Dorice Reid
Encyclopedia
Dorice Reid, also known by the chiefly title of Te Tika Mataiapo Dorice Reid, (June 1943 - June 16, 2011) was a Cook Islander
tourism
official, businesswoman and judge. Reid enjoyed a long career in Cook Island business
, politics and tourism
from the 1970s until her death in 2011.
Dorice Reid was born to parents Leo Morrel and Ruby Peyroux (nee
Matamua), on Rarotonga
, Cook Islands
. She moved from Rarotonga to New Zealand
when she was eight years old.
Reid became very influential among Cook Islanders living in Auckland
, New Zealand. She initially worked as a sales representative for Air New Zealand
, a Radio Pacific
talk show host and a journalist and reporter for South Pacific Television
. Reid later became the first woman of Pacific Island descent to be nominated for a seat in the New Zealand Parliament by a national political party.
Reid moved back from New Zealand to her birthplace of Rarotonga in 1983. She took a position with the Cook Islands Tourist Authority as a sales manager and marketer. In 1985 she and her sister, Jeannine Peyroux, acquired the Little Polynesian Resort in Rarotonga. The renovated the small resort, which won two World Travel Awards.
The members of the Takitumu council, one of the three Vaka councils on Rarotonga, bestowed the chiefly title of Te Tika Mataiapo on Reid during the late 1980s. The title, which is named for the Cook Islands warrior Te Tika, was granted to Reid at a ceremony in Marae Te Pou Toru. As a result of her title, Reid declined multiple requests to run for the Cook Islands Parliament during her life, concluding that she should not mix her traditional title with politics.
Reid became an advocate for tourism and the preservation of Cook Island culture. Reid made several pilgrimages to Taputapuatea marae
, a traditional religious center of eastern Polynesia
located in the commune
of Taputapuatea
, Raiatea
, with other Polynesian chiefs. She was also an active member of the Cook Islands Voyaging Society. In 1995, Reid served as the only female crew member on board the Te Au O Tonga, which sailed to Raiatea
, Tahiti
, Nuku Hiva
and Hawaii
during a three and a half month voyage. In 2002, she completed a second sailing voyage aboard the Te Moana Nui O Kiva from her home in Rarotonga to Tahiti
, Huahine
, Raiatea
, Tahaa
, Bora Bora
and Mitiaro
.
Additionally, Reid was a member five separate Cook Islands environmental agencies and served as a judge for the country. She is credits with the reintroduction of the raui system to the Cook Islands. The raui system is a traditional system used in the Cook Islands, where access or use of a particular resource, such as a fishing lagoon or shellfish, is forbidden for a certain period of time. The system is traditionally used to preserve scarce food resources, but also encourages the protection of the environment as well.
In April 2011, Deputy Prime Minister
and Foreign Minister
Tom Marsters
announced Reid's appointment as High Commissioner
of the Cook Islands to New Zealand, based in Wellington
. She would have taken office to succeeded High Commissioner Mike Mitchell in July 2011.
Dorice Reid collapsed while attending a tourism conference in Auckland, New Zealand. She died unexpectedly at Auckland Hospital at 1 A.M. on June 16, 2011, at the age of 67. She would have turned 68 the following week. A resident of Kauare, Rarotonga, was survived by two nieces and a nephew.
Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is a self-governing parliamentary democracy in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand...
tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
official, businesswoman and judge. Reid enjoyed a long career in Cook Island business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
, politics and tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
from the 1970s until her death in 2011.
Dorice Reid was born to parents Leo Morrel and Ruby Peyroux (nee
NEE
NEE is a political protest group whose goal was to provide an alternative for voters who are unhappy with all political parties at hand in Belgium, where voting is compulsory.The NEE party was founded in 2005 in Antwerp...
Matamua), on Rarotonga
Rarotonga
Rarotonga is the most populous island of the Cook Islands, with a population of 14,153 , out of the country's total population of 19,569.The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings and international airport are on Rarotonga...
, Cook Islands
Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is a self-governing parliamentary democracy in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand...
. She moved from Rarotonga to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
when she was eight years old.
Reid became very influential among Cook Islanders living in Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, New Zealand. She initially worked as a sales representative for Air New Zealand
Air New Zealand
Air New Zealand Limited is the national airline and flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, New Zealand, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 26 domestic destinations and 24 international destinations in 15 countries across Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania, and is...
, a Radio Pacific
Radio Pacific
Radio Pacific was a New Zealand talkback radio station. The station also broadcast an extensive selection of horse racing commentary.-History:The station was originally started in Auckland in 1978 on 1593am...
talk show host and a journalist and reporter for South Pacific Television
South Pacific Television
South Pacific Television was a television channel in New Zealand, which operated between 1976 and 1980.- The Early Days :The channel, then known as TV 2, first went to air on June 30, 1975...
. Reid later became the first woman of Pacific Island descent to be nominated for a seat in the New Zealand Parliament by a national political party.
Reid moved back from New Zealand to her birthplace of Rarotonga in 1983. She took a position with the Cook Islands Tourist Authority as a sales manager and marketer. In 1985 she and her sister, Jeannine Peyroux, acquired the Little Polynesian Resort in Rarotonga. The renovated the small resort, which won two World Travel Awards.
The members of the Takitumu council, one of the three Vaka councils on Rarotonga, bestowed the chiefly title of Te Tika Mataiapo on Reid during the late 1980s. The title, which is named for the Cook Islands warrior Te Tika, was granted to Reid at a ceremony in Marae Te Pou Toru. As a result of her title, Reid declined multiple requests to run for the Cook Islands Parliament during her life, concluding that she should not mix her traditional title with politics.
Reid became an advocate for tourism and the preservation of Cook Island culture. Reid made several pilgrimages to Taputapuatea marae
Taputapuatea marae
Marae Taputapuatea is a large marae complex at Opoa in Taputapuatea, on the south eastern coast of Raiatea. The site features a number of marae and other stone structures and was once considered the central temple and religious center of Eastern Polynesia....
, a traditional religious center of eastern Polynesia
Polynesia
Polynesia is a subregion of Oceania, made up of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language, culture and beliefs...
located in the commune
Commune
Commune may refer to:In society:* Commune, a human community in which resources are shared* Commune , a township or municipality* One of the Communes of France* An Italian Comune...
of Taputapuatea
Taputapuatea
Taputapuatea is a commune of French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The commune of Taputapuatea is located on the island of Raiatea, in the administrative subdivision of the Leeward Islands, themselves part of the Society Islands.The administrative centre of the...
, Raiatea
Raiatea
Raiatea , is the second largest of the Society Islands, after Tahiti, in French Polynesia. The island is widely regarded as the 'center' of the eastern islands in ancient Polynesia and it is likely that the organised migrations to Hawaii, Aotearoa and other parts of East Polynesia started at...
, with other Polynesian chiefs. She was also an active member of the Cook Islands Voyaging Society. In 1995, Reid served as the only female crew member on board the Te Au O Tonga, which sailed to Raiatea
Raiatea
Raiatea , is the second largest of the Society Islands, after Tahiti, in French Polynesia. The island is widely regarded as the 'center' of the eastern islands in ancient Polynesia and it is likely that the organised migrations to Hawaii, Aotearoa and other parts of East Polynesia started at...
, Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
, Nuku Hiva
Nuku Hiva
Nuku Hiva is the largest of the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. It was formerly also known as Île Marchand and Madison Island....
and Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
during a three and a half month voyage. In 2002, she completed a second sailing voyage aboard the Te Moana Nui O Kiva from her home in Rarotonga to Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
, Huahine
Huahine
Huahine is an island located among the Society Islands, in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Leeward Islands group . The island has a population of about 6,000.-Geography:...
, Raiatea
Raiatea
Raiatea , is the second largest of the Society Islands, after Tahiti, in French Polynesia. The island is widely regarded as the 'center' of the eastern islands in ancient Polynesia and it is likely that the organised migrations to Hawaii, Aotearoa and other parts of East Polynesia started at...
, Tahaa
Tahaa
Tahaa is an island located among the Society Islands, in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean...
, Bora Bora
Bora Bora
The commune of Bora-Bora is made up of the island of Bora Bora proper with its surrounding islets emerging from the coral reef, 29.3 km² in total, and of the atoll of Tupai , located north of Bora Bora...
and Mitiaro
Mitiaro
Mitiaro, the fourth island in the Cook Islands group, is of volcanic origin. Standing in water 14,750 feet deep it is four miles across at its widest point.-Geography:...
.
Additionally, Reid was a member five separate Cook Islands environmental agencies and served as a judge for the country. She is credits with the reintroduction of the raui system to the Cook Islands. The raui system is a traditional system used in the Cook Islands, where access or use of a particular resource, such as a fishing lagoon or shellfish, is forbidden for a certain period of time. The system is traditionally used to preserve scarce food resources, but also encourages the protection of the environment as well.
In April 2011, Deputy Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister of the Cook Islands
The Deputy Prime Minister of the Cook Islands is the second most senior officer in the government of the Cook Islands. From 1965 to 1981, the position was called the Deputy Premier. When the office of Premier was renamed to Prime Minister in 1981, the Deputy Premier became the Deputy Prime...
and Foreign Minister
Foreign minister
A Minister of Foreign Affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the foreign policy of a sovereign state. The foreign minister is often regarded as the most senior ministerial position below that of the head of government . It is often granted to the deputy prime minister in...
Tom Marsters
Tom Marsters
Tom John Marsters is a Deputy Prime Minister of the Cook Islands. He is a member of the Cook Islands Party.-Personal life:...
announced Reid's appointment as High Commissioner
High Commissioner
High Commissioner is the title of various high-ranking, special executive positions held by a commission of appointment.The English term is also used to render various equivalent titles in other languages.-Bilateral diplomacy:...
of the Cook Islands to New Zealand, based in Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
. She would have taken office to succeeded High Commissioner Mike Mitchell in July 2011.
Dorice Reid collapsed while attending a tourism conference in Auckland, New Zealand. She died unexpectedly at Auckland Hospital at 1 A.M. on June 16, 2011, at the age of 67. She would have turned 68 the following week. A resident of Kauare, Rarotonga, was survived by two nieces and a nephew.