Celebrating 25 years of community service

After 25 years of service in Dunedin, Pacific Trust Otago is reflecting on its strong beginnings and the support it has provided to the community.

Hundreds of people gathered in the South Island city of Dunedin last week to join in the celebrations for the region’s sole Pacific-led health provider.

For a quarter of a decade, the Pacific Trust has offered Pasifika in the Otago Region services to support and encourage health and wellbeing, chief executive Fa’animo Elisara-To’o says.

She said it was a great chance to reflect on the organisation’s achievements over the years.

“It was an amazing evening where some of our partners and community leaders, ministers, and their families joined us in the celebration. It was an amazing time to celebrate and reflect on all the goodness done by our organisation over the past 25 years.”

Photo/Pacific Trust Otago.

The organisation was established after calls from the community felt they weren’t having their needs met by the health system in 1999.

In 2003, the trust was registered as an incorporated society, allowing them to begin delivering services.

Since then, Pacific Trust Otago has introduced services that help support the Pacific population in Otago while upholding Pacific cultural values. It also hosts the ‘Moana Nui Festival,’ which celebrates all nine Pacific communities in the region.

Elisara-To’o said celebrating 25 years gave the organisation and the Pacific community a chance to reflect on how far they have come.

“We’re grateful that the celebration allowed us to relook at where we’ve come from and where we are now.

“For us, I think if we are to reflect at where we were and where we are now, we’re providing health contracts, social contracts for our communities. It’s a huge milestone.

“It’s a reason for our teams to really celebrate. It’s one thing to have the services but if our people are not utilizing our services or not getting behind activities, we really don’t have anything.

“I think the platform has become a place where people knew they had a place they could identify with, and they knew the services we provide. It’s a fantastic time to really honour the journey of the founders, all our community leaders (who) have all had a role to play in the successes thus far.”

Community members at the celebration evening. Photo/Pacific Trust Otago.

Pacific Trust Otago was crucial to vaccination mobility during the Covid-19 pandemic, providing Pacific-led vaccination clinics.

It also introduced a mental-health service to help combat stigmas surrounding mental-health in the Pacific community.

Growing from the initial two services in 2003 to now nearly 20, Elisara-To’o said the organisation hoped to have a space to house all services.

“Our initial goal is to own a physical space where we can have all our services to be operated from.

“We’re looking at a couple of options where we may be able to secure something for the near future, to house all our services.

“It’s what our communities are saying they want, and it is our hope with our heavenly father will help so we can have a space to house all these services.

“It’s an opportunity to say to not only our funders but our Pasifika communities out there that we’re grateful for the support, we’re grateful they are utlizing our services.”

Watch the full interview with Pacific Trust Otago CEO Fa'animo Elisara-To'o here: