Nga Toa: A Digital Resource that forever preserves the New Zealand experience of our World War 2 Veterans.

What is my project about?

I’m Pat Bronte, and I’ve made it my life’s mission to record the experiences of the ordinary Kiwis who served in the Second World War and in conflicts throughout the 20th and 21st century. Ordinary Kiwis who did extraordinary things for us. I started this a few years after I became a tetraplegic in 1996. And yes, being paralysed in a chair has made it harder, but with the help of some wonderful friends, this is my way to keep our veteran’s voices from falling silent. With a small donation, I hope you’ll help me to make it happen.

If you do, I’ll be able to save the experiences of the 300 veterans I’ve already interviewed from all corners of New Zealand, in a far better way than I could before. Most of them have now passed on, and now it’s time to use the archive of those who served us during the Second World War - not only for the sake of remembrance but as a school resource for our children. Ensuring the stories of these brave men and women are accessible to us all will enhance our understanding of some of the most significant events that have shaped New Zealand’s identity.

That means raising twenty thousand dollars to start turning the Nga Toa website into the most modern and powerful resource possible, where our veteran’s stories will always live, and our young people can still be taught. If you want to see Nga Toa as it is now, please visit www.ngatoa.co.nz

By raising this amount, I will be able to continue to add the interviews already recorded to the new website and continue to interview our last remaining WW2 veterans and those who have served our country since.

What others say about Nga Toa

"His existing archive of digitally recorded oral interviews that he has completed over the years is irreplaceable. It is a tribute to the determination of one man to defy the realities of his physical condition and make a major contribution to our understanding of the personal experiences of New Zealanders at war."

Christopher Pugsley – Renown New Zealand Author and Historian

"It has preserved for all New Zealanders an invaluable window to the past. What Patrick has done with this project should be utilised by all military historians and those with interest in the events that have shaped New Zealand. This is a towering achievement and a fitting tribute to New Zealand veterans of the Second World War."

Glyn Harper – Renown New Zealand Author and Historian

How will your money be spent?

Every cent will go to my government registered Nga Toa Charitable Trust, ensuring it’s properly spent on interviewing our veterans and saving their life stories in Nga Toa for us all – particularly our young people to use as a school resource. (If you have a loved one who served, please contact me so I can record their story too).

More specifically, your money will go toward:

1. Post Production of the video interviews so that they can be uploaded onto our new and upgraded Nga Toa website.

2. Editing the interviews into concise video clips and improving both the audio and video quality of each clip.

3. Completing further research into each veteran and writing a more detailed text biography that includes their historically precious photographs.

4. Development of an interactive podcast that offers listeners an uninterrupted, multimedia account of our veteran’s experiences.

5. Use of more interactive, multimedia resources to promote remembrance and education.

Thank you so much. With your help, and all the heart, soul and energy I will keep putting into this good project, we can make it happen.

Pat (Bronte)