Much-loved kiwi entertainer Pio Terei and his wife Debbie are making an emotional appeal for more bone marrow donors.

They lost their youngest son Teina to leukaemia in August last year, but they're determined to honour his memory through a trust.

Titled Trust Teina, it encourages others to donate - particularly Maori and Pacific Islanders.

Bone marrow transplants are one of the main weapons against leukaemia, which kills 346 kiwis a year.

The Donor Registry said in the past three years, only 28 New Zealanders have donated marrow.

Teina Terei became too ill before he could undergo a transplant.