Hōhepa Rawiri Tipene
Premium memorialLovingly known as “Matua Joe”
19 November 1946 — 3 May 2026 · aged 79
Sheep farmer, shearing legend and kaumātua who kept the whānau fed and laughing
Tolaga Bay, New Zealand Born in Tolaga Bay, East Coast, New Zealand Resting at Family urupā, Tolaga BayAbout Hōhepa
Haere rā, e koro. The shearing shed at Tolaga Bay went quiet on the morning of 3 May 2026, and for the first time in sixty years no one heard the whine of Joe Tipene's handpiece at dawn. Born in 1946 at Tolaga Bay on the East Coast of the North Island, into the Ngāti Porou whānau of a shepherd and a weaver, he left school at fifteen to follow the shearing gangs from Gisborne to the Wairarapa, and was soon the fastest blade on the coast.
He reached the senior final at the Golden Shears in Masterton in 1971, and always said that finishing fourth taught him to laugh at himself. In 1974 he and his wife Mere took over a six-hundred-hectare hill-country station inland from Tolaga Bay, where for forty-two years they ran Romney ewes across steep and unforgiving country. He was a patient farmer who knew every ridge and gully, lambed through snow and gave away more mutton than he sold. A kaumātua of his marae, he led karakia, welcomed visitors with a pōwhiri that was said to be funny and moving in equal measure, and taught young men to shear without hurting the sheep or themselves. He chaired the marae committee for twenty years and helped rebuild the whare kai.
He fished off Tolaga Bay wharf, sang old hymns and Māori Battalion songs in a rumbling baritone, and cooked a hāngī so tender that men drove for hours to be invited. Mere died in 2018. Joe died peacefully at home on 3 May 2026, aged seventy-nine, with his whānau around him. He leaves his children Aroha, a doctor trained at the University of Auckland, Tāne and Hine, and eleven mokopuna. Moe mai rā, e koro.
“Kia kaha, kia māia, kia manawanui: be strong, be brave, be steadfast.”
- Faith
- Christian
- Place of birth
- Tolaga Bay, East Coast, New Zealand
- Resting place
- Family urupā, Tolaga Bay
- Passed away
- 3 May 2026, Tolaga Bay
Tangihanga
Wednesday, 6 May 2026 at 07:00 UTC
Add to calendarMemorial fund
Tangihanga & Whānau Support Fund
Help the whānau cover the costs of the tangihanga, hākari and travel for whānau returning from Australia and Auckland.
$2,460.50 raised of $6,000
41%20 recent contributions
- AN
Anonymous gave $142.50 · 2mo ago
“From your old classmates.”
- BT
Brenda Tamihana gave $71.25 · 2mo ago
- SN
Sachiko Nomura gave $95 · 2mo ago
- AN
Anonymous gave $237.50 · 2mo ago
“From the church choir.”
- AN
Anonymous gave $95 · 2mo ago
Life journey
Shearer
East Coast and Wairarapa shearing gangs1961 – 1974 · East Coast & Wairarapa
Left school at fifteen and became the fastest blade on the coast.
Senior finalist
Golden Shears1971 · Masterton
Reached the final of New Zealand's premier shearing competition.
Married Mere
1968 · Tolaga Bay
A marriage of fifty years, until Mere's death in 2018.
Sheep farmer
Tipene whānau station1974 – 2016 · Tolaga Bay
Forty-two years farming Romney ewes on six hundred hectares of hill country.
Chairman, marae committee
Te Tīmatanga Marae1990 – 2010 · Tolaga Bay
Led the committee for twenty years and helped rebuild the whare kai.
Kaumātua
Te Tīmatanga Marae2005 – 2026 · Tolaga Bay
Led karakia and pōwhiri, and taught young men to shear.
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Family & connections
Hōhepa is survived by
- Dr. Aroha Tipene· Daughter
- Tāne Tipene· Son
- Hine Tipene-Walker· Daughter
- Rangi Tipene· Brother
- 11 mokopuna· Grandchildren
Tributes & memories
6 people have shared a memory of Hōhepa.
Knew Hōhepa? Share a memory with the family and everyone who loved them.
Sign in to write a tribute- SF
Young shearer he mentored
He taught me to shear without hurting the sheep or myself. Last season I won the junior final at Gisborne and my first call was to him. He said, 'Good. Now go and sharpen someone else's combs.' I will.
- TT
Son
Dad taught me to shear at twelve the way he taught everyone: by letting me make every mistake once, then showing me the fix. He said the sheep always forgive you if you are honest. I am trying to be honest with everyone he loved.
- BT
Cousin in Brisbane
We left the coast in 1990 and he never once made us feel we had left him. Every Christmas a box of lamb arrived in Brisbane with a note: 'Come home.' This time I did. I stood beside him on the marae and wept like a child.
- NE
Neighbour and marae committee member
Joe chaired our committee for twenty years and ended every meeting with the same words: 'Kai first, kōrero second.' We never argued on a full stomach. His hāngī pit is still warm, and the committee has decided to keep it that way.
- MP
Fellow shearer, East Coast gangs
We shore side by side in 1969, two hundred sheep a day each. He never raced the clock, only his own last score. In the smoko hut he told the same joke every day and we laughed every day. I am laughing now, e hoa. Moe mai rā.
- RK
Minister, Tolaga Bay Anglican parish
He sang bass in the choir with great joy and no accuracy. At the tangihanga hundreds sang Whakaaria Mai for him and the whare shook. I think he would have preferred us to harmonise slightly worse.
