She is the baby girl The Casketeers stars Francis and Kaiora Tipene have always wanted.
The precious gift of a daughter in a family of six sons, baby Ngāwaiata could not have been more wished for. As her parents prepared for her arrival in September, they both knew two things.
One, that she would probably be early and a premature baby as all the other children had been. And two, that she would never be alone. Which is how they saved her life.
Just weeks after her birth, Ngāwaiata stopped breathing while Francis was gazing at her adoringly.
“I had just placed her down in her cot because we were at home enjoying our bundle of joy,” recalls Kaiora. “Francis said, ‘I don’t want to leave her down there – put her on the bed with me.’ His favourite thing to do is lie on the bed with her and just gaze at her.”
Kaiora was in the shower when Francis shouted out to her that baby Ngāwaiata didn’t seem to be breathing
