Kia Orana from the Cook Islands 🇨🇰
I was born and raised in Brisbane, Australia. We lived in a suburb called Springwood. A very friendly neighbourhood, close to the schools I attended.
I was very fortunate growing up, I had hard-working parents that provided a very comfortable lifestyle for us. We were lucky to be able to travel quite often and visit our Island home Rarotonga once a year. We went to good schools, we had the opportunity to play any sport we wanted. My mum was always my biggest supporter, she would come to every training, practice, every game. She would always have everything I needed for that particular sport. We grew up dancing, playing athletics, tennis, netballs, softball & swimming. Playing sports & being outdoors, cycling, rollerblading, climbing trees, going to the beach was my favourite things to do. We were only allowed to watch tv once a day and I remember us kids always chose to watch the Simpsons. I am very thankful this was the rule in our house and eating dinner as a family every night. It made us very active and kept us busy with activities.
As I live in the Cook Islands now, my mother & I live on the main Island Rarotonga but we are descendants from a very small Island called Mitiaro, known as Nukuroa as well. Living on Rarotonga, our family home is situated in Tupapa. It is a very close community, everyone knows everyone, people are always waving and smiling at one another. It's a very warm and heartfelt feeling, when it comes to fundraiser & supporting each other, we are definitely the type of community where we will take the shirts off our backs and give it someone, we all try to help each other when needed.
Our culture is very vibrant, always seeing, dancing, playing the drums. We embrace one another with open arms, we are proud of our culture and try to showcase it whenever we can. It's very laidback, Island time is definitely a thing here! We always love food its a big part of our culture to share food and make sure there is enough for everyone and to take home as well. Sundays are our rest days, the Island is very quiet, not much open, there are some things we are not allowed to do on Sundays. That is a big part of our culture.
Currently, in the Cook Islands, I am a fitness instructor and personal trainer as well as the social media admin for our gym. I am also the current reigning Miss Cook Islands and Miss World Oceania. This means I am also involved in volunteering and projects such as Mana O Te Tini Vaine, a movement to change people’s views on body image, to empower and inspire others to love themselves. Its something different for the pacific to be speaking about but its creating waves and bringing a lot of women out of their shells. I am always working on my MOVE WITH ME campaign to encourage healthy living, to reduce the risk of getting an NCD.
I say this a lot but I am forever thankful that I have been able to complete many of my dreams so far. After my reign, I can't wait to build on our land on Rarotonga, to have my own house here in Rarotonga is an absolute dream! As well as traveling as much as I can, I've been to 43 Countries but there are so many more I want to see and explore!
The beach and mountains are right in our backyards, the lifestyle we are able to live, but my favourite thing is honestly how safe it is. There is just so much going on in the world we are very blessed we don't have to experience that.
The Pacific is important for many reasons, we are just as important as any other region. We provide homes for wildlife, we provide a beautiful holiday destination, we are able to spread our way of life, our traditions, living off the land and sea. We are a safe haven, we are a home especially to our Indigenous elders, we are accepting and welcoming, we provide resources, especially our marine life. Sustainable living, provide livelihoods and food security for many Pacific Islanders.
To keep our authenticity, to keep our culture and language alive. To have more opportunities for our people, education, jobs, sports, lifestyle but keep the rules we have in place, that land stays in the family. For our people to contribute more to preventing climate change, become more sustainable especially with rubbish and wasting water/food. Driving less vehicles, recycling more.
