Melefatai Palavi

Mālō e lelei and Kia Ora,

I'm Melefatai (aka Mele) and my role at HEART is the Ngaahi Takiekina Fakafetu’utaki | Talanoa Fananga (Communications Lead | Storyteller). I am the person behind the monthly HEARTbeat!!! I recently joined the HEART family last July, and feel extremely blessed to be a part of this beautiful movement. My husband Ben and I moved back to Aotearoa from Australia 5 years ago. We have been living in the Tāmaki community for over 3 years now and absolutely love it here. Both our families have special connections to Tāmaki when we were younger. Ben's parents got married in Glen Innes, and my mum attended the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Saineha Ward at the chapel on Pilkington Road in her early twenties. Ben and I currently attend the Panmure Ward on Lunn Avenue.

I was born here in Auckland however I lived most of my life in a small country town called Levin. My family made the big move to Brisbane, Australia when I was fifteen. I lived in Australia for 9 years where I met and married my sweetheart in Benjimann Palavi in Sydney, Australia. We made the move back to Aotearoa literally 3 weeks after we got married. Although our hearts are always with our family overseas, we absolutely love our life here in Aotearoa! We love our community family and friends, and the beautiful relationships we've made.

The thing I like most about the HEART Movement is the weekly trainings and workshops they provide for the community. I can definitely say, hand on heart that after every workshop, I always leave feeling inspired, enlightened, and encouraged to do more good in the community. The strength and knowledge that comes with each training has been such a huge blessing in my life and in my home. Every week, HEART provides free community trainings and workshops. Another thing I love about HEART is the friendships I've made and the community involvement and empowerment HEART embodies! The Women's Koru Group is a safe space where women in the community meet every Friday for an hour. I will forever cherish the beautiful humans I've connected with and the relationships I've made through HEART and also through my involvement with Rākau Tautoko. I still remember my first Koru group I attended online. Living and practicing healthy relationships, shape our character and influence what we care about. Whether it’s our relationship with God, our family, or our fellow man, it’s through healthy relationships that we find meaning and purpose in life. As we serve and care for one another, our “hearts are knit together in unity and in love one towards another." Mosiah 18:21

A fun fact about me is that I absolutely love family history and I am currently studying online to become a FamilySearch Genealogist. I think of my ancestors often and the kind of ancestor I want to be for my future posterity. In my ward, I serve as a Family History Consultant, where I help people connect their families on their family tree.

Words of advice? "Life is a journey, with stumbling stones. Be Teachable. You are not always right!"