Our Fia Ola Mamas and Papas are the most FUN, warmhearted people we know. Every time we visit the Ōtara Sports Complex, we are ALWAYS welcomed with open arms, into a room full of smiles, laughter and the occasional teasing haha.
Moving from Alert Levels to the Traffic Light System (Covid-19 Protection Framework) has been quite a journey for us all. But, we’ve kept safe and gotten fully vaccinated which were the VITAL steps we needed to take to finally see our Fia Ola members again. And because of that, we reunited with them all this February! Although it was only for a couple of weeks before Omicron made its way into the community, we definitely know we will see them again soon.
Throughout the pandemic, our digital devices kept us connected with our friends and aiga overseas, in other cities, or even down the road from our ‘bubble’. Lessening that bit of stress or loneliness felt during this time.
Right now, our elderly are one of the most digitally disadvantaged in Aotearoa. Part of that comes from them growing up in an era where technology wasn’t needed to communicate with one another. YouTube, Facebook, Instagram…no need for any of that! So, many of our elderly haven’t learnt how to use technology.
To help with this, fellow Pasifika organisation, Le Va, worked with our Fia Ola Coordinators to support our elderly groups in accessing digital devices. They donated 30 tablets to our Samoan Fia Ola group to ease any difficulties that came from Covid-19. It helped them adapt to a new lifestyle with digital support.
From there, our elderly were taught how to use the tablets by our Quality & Data Manager, Seta Efaraimo and our Fia Ola Coordinators. Their families have also helped with using apps and websites. We’re very grateful to them.
Throughout this time, they used the tablets to listen to the Samoan news, music and contact friends and aiga. Although it has been a challenge to understand new technologies and keep up with changes, our Fia Ola Mamas and Papa’s are EXPERTS at using their digital devices now!
They have upskilled so much that they confidently navigate through apps to engage in Church Services, Bible studies and online exercises over Zoom and YouTube. Our team will definitely need a couple of tech lessons from them now.
It has been a rewarding project to keep our elderly happy and well. We look forward to future training to improve their knowledge of using the devices.
We thank Le Va for their support in supplying tablets that work to entertain, educate, and brighten the lives of our elderly.
