Obituary: Teacher, mentor could 'find a rainbow in every cloudy sky'

Otago Daily Times

15 hours ago

Beyond all the medals and awards, lay a steely and quiet (mostly quiet) determination, a focus, a stubborn perseverance - all borne out of obstacles, stereotypes, and cultural and societal expectations.
When Ali'itasi Pepe (Tasi) Lemalu (nee Nanai Vatau) emigrated from Western Samoa to New Zealand in 1955, it was a challenging environment, having to navigate cultural differences.
Whatever equality issues New Zealand faces now, they were multiplied many-fold 70 years ago.
For many in her situation, it would have been easy to buckle in that environment.
But for Tasi, it made her stronger, a fierce force to be reckoned with, and a trailblazing advocate for her community and Pacific peoples.
Tasi was born in Falelatai, on March 4, 1937, to father and village High Chief Nanai Tietie Saunoa Vatau Salu Tuliloaina and mother Fuifui Nanai Vatau (nee Eliapo Ale).
She was one of 12 children brought up with the traditional Samoan cultural values of faith, respect and education.
She was 18 when she emigrated to New Zealand, firstly to Wellington, then Christchurch in 1958, and finally to Dunedin in 1960.
It was while working at the Roslyn Woollen Mill with her two sisters, Toeupu and Pule, that she first met her future husband Foalima Lemalu.
They married in 1970 at the First Church of Otago, where they remained life-long members of the congregation, and went on to have two children — Selena and Jonathan.
As parents, they instilled in their children the values of kindness, humility, a love of learning and discipline, and taught them to value family, community and faith, and to be proud of their heritage.
They also made many sacrifices so their children could have opportunities they never had when they were growing up.
It was while attending a 1982 community conference addressing the education needs of Pacific Islanders that Tasi had her first formal contact with a tertiary education institution where she would spend more than three decades — Otago Polytechnic.
At that same conference, Tasi was elected chairwoman of the Pacific Island Education Committee, which later became the Pacific Island Advisory Council. Tasi, along with other leaders of the committee, secured financial assistance from the Department of Internal Affairs to run courses for Pacific Island people, with Otago Polytechnic providing the venue.
They also set up an early childhood centre to enable parents to attend the courses.
This led to Otago Polytechnic employing Tasi in the role of Pacific Island liaison tutor in March, 1985.
The 0.7 FTE enabled her to continue being a hands-on mother.
She was proud to be part of the polytechnic team that established the inaugural Māori and Pacific Island Centres.
As liaison tutor, Tasi worked tirelessly, recruiting Pacific Island students, retaining and supporting them, and sometimes helping them to overcome challenges in educational achievement.
A longstanding member of the Association of Pasifika Staff in Tertiary Education (APSTE), Tasi was honoured in 2016 as its longest-serving foundation member.
She was recently honoured in a written tribute by fellow alumni, which said: "We are often reminded of those [on] whose shoulders we stood, and the sacrifices taken by them to pave a way for others to build and thrive.
"None other exemplifies the courage, sacrifice and determination to pave a way for many in the tertiary education sector like Ali'itasi Pepe Lemalu — affectionately known as Aunty Tasi.
"As the Pacific liaison officer at Otago Polytechnic, she joined forces with other influential Pacific liaison officers across Aotearoa ... and mobilised a movement to elevate Pacific community experiences and input as a necessary enabler to Pacific student success and achievement in the tertiary education sector."
She was also chairwoman of Strengthening Pacific Island Family Support (SPIFS) — the local Pasifika education reference committee — and the Dunedin representative on the Ministry of Education's National Pasifika Advisory Group (PAG).
After serving on the PAG for 15 years, Tasi was appointed as an elder.
She was a Pacific Island member of the Presbyterian Support Council, the Otago representative on the Advisory Committee to the Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs and the State Services Commission course for Pacific Island senior managers.
She also championed a few initiatives of her own, including the Pasifika Study Support Centre at Brockville School, the Talanoa Ako radio programme on Hills AM and Otago Access Radio, and the promotion of a national contract for early childhood education teaching to Pacific people.
Tasi also had a passion for, and a commitment to, the arts, and she served on the Māori and Pacific Arts Council of New Zealand before it was disestablished and became Creative New Zealand in 1993.
Her oratory skills were sought after as a consultant and adviser on many Pacific community affairs, including as a highly regarded translator and interpreter at the Department of Courts, raising Pacific Island cultural awareness in the medical and education systems, and as a justice of the peace since 1996.
Considering the long hours of travel, meetings, minute writing/reading, planning, preparation, strategising, discussions, debate and disagreements — none of her groundbreaking, icebreaking, pioneering efforts were easy.
She was direct and clear, and she mastered a range of expressions and looks that signalled her approval or disappointment.
Each day, each year, she went into battle for her community, all at the cost of family and friends.
She taught anyone who knew her about courage, tenacity, speaking up, turning up, commitment and playing the long game.
She constantly displayed examples of knowing who she was and unapologetically fighting for what she believed in.
She believed that trying and failing was better than never trying at all; that achievements worth fighting for, often begin as failures; that expectations and rules were often our own or someone else's confines; that doing the right thing was what was needed; that sometimes it was important to be comfortable in being uncomfortable; and that being curious showed you cared.
Her children affectionately nicknamed her George, after the main character of the cartoon Curious George, because she too was curious, adventurous, always getting into trouble and learning from choices and experiences.
All of these qualities shone in her work.
Her contributions were recognised with numerous awards, including Membership of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) in 2007 for services to the Pacific Islands community; a 2014 Ministry of Education award for distinguished services to Pasifika education; and Emeritus Membership of Otago Polytechnic in 2017.
Professional achievements aside, Tasi had eclectic interests.
She loved gardening, was a talented seamstress, and dreamt of one day having her own dressmaking business, and she studied family law at the University of Otago.
Legacy is the sum of the personal values, accomplishments and actions that resonate with the people around you.
At the core of Tasi's legacy was a simple and genuine love of connecting with, and compassion for, people.
She is remembered by her family and friends for her insight, her high standards, her wonderful common sense and infectious charm, and the ability to find a rainbow in every cloudy sky.
In the latter years, she fought valiantly to hold on to her sense of self, despite the ravages of illness, but also demonstrated an acceptance of the changes through a strong faith.
Her fierce and enduring love of her children and family never waned.
Tasi died on May 25, 2025, aged 88.
She is survived by husband Lemalu Nanai Foalima, daughter Selena, son Jonathan and daughter-in-law Sandra, and grandchildren Arabella and Joshua.
— John Lewis.