Chief Executive for SWPICS, Akarere Henry, is proud to be leading a team who are passionate and dedicated to providing services of excellence to their local community. 

"As an organisation our vision is focused on caring for Pacific people today, for tomorrow. The key part of that is around caring for our communities. 

"Developing quality workforces, investing in economic development of our entrepreneurs and leading wellbeing approaches that are specific to Pacific models of care are just some examples of how we action our vision to best serve our families." 

Whānau Ora Navigators for SWPICS, Karmich Nicholls, Merrol Tearetoa and Rangi Tunupopo say their passion to serve is driven by the needs they see in the community. 

"Through our social services, we work with a lot families needing support. We identify their key needs and approach it with the appropriate solutions," says Nicholls. 

Tearetoa says the organisations offer a range of support under the Whānau Ora programme. 

"We help families with food, petrol and financial assistance. A lot of the families we work with are multi-generational households so worrying about whether there is enough food on the table is a struggle faced by many in our community. 

"We also support families with kids if they need help with school uniform and stationery; the welfare of our kids is so important." 

Tunupopo says it's rewarding being able to help families through times of need. 

"Helping families achieve their goals and empowering them to make decisions and changes that will help them move forward are some of the rewarding aspects of our work.  

"We always maintain that we are here if they find themselves needing advice and further support." 

This is further echoed by Nicholls who says the progress families make is rewarding. 

"Supporting our families watching them progress by being more independent is always the aim. Seeing them thrive and their children thriving in school is always so heart warming for us." 

Mrs Henry says the partnership with Pasifika Futures (PFL) is invaluable and has provided SWPICS with the necessary resources to best support their community. 

"The significant contribution from PFL has ensured sustainability in realising transformational change for our kopu tangata as the inequalities have spanned generations and needs this level of commitment to make a difference.  

"We're excited for the future of SWPICS and through PFL's support, we're blessed with the opportunity to serve and meet the needs of our families."