“I feel like it’s a calling for me. You’re just giving these families something that they can pass on to the next generation. And that’s what I am all about” – Tasmania Sapi
Home is where the heart is and that home for Tasmania “Tas” Sapi will always be in Samoa.
Now residing in Christchurch for 15 years, he’s never forgotten his upbringing in the islands.
“One of my favourite moments that I remember is that one night we had faalifu fai, you know banana with coconut cream, and soy sauce,” Tas says.
“That was the best. And we had koko samoa, like we just lived a basic life back home.”
Although times were tough, he says that the simplicity of life in Samoa created fun and lifelong memories in their family.
From those memories in Samoa sprung an idea by his parents to set their sights on New Zealand, seeking more opportunities, especially for their children.
For Tas, it meant a new environment and surroundings, much different from the easy going lifestyle Samoa had offered him through his childhood.
“Obviously not being able to speak English properly, when you’re part of conversations all you have to do is laugh to make it feel like you’re part of the conversation when really, you had no idea what was going on,” he says.
“One thing that really helped me was that I continued to push myself. I didn’t really care that I sounded different. I just wanted to improve, and the only way to improve was to be better and just try.”
And push past those challenges he did, not only excelling through school and tertiary studies, he went on to pursue a career as a mortgage advisor for financial services company Squirrel.
Understanding the struggles of adjusting and adapting to life outside of the islands, he sought to help other families who had similar experiences. He decided to create an initiative to help 20 Pasifika families gain financial stability and get on the road to home ownership.
However, it wasn’t easy at first.
“It was a slow start, you know how our people are like, they take their time, they want to see, is this a thing?” Tas says
“After helping out a few families in the beginning, a few people reached out. They saw their own families, friends and people in their communities purchase property through the campaign I did.”
Having doubts about finances or even conversations about money was a foreign idea for many Pasifika families. Now a homeowner himself, Tas says there are factors that make such talk unheard of among our people and community.
“We didn’t need much money back home. Because a lot of the things we grow, we have everything we need, we probably only need money to buy little things like sugar and things like that,” he says.
“We then move into a culture where everything is about money, you need to buy a car. And our people aren’t familiar with these things, it’s a new environment for them.”
Young couple Mervin and Faaolaina Brown who are close friends of Tas found themselves in the same boat.
Although the dreams and aspirations of owning a home and securing a financial opportunity for their kids were there, it seemed like wishful thinking. Which is what led them to approach their good friend Tas about sparking such conversations.
“The conversation started over lunch catchups, it started off as a joke really, like imagine if you get us our first property,” Faaolaina says.
“Then he followed up, made us understand a lot of things that made us give it a shot.”
Her husband Mervin added, “From what was a joke, turned into something a bit more established, serious, and now we’re here.”
“He gave us hope and gave us a home. Tas is super cool, known him for over 10 years. He’s a person who has a good heart. His heart’s for the people.”
The Faaolaina family was among the first to jump on board Tas’ initiative to help Pasifika families. Now, owning their own home, they say being informed and educated on such matters has sparked an interest within them to open more conversations around money.
“Sometimes we miss the discussion around the table about finance and money. Things like savings, having a budget, emergency funds, interest rates, this language is not common in Pasifika homes,” Mervin says.
“As we go through this experience it’s improving the type of language or vocabulary we have with the kids, things like assets and savings and budget you know.
“It’s improved the way we live as a family with money and the decisions we make, but it does feel more secure that we have something for them that’s their’s.”
For now, Tas says that the work has only just begun for himself and his dream. And although he has helped families such as the Faaolainas, he understands that there is still more to do as his act of service.
“One of our main values is tautua, I feel like it’s a calling for me. You’re giving these families something that they can pass on to the next generation. And that’s what I am all about,” Tas says.
“That’s why our parents sacrificed to get us here. It is to build a strong future so that not only can we help our families here, but also to give back to our community and family back home.”
*Some quotes have been edited for clarity
