Matangi lelei to ki he la mahaehae – a canoe with torn sails cannot capture fair winds.

This Tongan proverb inspires what the Pacific Trust Otago does – and how they operate: They provide a holistic service that connects Pacific communities and individuals to the services they need to achieve their health and wellbeing goals.

They have five contracted services: Whānau Ora – working in partnership with Pacific Futures to support families and individuals to make positive life changes through access to advice, planning and financial support; Well Child Tamariki Ora – nurses who provide advice and information for mothers and babies from six weeks after birth – visiting them and connecting with families; Health Link – where a navigator helps people access health services, with advocacy, advice and transport; Breakaway, a holiday programme in partnership with the MSD for youth between 11–18 years; and Employment and Training, a Ministry for Pacific Peoples’ Tupu Aotearoa programme where a navigator helps people of all ages to access employment, study and training.

The Pacific Trust Otago has two Employment and Training Navigators: Viola Huch in Dunedin and Makalita Maka in Invercargill. We spoke with Viola:

“We all work together. Families that come in set achievable goals for themselves and one could be getting into employment or further study, so these people will be referred to me.

“Otherwise, people self-refer, or they are referred by other services or they are encouraged by their families to come to us. And we have community events where we let people know about our services.

“Also, I have a lot of people on my Facebook page. It’s my way of connecting with community family and friends, and it gives me a platform. I put a flyer on the page about what we are doing. It helps get the information out. So do our talanoa in communities where we open up the conversation about the services we have, and events that show case what we can offer our Pacific people – and they engage.

“We don’t run a programme, I work one-to-one. When we first started in 2019 we worked with 15–39-year-olds: the younger ones trying to make a transition, those in their mid-twenties who are often not sure whether to stay in cruise mode or find something they really want to do, then the late twenties and thirty-year-olds who start thinking, gosh, I need to find a job I like. Then when Covid hit, many lost their jobs, so we now work with people of all ages – 15 and over.

“At the end of the year we start getting young ones coming in. At the moment I am getting a lot of mature adults. My oldest is 70. He wanted to have more knowledge about computers, so I helped him register in a polytechnic course.

“Some weeks are relatively quiet. This week I have bookings galore: people wanting help to apply for courses at polytechnic, others doing online applications for Studylink, as well as people needing to update their cvs, or find employment.

“Our contract is for 47 people a year, but it’s not just the numbers that count. Quality is my main concern. What differentiates us from a recruitment agency is that we look for employment that best suits the capability and skills of each person. I want to find the best outcome for each individual – not just help them take that factory job. That was me when I first went to work. I had walked out of school with no qualifications, and I thought factory work would be easy money. It wasn’t – it was hard work, working in a fish factory. I got as far as leading hand and I thought, I am over this. I then went to Fisher and Paykel where I got made redundant.

“I had always had a passion for working with people, so I enrolled in a four year Social and Community Work Degree.

“I am determined to help and support our Pacific people – and help them see that nothing is impossible. I am now a registered social worker and last year I was successful in getting elected to the board of trustees at my daughter’s school. People think, gosh, making big decisions. I tell them, you are making big decisions every day!

“There are tough issues but our regional Tupu Aotearoa providers meet regularly to discuss the challenges we are having as navigators. Last month the topic was suicide and how we address that. We are finding that with so many people looking for work, and making applications along with maybe 150 others, and then always getting disappointing news, it puts them at risk. We always provide pastoral care, so we have been talking about all the things that we can do, and having conversations with management, to find new ways of keeping everybody safe.

“I have a database that I update every time I have contact with a person and I follow up regularly and keep providing the support they need. For example, they might need help to get a driver licence, or a forklift or truck licence – or get reading glasses: anything they ask for that supports their study or employment, I ask my manager, and I have never had a ‘no’. We organise that and pay the costs.

“Recently a mum approached me worried about her son who was spending all night gaming and all day sleeping. So I gave him a call. I said I am an auntie, come and meet me and talk about what you are up to, I’d love to catch up. So he came and we discussed what he would like to do. His mother was worried about his weight too – sitting all day. So we got him on a Job Seeker benefit and a health coach and he got a job with City Care and he hasn’t looked back. They think he is absolutely wonderful – and he has lost weight: he is happy and his parents are grateful. I love to see it– knowing they have succeeded.”

Llyod Maole, the General Manager of the Trust, emphasised the importance of their holistic approach:

“We don’t want to just place a person in a job. We want them to be passionate about it. So we spend time getting to know them and develop a relationship with the whole family. We put them at the centre, and we all work together to provide a wrap-around service.

“I think the biggest barrier that young people often face is not knowing what they want to do, so we build a relationship of trust and help them open up.”

In the future the Trust hopes to expand its services to other parts of the region. The office in Invercargill has been successful. Next up maybe an office in Central Otago.