Viliami: A personal encounter - Mental Health Awareness Week
33 year old Viliami aka Villz shares his personal journey with mental health and learning to seek help after struggling with suicidal thoughts and depression.
"I was raised to be tough, to be a warrior, to push your emotions to the side and not show any kind of feelings that were classed as weak. This led me to find it very difficult to speak up and seek help when I fell into a dark place ... I had suicidal and negative thoughts daily ... I just wanted to die ... I couldn't see I needed help until my wife and kids brought it to my attention"
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Villz who is of Tongan heritage and his wife Nikki, live in Sydney and have 5 children. They recently set up an anti-suicide campaign geared towards encouraging individuals who are facing mental health issues to speak up and seek help.
Tama Sāmoa Project 2021
By Dahlia Malaeulu
The contributing authors for the Tama Sāmoa Project from top left corner in the photo above clockwise: Okirano Tilaia, Emmanuel Solomona, Saul Luamanuvae-Su’a, Aleki Leala, Liko Alosio, Senio Sanele, Darcy Solia, Elijah Solomona, Dr. Sadat Muaiava, Israel Risati Sua-Taulelei, Isaac Sanele, Mikaele Savali, Simati Leala, Atama Cassidy.
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Our forthcoming YA book, Tama Sāmoa, is a story based on Sione, Lima, Tavita and Filipo who are high school friends, uso or brothers. They are part of a special letter-writing project that helps to start a brave new conversation, an open and honest talanoa with themselves starting with the words, Dear Uso … Here they share the cultural challenges they face, and without realising it, their need to belong, to be accepted and the impact this has on their wellbeing overall.
The book also includes student study questions #LiteracyIntegration #RichLiteracyResource #VersatileText and the amazing Tama Sāmoa Project.…more
Ata Maivia-Johnson shares why she has chosen to be vaccinated against Covid-19
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson's mother Ata Maivia-Johnson has taken to social media to share her own personal story in regards to choosing to be vaccinated against Covid-19 to protect herself and her family.
She also confirms in the video below that both Dwayne and his wife Lauren are vaccinated and are all doing fine. She shares her story in the hopes that it will help people overcome any vaccine hesitation.
"Pacific Islanders in many States are being hit harder than any other group. So many of our people and our families are affected to the core."
In a comment on her post, Ata's son Dwayne posts in support "Love this ma. Not an easy line to walk but really beautifully said. And very important for our culture and the world."
Dwayne, his wife and both their daughters Jasmine and Tia all contracted Covid last year before a vaccine was available and said it was one of the most challenging times he has ever faced.…more
Samson Moeakiola - Tongan actor cast as Salvatore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero in Sopranos prequel film
Watch the trailer (above and below) to the highly anticipated prequel film to cult classic series "The Sopranos" which is out this Friday in the US and stars young Tongan actor Samson Moeakiola.
"The Many Saints of Newark" has been described as a prequel to 'The Sopranos' set against the Newark race riots and focuses on charming, sociopath mobster Dickie Moltisanti. (The father of Christopher, Tony’s right-hand man in the original Sopranos series).
Samson Moeakiola plays a young Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero, a New Jersey mafia lieutenant who works for Dickie Moltisanti. Vincent Pastore played Pussy in the original Sopranos series where he worked for Tony.
Samson shared in a Rolling Stone interview that he was able to spend time with the OG "Big Pussy" Vincent Pastore and called him a mentor.
Pastore would record all of the young Pussy’s dialogue for him to listen to before each filming day. “Everybody else around me already had big resumes, and this was my first job,” he says.…more
Samoan actor KJ Apa and girlfriend Clara Berry welcome new baby boy
Congratulations to Samoan actor KJ Apa and his partner, French model Clara Berry who welcomed a baby boy into the world last week.
Clara announced the news on her instagram this morning, also sharing the name of their baby - Sasha Vai Keneti Apa.
KJ also released his new album "Clocks" over the weekend.
KJ says of the album in an instagram post "CLOCKS. This music represents a piece of myself - my past, my future and my present ...
Thank you to my mother @tessaapa for always helping & inspiring me to write. @jamiekuse for mastering, @jeanseledoujet for your magic and @clara.berry for taking my love for you to another dimension this week"
It's his 2nd album - he released his own instrumental rock album called "The Third Room" when he was only 14 years old.
Clocks is out now on all streaming platforms and you can check it out on Spotify below.…more
Rebecca Sang Yum shares her experience after testing positive for Covid
* TW COVID/Tubes/Hospital Images.
Young Samoan woman Rebecca Sang Yum is based in Sydney. She tested positive for Covid and shares her frightening experience after she was admitted to hospital.
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Some of you may or may not know but I tested positive for COVID and was diagnosed with severe COVID pneumonitis. I was admitted to Liverpool Hospital and was taken care of by the doctors and nurses in ICU. The inflammation of my lungs as a result of COVID made it almost impossible for me to breathe. Every day and night I had nasal prongs in-connected to oxygen so that I could still operate. I had a urinary catheter inserted in me, wore adult diapers and got changed and dressed by the nurses.
I couldn’t eat and my body was weak. I had fevers, a productive cough, sore throat, chills, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. Most times I felt like I was suffocating and that when I close my eyes I wouldn’t wake up.…more
Pasifika students create website to help Kiwis pronounce names correctly
Faamalosi.com CEOs To'e Lokeni and Mannfred Sofara from Bishop Viard College in Porirua, along with 8 other Year 12 students have created a website designed to help people correctly pronounce Maori and Pasifika names.
“We’d like to see commentators use this as a tool,” Sofara said "Just so our Pasifika brothers have their names pronounced correctly.”
Check out the website here
There's a one off $4.99 subscription fee but then you get unlimited access to the site from then on.
The first Pacific Member of New Zealand Parliament, Taito Phillip Field has passed away
* Cover image via Radio New Zealand
Members of the Samoan community today are mourning the passing of Taito Phillip Field, our first Pacific member of parliament and a stalwart Samoan political through the 90's until 2008.
Taito represented as an MP for Ōtara and then for Māngere in 1996. He left the Labour Party in 2007 amidst inter party conflict and returned to Parliament as an independent.
Taito's long political career was marred by controversy, following charges of bribery and perverting the course of justice over the infamous 'Thai Tiler' affair.…more
#FitnessInTheFale - Learn this dance routine with 'The Royal Family's' Kaea Pearce
Royal Family Dance Crew member Kaea Pearce takes us through a hip hop based dance routine, starting with a warm up.
Follow along with Kaea as she breaks down the steps and then dance the full choreographed routine with her at the end!
Upload your videos and be sure to tag both us and Kaea in the videos - we'd love to see how you go!
Tony Finau - My Why
“Athletes are often perceived as being somewhat one-dimensional. But, I’m also a dad, a husband, an avid sports fan, a lover of food and music; as well as many other things. It’s the combination of these things that drives me to get the most out of every day.” - Tony Finau, PGA TOUR Champion
Do What You Love. More.
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At the end of April 2023, Tony Finau won the Mexico Open clinching his fourth win in his last 18 starts to jump five places to world No. 11 beating World #1 Jon Rahm.
Hours after clinching the Mexico Open title, the American was back out on the greens at the nearby Lakes Course, caddying for two of his sons during some night-time par three action.
This will come as no surprise to anyone who's watched Tony in the Netflix doco 'Full Swing'.
Catch Tony in Episode 6 of Netflix' PGA tour doco series 'Full Swing'
Check out the trailer below -
One review of the doco series & Tony Finau here -