What is something you’re proud of?

Mahē | Tāmaki Makaurau

Mahē reflects on the deep sacrifices and strength of his Tongan grandparents, especially his grandmother, whose resilience and love shaped his values and identity.

“My grandparents came here in the early days when the dawn raids were happening. I’m immensely proud of the fact that they made that trip from Tonga to New Zealand to give their kids and their grandchildren the best that they could.

I’m named after my grandfather, and he was widely loved by his family and his friends. No one could say anything bad about him. I grew up with my grandmother, who was devoutly Tongan and devoutly Catholic, and those things helped shape me in my earlier days, but also gave me the willpower to do what I believe is right. It’s probably against what the teachings are in the church, but it made me a stronger person for who I am. I’m grateful for that.

Even though my grandfather died in 1989, my grandmother stayed single. She continued to push past the barriers of being a single mother and onwards to raising me. She passed away in 2006. She had a major impact on my life. Made big sacrifices. She would take the shirt off her back and sell it to make sure that I could go to school.

She’s the matriarch of her family. She’s the eldest daughter, and she was very brave. And she did challenge a lot of what was taught. She worked very hard. Didn’t say a lot, but she made sure that everybody else had what they needed. And that followed on with her and my grandfather bringing over hundreds of our family to New Zealand and then onwards to Australia or America.”