Hemana Waaka was determined that he would take the three flags of the Pioneer Maori Battalion to the outreaches of the Tuhoe territory. When World War 1 broke out, 77 Tuhoe men volunteered to join the Maori Pioneer Battalion and every year the tribe commemorates Armistice Day and those of their tribe who served their country with a service at Mahurehure Maori in Rūātoki.
