Bachelor of Health, Sport & Human Performance at the University of Waikato.
Encouraged by her passion to see more people exercise, Mariana created her own line of activewear, WAEVE Apparel, in September last year.
The budding entrepreneur is now looking forward to applying her skills within Healthy Families Rotorua, while immersing herself in systems change underpinned by Mātauranga Māori.
“It’s been cool just taking it all in while listening to the team’s kōrero. I feel like it’s another level up from the work I’ve done in the past, so it’s really exciting to be surrounded by this kaupapa.
“My previous experience in health has been about the physical and human wellbeing elements but now I’ve learned it also incorporates the built environment and whenua. I’m also keen to learn more about the Maramataka and how it affects people’s tinana and hinengaro.
“This is an exciting new phase in my career and I’m confident my skills will lift and complement the team’s current mahi,” says Mariana.
