Ripeka Tihe Colenso

Ripeka Meretene, of Ngai Tapuhara hapu of Ngati Kahungunu, had been brought from Paihia by Colenso as a member of his household. Seeking solace from the coldness of his marriage, Colenso began an affair with the girl, probably in 1848. When Ripeka married Hamuera Te Nehu in 1850 she was already carrying the missionary's child. A boy, Wiremu (William), was born on 28 May 1851. Shortly after, Elizabeth Colenso learned of her husband's infidelity. In September 1852 her own children were taken to Auckland by her brother John Fairburn and she followed with Wiremu a year later. The child was not accepted by the Fairburn family and was sent to relatives in the north before returning to his father's care in 1861. But Colenso did not see his wife and daughter again. In November 1852 he was suspended as a deacon and dismissed from the mission.