Gloria and James Viliamu are a young Samoan couple starting out on their financial journey together, wanting to provide the best future for their baby boy, Nathaniel. Since completing Vaka Tautua’s Tupe Wise programme earlier this year, they have already reached several milestones on the road to financial freedom.

Manoa Tuatai, who turned 80 last month, is one of the treasured Coordinators for Vaka Tautua’s Matua Ola Manuia Day Programme. The programme helps our Pacific matua (older people) stay connected with their communities, and encourages them to lead active, healthy lives.

Vaka Tautua’s frontline staff often go above and beyond to support the Pacific people who use our services. As part of the organisation’s Ola Fiafia mental health services, the Ora’anga team supports people living with mental illness, which sometimes means addressing the underlying issues causing distress.

Vaka Tautua’s Disability Information Advisory Services team in Porirua has been actively engaging with other providers to open up more opportunities for the local Pacific disabled community and explore new pathways for Vaka Tautua’s service users.

Vaka Tautua’s Community Support Services team in West Auckland has developed a new programme supporting the mental and physical health of Pacific peoples through active breath and movement. Group sessions are creating a sense of community and helping build confidence for those living with mental illness.

The lives of a Tongan couple in the Canterbury region have been transformed after receiving support from Vaka Tautua’s services for Pacific people. Tony Wolfgramm has a newfound independence and his wife, Anaseini, is finding her role as caregiver has greatly eased.

Vaka Tautua formally opened its first office in Dunedin this week, welcoming local Pacific community leaders and partners to celebrate the significant milestone. The new Otago team is poised to provide financial capability, community connector and disability services to Pacific peoples in the region.

Elder abuse is an issue that affects roughly one in ten seniors in Aotearoa, including many Pacific older people. To mark World Elder Abuse Awareness Day this June 15, Vaka Tautua’s Aiga Fiafia Social Services team raised awareness in the community about what signs to look out for and how to seek help.

Vaka Tautua has rolled out its award-winning financial capability programme – Tupe Wise – to a rapidly growing number of cohorts around the country this year. Otago is the latest region to benefit from the programme, which seeks to increase the financial literacy and knowledge of Pacific families in Aotearoa New Zealand.

As a proudly Pacific organisation, Vaka Tautua recognises the importance of Pacific languages and cultures to the work we do in the community. To promote language as a cornerstone of the wellbeing of Pacific peoples, our teams celebrated Le Vaiaso o le Gagana Samoa (Samoa Language Week) and 60 years of independence for the nation.

Advice from Vaka Tautua’s Disability Information Advisory Services team has helped a Tongan family reconnect to their community through access to better transport. A successful application for financial assistance enabled them to purchase a vehicle, transforming their lives for the better.

Vaka Tautua, in collaboration with Pacific Homecare, yesterday held its first Matua Ola Manuia Market Day since December 2020. After a long wait due to the pandemic, four Pacific groups for older people came together to showcase their vibrant cultures and handicrafts in the highly successful event.

Vaka Tautua’s Disability Information Advisory Services team promotes wellbeing for carers, to help them look after their loved ones living with a disability. So, when Paki Vaipapalangi reached out for advice, the team provided information in his Tongan language to help the family thrive.

Vaka Tautua's Board of Directors announced the appointment of a dynamic new Chief Executive Officer for the organisation this week. Moananu Anna Redican Kolose, currently Pacific Equity Programme Director for the Auckland District Health Board, will step into the role from 4 May.

Vaka Tautua’s executive leadership team has spent the last two weeks connecting and engaging with key regional partners in Wellington and Canterbury. Chief Executive Officer Dr Amanda-Lanuola Dunlop thanked stakeholders for their support during her tenure and beyond, as she approaches the end of her journey with the organisation.

Porirua resident John Mu isn’t letting his disability slow him down. Armed with information and advice from Vaka Tautua’s Disability Information Advisory Services team in Wellington, he is racing along his journey towards increased mobility and wellbeing.

It is with sadness that Vaka Tautua announces Chief Executive Officer, Dr Amanda-Lanuola Dunlop, is stepping down on 1 April 2022, after almost three years at the helm of the national Pacific health, disability and social services provider.

With the Omicron variant of COVID-19 rapidly spreading around New Zealand this February and March, Pacific communities have been particularly hard hit. Vaka Tautua is supporting many Pacific families in self-isolation with household cases of COVID-19.