Whānau Ora lead for the Etu Pasifika clinic in Christchurch, Edna Soli, left the conference feeling inspired and proud. She was moved by seeing former clients now working within the service. 

“It was encouraging, refreshing, and uplifting. The selection of speakers was impressive, leaving me feeling inspired. I felt so proud. 

“To see that the work we are doing on the ground is making sense and producing amazing outcomes with stories we heard from families, who were once part of the programme, now being navigators or doing amazing things with their families and communities.” 

Ms Soli also believes that the insights she gained from the conference are highly valuable and looks forward to sharing them with her team in the south. 

“We have so many amazing providers across the country and it’s heartening to know that our team is on the right path with our families.” 

Health Coach, Warren Aseloka, based at Etu Pasifika South Auckland (EPSA), says the theme of resilience stood out to him. 

“Resilience spoke to me. All the speakers who shared their journeys and how they overcame difficult obstacles to get where they are today were inspiring and motivational, especially for my work.” 

For the Whānau Ora Lead at Etu Pasifika Auckland (EPA), Kerryann Teina, the key takeaway was the theme of financial freedom. 

“I resonated with the financial freedom panel. Pelenato Sakalia’s sharing of his life experiences is similar to many of us staff and the families we support. 

“I took away many learnings; this has impacted me long term and it’s something I’ll be sharing in times to come.” 

It was a special experience for the Etu Pasifika workforce to come together, learn, and gather information to take back into their workspaces. As an organisation, they are excited to see where this inspiration leads their teams. 

For more on the conference, visit Pasifika Futures. Head to our Facebook page @ Pasifika Futures to check out photos from the two days.