Former soldier and veteran Te Karere reporter Joe Glen (Ngāti Porou, Te Whānau a Apanui) has died, aged 82.
He spent nearly three decades in the New Zealand Special Air Service (SAS) and the Air Force, joining after finishing school. In that time, he served in wars across Asia which included the Malayan Emergency conflict, Singapore, Borneo and the Vietnam war.
He traded his army rifle for a microphone, joining Te Karere in 1989 as a Wellington-based reporter, covering topics such as politics, defense and social issues.
But it was stories on war that resonated with him. In his final interview with Te Karere during its 40th anniversary in 2022, Glen reflected on his time with the news programme.
“Nā Te Karere au i tae ki Gallipoli mō te Anzac (Through Te Karere, I was sent to Gallipoli for Anzac).
“E kore au e whakapono i taua wā ka pēnei rawa te whānui o ngā huarahi kei te takahia e Te Karere (I would’ve never believed at that time the breadth and range of Te Karere’s coverage).”
‘Sharp, intelligent… strong in delivery’
Hemana Waaka served alongside Glen in the SAS during conflicts in Asia and the South Pacific, before landing a career in journalism himself.
Speaking to Te Karere, Waaka reflected on the many war veterans who began a career in journalism at that time.
“Ka kuhu mai nei āku hoa… tuatahi ko Hirini Henare. I tīmata ana ki Te Karere, ko aua rohe ko Ngāpuhi whānui tonu. Kāore i roa, ka kuhu atu ko ahau ki reira, kāore i muri mai i ahau ko Miki Apiti. I tērā wā, kua tae kē atu a Joe Glen ki te mahi (My mates joined… first it was Hirini Henare. When he started at Te Karere he worked within the Ngāpuhi region. Not long after, I began working there, and soon after me, Miki Apiti [joined me]. At that time, Joe Glen had already started working).
“Koinā tētahi tangata koi, matatau ki te whakatakoto i ōna kōrero, matatau ki te pānui i ana kōrero, tīmata atu ko te puku o te kōrero me te whakamutunga (He was sharp, intelligent in the way he organised what he was going to say, strong in delivering what he was saying from the beginning, middle and end),” Waaka said.
‘One who walked the talk on kaupapa’
Former Te Karere reporter Waihoroi Shortland paid tribute to his legacy, as well as the legacy of other journalists within Māori media at the time.
“Kei te mahara ake au koia, ko Dan Hiramana-Rua, ko Hirini Henare, ko Pierre Lyndon ēnei ingoa katoa ināianei kua koroheketia (I think back to the likes of Dan Hiramana-Rua, Hirini Henare, Pierre Lyndon, those who now have grown old).
“Te whakaaro tuatahi e pā mai ana ko te pōuri. Anei anō he hoa — anei anō he kaihīkoi i te kaupapa — kua ngaro i roto i a tātou. Me maumahara te ao Māori ki tēnei momo (The first thought that came to me was one of sadness. Here’s another friend — one who walked the talk on kaupapa — who has gone. Te ao Māori must remember the kind of person he was).”
In a Facebook post, whānau members said he was due to arrive at Ōrongomai Marae, Upper Hutt, tonight. He would then be taken to Ruapeka Marae in Tāpapa, east of Tirau, for a night, before heading to Kiekie Marae near Waipiro Bay on the East Coast, in the coming days. He would be buried at Taaringaroa Urupā on Thursday.
