Leah Witehira knows what it takes to come through the darkest years of your life and emerge into redemption. After the tragic loss of her partner Vicki Letele, the South Auckland mum of three, 52, is devoted to her faith, whānau and honouring Vicki’s legacy.
Almost two decades ago, alongside her dad David and mum Tui, Vicki founded the Grace Foundation to provide wraparound support for people who are on bail, on parole, serving home detention or leaving prison.
Remarkably, Vicki herself ended up spending eight months in jail for mortgage fraud, only to be released on compassionate grounds due to a diagnosis of stomach cancer. The mum of three sadly passed away in 2017.
Leah says going through that experience changed the trajectory of her life.
“If I hadn’t met Vicki, I wouldn’t be on this path,” explains Leah, who’s one of the stars of a local documentary series called Home Of Hope.
“We became sisters in Christ and it was so beautiful.”
When love turned toxic
Life now is a far cry from the wild, party-heavy lifestyle the couple lived as young rugby league players in Auckland. Prior to meeting Vicki, Leah – whose daughter Danica was born when Leah was 23 – had been a member of the first Kiwi Ferns team in 1995.
They crossed paths when they were both in relationships.
“I was coaching and my partner at the time was helping me with training, and because we were in a team environment, he became really good mates with Vicki and her partner,” tells Leah.
“After six years or so, they were on the rocks and I was wanting more out of my relationship, so things just happened, and Vicki and I ended up together.”
At the time, Vicki was 23 and Leah was 30, and both were “playing hard and partying hard”, says Leah.
“When you mix alcohol and drugs with insecurity, it gets ugly and our relationship became toxic.”
The path to redemption
Leah had leaned on marijuana since her father died when she was 15, but her usage became heavier. Meanwhile, Vicki preferred alcohol as her drug of choice. While they continued to fall deeper into a life of drugs and drink, David – who had been released from Paremoremo Prison after serving 10 years for armed robbery a few years earlier – “met the Lord”.
“For four years, he journeyed by himself and we witnessed it,” reflects Leah.
The couple remained in the league scene, with the partying only slowing down when they decided to undergo IVF.
“Vicki did it the first time around and she miscarried,” Leah shares.
“After that, she didn’t want to do it again, so the next five years were a roller-coaster ride as I tried to conceive but wasn’t able to.”
A journey to faith
During this time, Vicki started going to church after seeing the effect finding faith had on her father and the Grace Foundation began.
“I started going to church then, but I only went out of fear I would lose Vicki because we were in a gay relationship and her finding God might have meant that would end,” admits Leah.
“For the first six weeks, my only motivation for going was that they always put on a Sabbath dinner.”
But one day, while listening to the pastor, something shifted.
Leah tells, “My ears started to hear things I didn’t hear before and it was the beginning of me coming out of my addiction.”
Holding on through heartbreak
During this time, Vicki began investing in property and was trying to help first-home buyers with no deposit into homes by leveraging the equity in her own investments – until she got charged with fraud and their lives changed irreversibly.
“We started losing friends from the league scene, which was really heartbreaking,” shares Leah.
“But even though we were devastated, having God in my life helped me not fall back into my vengeful ways.”
Building a new, more nurturing relationship, the couple adopted two young boys – Henare, now 15, and Christopher, 13. Then Vicki was convicted, and sentenced to three and a half years in jail.
“I didn’t know it at the time, but God was preparing me for what was to come next,” says Leah.
“I didn’t expect her to go to prison and suddenly it was just me looking after our two boys. Then she got sick and we had to fight to get her out.”
A legacy of love
Vicki was released in November 2016 and passed away in May 2017.
“Caring for Vicki towards the end of her life showed me how loving I actually was and when she left us, I knew I had to become what Vicki was like,” says Leah.
“She was the one who did all the cuddling, so I had to become gentle, loving and affectionate.”
Determined to honour Vicki’s legacy at the Grace Foundation, Leah began to work with wa-hine who were facing huge challenges.
Leah explains, “Even when Vicki passed, I didn’t take time off. I just wanted to serve others and in serving others, it helped me heal. Vicki was love. Her dad is love. And ever since then, I’ve been motivated to show up and help people change their story.”
Home Of Hope is now streaming on ThreeNow.
