Apia, SAMOA— With the total population of Samoa at 187,820, a total of 89% of the men hold chiefly titles, this is according to Ministry of Women, Community and Social Developments official Mema Motusaga during her presentation before the media during a weeklong training hosted by Samoa Alliance of Media Practitioners for Development (SAMPOD).
 
According to Motusaga, traditionally women are important in Samoa as a covenant (feagaiga tausi o aiga) and that mentality has to change, pointing also to the strong evidence of gender inequality in Samoa —noting low representation of women in leadership and decision making roles in government, villages and in homes — and the increasing statistics on violence against women.
 
Regarding women in leadership, Motusaga pointed to only 37% as Chief Executive Officers for all of the State Owned Enterprises (SOE); 41% of women in leadership of government ministries; while 59% are Assistant to Chief Executive Officers and hold senior positions in education and administration. She further noted that within the Ministry of Finance, 18% are board members of SOE however there is a significant low number of men compared to the number of women who are excelling in other areas of decision making spheres within SOE.
 
According to Motusaga, in the field of education, at the primary level statistics from Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture indicates there is an increase of male enrollment compared to girls at the primary level; however with the secondary level, females dominate the enrollment. She said there is a significant number of males who drop out of in secondary level, likewise for tertiary level, and women dominate enrollment in all fields.
 
“Further there is an increase in the numbers of scholarship awarded to females over the past four years compared to the males and 59% of science awards are female recipients,” she said.
 
Motusaga also said there is a significant increase of women and girls taking non traditional sporting fields like archery, weightlifting, rugby and boxing etc.
 
She said that Samoa’s demographic survey in 2014 shows that 19% of women between 15-49 are currently employed; and, “a total of 32% of women are mainly employed in sales and as professionals, technical or managerial personnel; while 16% of women are employed or previously employed in clerical positions and a small amount of 3% that work in agriculture.”
 
According to Motusaga, women are most vulnerable on Non Communicable Disease, cancer (cervical/breast); also a very high number of young women are affected by STI’s chlamydia and teenage pregnancy. She said that there is a limited access for family planning for women in rural areas.
 
“Over the years the government of Samoa has been at its best in ensuring, policies, legislations and mechanisms and initiatives implemented to try and fully address the needs for equality before the law for women,” she said, adding that despite all efforts, challenges continue to obstruct the full realization of these areas whether it be through service accessibility or delivery.
 
“The main challenge is the attitudes, beliefs and behaviors,” Motusaga said, not only from men, but women too.
 
She gave an example that when some women file complaints with the police, they are told by women police officers to rethink and reconsider before filing a complaint as there are consequences. “This is the type of attitude that women face when they are abused and it’s sad that sometimes it’s the women that are the ones who are discouraging the abused women. We need to change the attitude towards issues pertaining to women, especially women who are physically abused.”

For the 7th Bilateral Health Summit to be successful, Lt. Gov. Lemanu Peleti Mauga has called for merging, among other things, of health and legislation along with “a lot of awareness and exercise programs,” while Health Director Motusa Tuileama Nua sought collaborative efforts from all sectors of the two Samoas in order to address health care issues for both American Samoa and Samoa.
 
Both Lemanu and Motusa delivered their respective remarks at yesterday’s opening of the three-day summit at the Gov. H. Rex Lee Auditorium, and attended by a delegation of about 30 people from Samoa, as well as representatives from the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the Pacific Health Officers Association (in which American Samoa is a member) and the World Health Organization.
 
Motusa, who was the first one to deliver remarks, said the three-day summit “is for us to network.”
 
Regarding health care in the two Samoas, he said “I look at it in a triangular vision” with one point of that triangle being health care, the other point is “our system and our policies that hold the health care together” and the third point is “our community.”
 
“And inside that triangle are resources and the time — how efficient we manage those resources and how much time we have to get to the community and take care of our patients — to bring value and to raise the level of health care system we deliver,” he said.
 
“We experienced in the last four years that there are a lot of gaps in between and in order for us to recognize and identify those gaps, we have to be working in a collaborative effort, in a team work and making sure we share information and data not only to LBJ but public health, but all our partners that are dealing with the health care of our community to include our partners from Samoa and working with our federal agencies,” he said.
 
Motusa said this “is not going to be an overnight fix” as “Rome was not build in one day” and for American Samoa, it takes a lot to move something forward, as there is the federal government that the territory must also deal with, unlike Samoa — an independent state.  Despite this, he said, the two Samoas can still achieve what’s set up to do in addressing health care services for their people. ‘
 
This year’s theme is, “Saving Money, Saving Time, and Saving Life”. In a message to participants in the summit program agenda, Motu said the theme “demonstrates the essential components that impact not just our Samoan people, but also our global partners.”
 
“We have come together because we believe in sustaining our countries through sharing best practices and culturally appropriate interventions that aim to improve the quality of life for our island nations,” he said and urged summit participants to “engage with one another, contribute to the dialogues, and examine your role in improving the health of our people.”
 
In his remarks, Lemanu said the summit is now in it’s 7th year and called on participants not to “underestimate the seriousness” of this year as well as previous year summits. He called on those who have participated in previous summits to share their knowledge with others. Additionally, the summit has provided ways for American Samoa and Samoa to improve health care for their people.
 
To address the challenges of today’s health care, Lemanu called on the audience to look at past behavior patterns to get answers needed. He noted the two Samoas’ “remoteness from the rest of the world and our living history of healthy people... navigators of the Pacific, survivors of the islands, the pride of the Pacific.”
 
“And within the history of Samoa, our local food and just the way we do chores — day-by-day activities — tend to be the exercise of the day. I strongly think that we have the advantage over the world for we have the chance to manage our lives and how we live,” he said. “And that’s how important this summit is to... American Samoa and Samoa.”
 
“Because of the spectrum of your effort in this summit, the successfulness depends largely in merging health, legislative and a lot of awareness and exercise programs,” he said.
 
The summit’s keynote presenter is Bob Grunewald, an economist for the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, who spoke on “Return on Investments” covering several areas in his presentation including a project called “healthy communities.”
 
Grunewald points out that “those who are making more money, have jobs and working, tends to have more resources and to be also healthier.” So “what we recognize at the Federal Reserve, we have a role in community development to bring together partners from different sectors to strategize in making a healthier population.”
 
One of the projects he cited is called “healthy communities” where “we bring together” public health and officials those who are working in public health with those who typically work in community development.
 
“Let’s say they work in projects to increase the number of affordable homes in the community or are looking at issues around development such as parks, infrastructure and transportation development,” he said. “And we bring together both public health and community development in order to strategize a cross sector, to understand, perhaps community development can be investing in public health projects.”
 
“So we have been able to foster collaboration around health care access, while housing development is been planned to think about the accessibility of that housing development to medical health centers and also child care,” Grunewald said.
 
He said the goal is that after the summit for participants to think about who they would go back to in their community, which organizations and institutions, “you might want to reach out to partner with.”
 
In American Samoa, he said he “recognized churches are a very strong part of this culture and society and can be a very strong leverage point to improve health” in the territory, Grunewald said.
 
The summit continues today and its open to the public.

This Samoa News photo of an old picture shows the Hospital of American Samoa in Utulei, where currently, The AP Executive Office Building is located and the photo was part of a slide show by Health Department’s Dr. Peni Biukoto at yesterday’s day-two of the 7th Bilateral Health Summit at the Gov. H. Rex Lee Auditorium.
 
Buikoto shared with summit participants a brief history of health services in the territory, along with a slide show of photos.
 
He explained that the former health services in the territory started when Dr. Blackwell established a temporary dispensary after Flag Day in 1900 at Fagatogo, and the first permanent dispensary built by funds from the federal government in Fagatogo was opened in 1906.
 
The Hospital of American Samoa was opened in 1912 and the territory’s Public Health Department in 1914, he said adding that based on information in the library, the first community dispensary opened in Leone village and Ta’u island in 1920; followed in 1921 with community dispensaries in Amouli village and Ofu island.
 
In World War II, there was a mobile hospital in Mapusaga and then the Hospital of American Samoa was shifted from Fagatogo to Utulei in 1946, which is the same year that a 14-bed hospital was opened in Ta’u. And according to information the Ta’u hospital was able to perform cesarean section operations.
 
Then in 1968 the Hospital of American Samoa was moved to Fagaalu, where it is now known as the LBJ Medical Center - which was a newly built hospital at the time.
 
Among the pictures in the slide show was the Fagatogo dispensary, with a section for Samoan patients, who preferred a Samoan fale, and one also of the 14-bed hospital in Ta’u island.
 
Biukoto said that the two-story hospital that was in Utulei “was the first hospital in the Pacific that had an elevator.”

The Village Walks program in American Samoa was an intervention activity that promoted healthy living set up by the Children’s Healthy Living Fund (CHL), an extension program of the University of Hawaiʻ at Mānoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. The three walks included the communities of Aua, Fagaitua and Masefau as part of the CHL Reducing Childhood Obesity in American Samoa program.

“The local team in American Samoa identified that community walking, led by local leaders, was a good strategy for decreasing sedentary behavior and increasing physical activity for children in the Samoan culture and community,” said Interim Dean Rachel Novotny, director of CHL.

Village walks brought together entire communities, and the participants walked for approximately one mile before engaging in about 20 minutes of aerobic activities. During the walk they had the opportunity to sample local produce and engage in nutritional demonstrations and activities, such as the Sugar Shocker display to educate the participants about how much sugar is contained in common foods and drinks.

The communities also received posters highlighting six ways to combat childhood obesity: being more active, drinking more water, eating more fruits and vegetables, limiting sugar sweetened drinks, limiting screen time and sleeping more.

This video was produced by the American Samoa Community College.

YouTube 

Apia, SAMOA— Samoa’s Ombudsman Maiava Iulai Toma has made it clear that the “Fa’asamoa does not permit husbands to beat their wives.”  He made these comments during his presentation before the media on human rights.
 
Maiava heads the Office of the Ombudsman that was created in 1988 and in 2013 and mandated to be Samoa’s National Human Rights Institution which is to protect and promote human rights in Samoa.
 
During his presentation, Maiava posed the question, “How are the rights of women protected at the international level?” He said human rights define the value and worth of each person and their relationship to society. They identify standards regarding the quality of life that each of us can expect to enjoy.
 
According to Maiava, Human rights are inherent; Human rights do not have to be given to us by a government to exist. They are our birthright and belong to us simply because we exist as human beings; Human rights are inalienable; Human rights cannot be given away or taken away, they stay with us for as long as we live; Human rights are universal and lastly Human rights belong to everyone, irrespective of their sex, race, color, religion, national or social origin or other status.
 
He said that equality of rights for women is a basic principle of the United Nations.
 
“The Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations sets as one of the Organization's central goals the reaffirmation of ‘faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women’.”
 
He went on to outline the UN charter and its international mandate to strive towards the full realization of all human rights and fundamental freedoms to all people regardless of gender. Maiava said the status of human rights, including the goal of equality between women and men, is elevated, and, the protection and the promotion of Human rights become a contractual obligation of all Governments and of the UN.
 
Many human rights have been recorded internationally in human rights documents by the United Nations. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in 1948, forms the basis of these documents.
 
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaims the entitlement of everyone to equality before the law and to the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms without distinction of any kind and includes ‘sex’ as a ground in which human being are not to be discriminated against.”
 
He further pointed out that the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both adopted by the UN in 1966, translates the principles of the Declaration into legally binding form and clearly states that the rights contained in each convention apply to all persons without distinction of any kind, including a person’s sex or gender.
 
“However, they do not create specific rights for women's lives. Instead, they offer women the opportunity to exercise, on the same basis as men, universally recognized human rights,” Maiava said.
 
He said that due to some social structures, traditions, stereotypical assumptions and attitudes about women and their role in society, women do not always have the same opportunity and ability to access and enforce their rights, on the same basis as men.
 
FA’ASAMOA AND HUMAN RIGHTS
 
Some Samoans view human rights as a foreign concept that has no place in Samoan society.
 
“There is a misconception that the principle within human rights and fa’a Samoa conflict rather than mutually reinforce each other. The reason for this seems to stem from the Samoan translation of ‘human rights’.
 
“Some Samoans imply from the Samoan translation that ‘human rights’ means that individuals have the freedom to do anything they want without any limitations. This is simply not true. As the Ombudsman I have always been eager to highlight how international human rights and fa’a Samoa work together in protecting and promoting human rights in Samoa,” Maiava said.
 
He pointed out that gender-based violence as an example. “The Samoa Family Health and Safety Study found that 46.4% of women surveyed aged 15 to 49 reported experiencing physical and/ or emotional and/ or sexual violence by an intimate partner.
 
Yet, a survey conducted as part of the NHRI’s SHRR found that many participants felt that Fa’a Samoa and human rights conflicted in this area, with many citing that the Fa’a Samoa permits husbands to beat their wives.
 
“In its first human rights report which was submitted to the Parliament in 2015, the NHRI used the interweaving of fa’a Samoa and international human rights law to dispel this misconception and highlight the need to reverse the trend of high rates of gender-based violence within Samoan society.
 
“The NHRI highlighted a central principle of fa’a Samoa — Ole tuafafine ole ‘i’oimata o lona tuagane’ to show that fa’asamoa protects Samoan women from physical, emotional or sexual violence,” Maiava pointed out.
 
He said this relationship also extends to unrelated males and females.
 
“Similarly, gender-based violence, which impairs or nullifies the enjoyment by women of human rights and fundamental freedoms, is protected under general international law as well as various human rights conventions.”
 
Considering that Samoan women are protected by principles and obligations under both international human rights law and the fa’asamoa, the high prevalence of violence against women in Samoa is intolerable from both a cultural standpoint as well as from a human rights perspective, he summarized.
 
Maiava concluded that it’s important to remember that while human rights are relatively new concept at the international level, the protection for women in Samoa has always existed within fa’asamoa.
 
“Fa’samoa principles and human rights therefore work together in protecting human rights for all Samoans, including Samoan women,” said Maiava.

“I am 25 years old since March 2016. There are those who are saying that I might be the youngest representative in Fono history, and I can understand that this is a big deal for most. But I have to say that I didn't run to break any records, but to help break down barriers for Tualauta district, our youth, and for American Samoa,” says Samuel (Sam) Ioka Ale Meleisea.
 
He won the Tualauta county with 978 votes, while incumbent Vui Florence Saulo’s came in second with 760 votes. Sam is a Terrestrial Biological Science Technician with the National Park of American Samoa.
 
Responding to Samoa News queries, Meleise said that he had the full support of his family and church. “Honestly, my family and church held high hopes that I would do well in the election. However, I considered the fact that I was a newcomer running against more affluent and influential veteran politicians.
 
“But I promised myself I was going to try regardless of the circumstances, which were daunting,” he said.
 
Meleisea said that he’s had a hard time believing that he’s been elected to the House of Representatives. “When the results were revealed, I had a hard time believing. It wasn't until KVZK-TV broadcast the results on election night and Samoa News published an article the very next morning that the idea of victory began to settle in. And now that the results are officially final after no challenges, I am very honored and humbled by Tualauta district's vote of confidence.”
 
The Tualauta Representative-elect said he’s been campaigning hard on employment, immigration, education, infrastructure, as well as on youth and veteran issues.
 
“But after walking the Tualauta district, most, if not all our constituents seem to agree that the priority is infrastructure, specifically roads and drainage.
 
This has been a recurring issue for Tualauta district, and we’ve made some progress thanks to the efforts of past and present Tualauta representatives. I realize that such a huge undertaking isn't going to happen all at once during my two-year term,” he said.
 
According to Meleisea, he’s looking forward to working with incumbent Vui Florence Saulo “to look at ways to attract funding opportunities to help alleviate the district's priority to fix our roads and drainage issues.”
 
He said that each village has shared with him their concerns, whether it’s sidewalks for Mapusaga Fou, lights for certain roads in Ottoville, paved road for the Turtle and Shark (Vaitogi) road, drainage in Fagaima and Pavaiai, or a mini-gym for Lupelele Elementary School (Ili'ili).
 
“Our district has lots of needs and challenges, and it is my hope that we can work together to make progress on these and many more issues. It won't be easy, but it is not impossible!” Meleisea said.
 
He also acknowledged the youth of Tualauta district for turning out to vote in this year's election. “The youth are disenfranchised or disconnected with the political process because they don't see any benefit for them. I hope to be their representative for Tualauta district and across American Samoa.
 
I also want to thank the mothers and fathers who believed in me even though they were dubious of my chances from the very beginning.” He said that this was a long shot attempt, but he’s thankful for his constituents for standing with him on election day.
 
“I have so much love for our culture and traditions, but at the same time I realize that we must also adapt to the changing world around us. You have spoken and I am ready to share our new Vision in the local Legislature. Thank you for your prayers and support. This is a collective victory for Tualauta district!”
 
He also pointed out that the youth are ready and willing to serve. “I know that there are those who say that I am too young or that our youthful vigor/ energy will not blend well with the more traditional sense of the Fono. I am filled with respect and pride for our traditions, and I am not going to the Fono to challenge our traditions.
 
“However, I have been elected to provide a fresh perspective and voice in the Fono. Young individuals have served in the House of Representatives before such as Senator Tuaolo Manaia Fruean, Governor Lolo Matalasi Moliga, Gary Sword, Roy Hall, Archie Taotasi Soliai, Speaker Savali Talavou Ale, and many others. These individuals are living proof that it has been done before. Our youth are capable of great things and this is only the beginning.”
 
Meleisea says he grew up watching and observing his grandparents (Ia Masalosalo Ale and Leilua Ia) at family faalavelaves and church events. “They are staunch traditionalists and conservatives who taught me respect from an early age. They taught me how to speak, eat, walk, sit properly.
 
“My parents Peniamina and Faauliuli Julie Meleisea taught us ‘tough love’ and were quite the disciplinarians. Those lessons made me who I am today,” he said.
 
“My family and I didn't have much when I was growing up, which is why I understand the challenges of so many of our Tualauta constituents. I have experienced first-hand the challenges that our constituents face on a daily basis on issues of infrastructure, employment, immigration, education, crime, and so much more.
 
Meleisea also thanked his families who helped post his campaign signs on their properties throughout Tualauta district.
 
“Thank you to all the families, friends, supporters and Tualauta constituents who helped spread the word of my candidacy for Tualauta representative. Together WE truly made a difference. Thank you all and God bless. Through much prayer and fasting, God revealed His will for me. I thank God for making this possible because this victory wasn't suppose to be humanly possible.”

Samoan cultural practices causing mental health issues and “maternal depression” for Samoan mothers were among questions raised by participants of the 7th Bilateral Health Summit following presentations by physicians from Samoa and American Samoa on mental illness in the two Samoas.
 
The presentations on behavior health service was made by Leituala Dr. Ben Matalave’a, the manager of clinical services at Samoa’s Tapua Tamasese Meaole National Hospital while American Samoa was represented by Health Department’s Dr. Peni Biukoto, a psychiatrist at the Tafuna Community Health Center.
 
Several questions were raised by participants during panel discussions on mental illness and one of them: “Isn’t it, some of the Samoan culture practices that are causing mental health issues?” There was a bit of giggling from the audience when the moderator announced this question.
 
In his response, Leituala first reminded participants “We all know how important this is for any Samoan.” He said, “Samoans in our culture care for the individual, but we don’t think as the individual. We think of “us” as an extension of our family, where we come from in the village, that’s where the strength is. So if somebody is ill, or mentally ill, it becomes a problem of the community, not the individual that suffers.
 
“So the strength of our culture is to look after the individual and our aiga, that’s where we must strengthen that,” he said. “But as time moves on with modernization, we kind of worry that, that breaks down. And I think we should remind ourselves of the strength that we have in our communities as a culture and pull on that strength because that’s where the answers are, our striving for better health is within us.”
 
Biukoto, who is from Fiji, contributed as a non-Samoan, and first recalled a presentation on Wednesday that pointed out that “most persons who suffer from severe mental disorder in adulthood, have a childhood history of abuse — severe abuse and severe neglect.”
 
“So when we want to assess our culture in terms of its contribution to mental disorders, in adulthood, we [first] see if our culture protects our children and whether our culture is very much against child abuse and child neglect,” he said. “I think those are the things we need to do if we want to ask the question — is our culture a protective factor...”
 
Another question asked, “Are you seeing any cases of maternal depression in either American Samoa or Samoa?”
 
Leituala responded that a mother doesn’t go to see a physician or professional health care provider, because the person has a mental problem. He told participants, “They come [to] see you [because] the child has a running nose, or has a cough.”
 
“So the woman will bring the child in and it’s always the child. But we as a caregiver, a physician, we must think that if the woman comes today, tomorrow and the third day, it’s not the child, there’s something here, that we must explore,” he said.
 
“So that’s why we have to ask the right question so that the woman can say ‘oh yes doctor, my husband is drinking too much, I get beaten a lot’,” he said. “We’ve got to be careful how we word the questions.”
 
“There is depression in our mothers,” he said adding that “post natal depression is a phenomena and we’re not immune to it. It’s just not asking the right question, and recognizing and admitting that we do have a problem.”
 
Buikoto said DoH community health centers have started conducting depression screening, which is part of the screening measures done for all patients to the DoH Primary Care Clinic. He says DoH is in the early process of screening, and with plans that by this time next year, “we have in place trained nurses assistants” to carry out “screening for depression among pre natal mothers.”
 
“Reality, that is most cases, we focus on physical condition,” he said. “So we plan to introduce depression screening in pre natal clinics and hopefully pick up mothers who are experiencing the symptoms before they need other high level care.”
 
BACKGROUND
 
According to the Mental Health America net, which partners with federal agencies, “Maternal depression is a widespread public health issue that takes a toll on the well-being and livelihood of mothers and their families.”
 
“It demands a strong community response involving people who share a common vision to strengthen the health and resilience of all mothers and families in need of help and support,” it says (www.mentalhealthamerica.net).
 
The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that as many as 1 in 9 women experience depression before, during, or after pregnancy. The federal agency says depression is common and treatable.”
 
“If you think you have depression, seek treatment from your health care provider as soon as possible,” CDC recommends and said, “Moms and moms-to-be deserve the best— including the very best mental health.”
 
CDC website (www.cdc.gov) on this issue provides specific details and other important information.

SolarCity, the company Tesla officially acquired on Monday, is powering nearly the entire island of Ta’u in American Samoa with solar power.

SolarCity developed a microgrid with 1.4 megawatts of solar generation capacity — enough to power nearly 100% of the island, according to a SolarCity blog posted on Tuesday. The microgrid is enabled by 60 Tesla Powerpacks, the company's large commercial battery, which can store solar energy at night.

The solar array is composed of 5,328 solar panels that can run the entire island on solar energy for three days. The system can fully recharge with just 7 hours of daylight.

The project — which was funded by the American Samoa Economic Development Authority, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Interior — was implemented within one year and commenced operations this week.

The island of Ta’u is composed of roughly 600 residents and is located about 4,000 miles from the West Coast of the United States. The island previously relied entirely on diesel generators to power the island.

“I recall a time they weren’t able to get the boat out here for two months,” Keith Ahsoon, a Ta'u resident whose family owns one of the food stores on the island, wrote in the SolarCity blog post. “We rely on that boat for everything, including importing diesel for the generators for all of our electricity. Once diesel gets low, we try to save it by using it only for mornings and afternoons.

Tesla is using its Powerpack for other solar projects. Before Tesla acquired SolarCity, the two companies agreed in February to use Tesla's 52 MWh Powerpack to bring 20 years of power to the Hawaiian island Kaua’i. SolarCity built a 12 MW solar farm to help supply the power.

North Park University- Chicago Polynesian students held a Polynesian night — Taste of the Pacific — last week Friday night. Center standing, is the head coach of the school’s football team, Mike Conway and his wife Beth, who the students would like to recognize as their ‘home away from home’ couple.
 
Conway has led a delegation of recruiters from North Park University to American Samoa to visit all local high schools — public and private — and told Samoa News at the time that the importance of family here in the territory and the way local parents raise their children is great, and this is evident through the performance of the Samoan students at North Park.
 
“We are here to brag about our Samoan students,” he said. “Most colleges just recruit kids and bring them on campus, and then leave them. With us, once the kids arrive on campus, we start rolling up our sleeves and do what we can to help them succeed. These kids’ families are trusting us and we take that as a tremendous responsibility not only to those families but to the island as a whole, to ensure that the students succeed.”
 
North Park University was founded in 1891 by the Evangelical Covenant Church and is located on Chicago's north side, with an enrollment of 3,200 students from around the country and the world. It is a Division III school and ranked in the Top 50 schools in their region.

Rep. Faimealelei Anthony Allen, speaking at the 26th Pacific Parliamentary Forum in New Zealand, which was held from Nov. 14-18. Some 50 lawmakers from the Pacific region attended the forum. Faimealelei was selected by House Speaker Savali Talavou Ale to represent American Samoa at the annual forum which aims to build shared understanding of the various concepts of Parliamentary representation that exist through the region and joint approaches being taken to the Pacific’s major challenges and opportunities.
 
According to information sheet distributed by organizers, the forum, hosted by the New Zealand Parliament, also gave Pacific lawmakers a chance to visit community organizations and Pacific businesses in Auckland.  And in Wellington, participants took part in four special debates on certain issues including climate change. They also had a chance to see the New Zealand Parliament debate a motion on Pacific issues.
 
Faimealelei told Radio New Zealand International after the forum he was surprised to learn how much trade Pacific countries seemed to be involved in.
 
"You know it is just as interesting because every country wanted to trade something to another country. We don't have a lot in American Samoa to trade to other countries but we import a lot,” he said. “So that is something I need to look at and share with my colleagues back home."
 
Faimealelei said he also observed at the forum that while American Samoa's political systems and structures were completely different from most Pacific countries, he still saw similarities around governance and the shared challenges such as climate change.

The Miss Pacific Islands Pageant 2015-2016, Abigail Havora and the lovely eight contestants for the Miss Pacific Islands Pageant this year, are now ready for a week of activities leading up to the finale on Friday.
 
Fittingly, their week began yesterday when they attended a church service which was held at the Catholic Church at Leauva’a.
 
And today, the reigning Miss Pacific Islands and the eight beauties from around the Pacific are making their way to the big island of Savaii.
 
This year’s pageant is guided by the theme; ‘Celebrating our History and Embracing our Future’ and the finale will be held in the evening on the 2nd of December at Gym 1, Tuana’imato.
 
Miss Pacific Island Pageant 2015-16 said they are ready to get the show started.
 
“I am really happy to be back in Samoa, this time for the pageant and to pass on the crown to the next winner,” she told the Samoa Observer yesterday after the service.
 
“I’ve met all the girls and they are all wonderful young ladies.
 
I have to say that it is always nice seeing our young girls standing up for a cause greater than themselves and to see girls who are passionate about representing their culture and families.
 
“I can see that they are all excited to be here and I am looking forward to getting to know them more. “For me personally, it’s such a blessing to see all young girls putting their hands up to proudly represent their culture and country. I am looking forward to doing everything with the girls. Like I said, I am more than happy to be here.
 
“And I am sure the girls are all excited to be in this beautiful country and are all looking forward to our adventures.”
 
As the reigning Miss Pacific Islands, Abigail’s message to the girls throughout this week is very simple.
 
“My message has always been about purpose,” said Abigail.
 
“I mean I will just encourage and remind them that they are here for a reason and they are here on behalf of their people and culture and you know there is reason why God placed them here.
 
“So I would also encourage them to tune into God, tune into their talents, and their inner beauty and everything will unfold. There is nothing more I can really say because everyone carries something special and I know that they’re all here to showcase that and I can’t wait to see the great talents and potential in these young girls.”
 
Finally, Abigail had nothing but positive things to say about welcoming them in Samoa and she also commented on the beautiful and inspirational service yesterday.
 
“I am loving it, and I loved the service so much.
 
Read more at Samoa Observer

Samoa’s hidden treasure, the big island of Savai’, took a turn yesterday to welcome the contestants of 2016 Miss Pacific Islands to its shores.

Savai’i rolled out the red carpet giving the contestants a rapturous reception as the ladies enjoyed the tranquility of the Savaii ahead of their big day on Friday.

The contestants, their entourages and pageant officials boarded the Lady Naomi for an experience of Samoa Shipping Corporation hospitality.

Once they were in Savai’i, they headed straight to Don Bosco Technical Training Centre where Father Mosese and his students welcomed them in traditional style. Each contestant was escorted to loud applause beginning a memorable day.

The next stop was the beautiful Amoa Resort where they took a little breather before heading to Safune where the Savai’i Samoa Tourism Association put on an ava ceremony.

Apia, SAMOA— Miss American Samoa Antonina Lilomaiava is putting everything into her preparations for the Miss Pacific Islands pageant with the main goal of bringing the title home to American Samoa.  
 
Samoa News coverage of the Miss Pacific Islands pageant is brought to you by the Sheraton Hotels & Bungalows in Apia and Polynesian Airlines.
 
“The last time American Samoa won the title was back in 2002 during Lupe Aumavae’s time and that was 12 years ago... it’s about time we get that title back,” said Antonina. Responding to Samoa News question over the weekend, Antonina said she along with her strong support team are ready to take on the pageant this Friday (Samoa time). 
 
“We’re ready for the Miss Pacific Islands pageant. I have a strong support system and that is why I am very confident in all of my preparations.” She said that there is only one goal she and her team are after and that is winning the Miss Pacific Islands title. “We came here for one reason only, this is it. As soon as I was crowned Miss American Samoa, this was my next mission, the Miss Pacific Islands title and I am ready to take up this challenge.
 
Regarding her preparations, Antonina said her talent would focus around the similarities and the differences between American Samoa and Samoa. “It’s one of the most common questions asked by outsiders, what is the difference between the two Samoas. Being a Pacific islander let alone a Samoan, is something to be proud of, because in all of the Pacific, we Samoans are unique in our very own ways.” Antonina told Samoa News that at the end of the day “we are Samoans, whether we are from American Samoa or Samoa, we are one and we come from the same roots.
 
 
 
The daughter of Talitiga and Koreta Vito Lilomaiava, Antonina was a student at the American Samoa Community College majoring in business prior to being crowned Miss American Samoa and is currently employed by the Samoa’s Visitor’s Bureau. A devoted member of the Catholic Parish in Aua, Antonina said she’s overwhelmed with the support of her family, village and church as she prepares for the Miss Pacific Islands pageant.
 
Antonina told Samoa News that she’s fortunate to have met her sister contestants and while it’s a competition between the islands, it’s not really a competition for us when we get together. In conclusion, Antonina said she’s humbled by the support of everyone back home (American Samoa) and she hopes to gain more experience and take it back home and share this empowerment with the young women in American Samoa.
 
“It’s not all about beauty, heels and the glittery stuff, it’s so much more than that and I am fortunate to have had this opportunity to be a part of this, especially since it’s the 30the year for the pageant. Ten years from now I can look back and say that I was part of that... this and we made history being participants.”
 
She extended her heartfelt thanks to the Miss American Samoa Inc., President Meafou Imo for being by her side throughout the preparation stage of the pageant. Antonina also thanked Governor Lolo Moliga and Lt Governor Lemnanu Peleti Mauga who attended the church service to launch the Miss Pacific Islands pageant last Sunday.

“Know your purpose in life,” was the message from Miss Pacific Islands, Abigail Havora to the eight contestants at the 30th Miss Pacific Islands Pageant. From Gabagaba, Papua New Guinea Abigail won the first Miss Pacific Island’s title after the name of the pageant was changed last year.
 
Samoa News coverage of the Miss Pacific Islands pageant is brought to you by the Sheraton Hotels & Bungalows in Apia and Polynesian Airlines.
 
Responding to Samoa News questions as to her journey, Abigail said it’s been fulfilling. “I’ve been afforded opportunities like never before since I was crowned and I served most of my term in my PNG, and I’ve been given a lot of opportunities to speak to various audiences, from children to government leaders.”
 
She was thankful for the support afforded to her during her reign. “I've been fortunate to have our PM (Prime Minister’s) wife as our local patron for the local pageant committee so she’s taken me to a lot of her events. It’s given me that exposure to meet not just my peers, but also meet with delegates of the highest level.  I've had opportunities to meet with government leaders and also to see how matters are dealt with at the highest level regarding a country’s governance.”
 
As an ambassador, Abigail said she visited Fiji, Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga for their local pageants and “I was able to witness their local pageants and how it’s done and in the process I've learned a lot of their culture because after all, I am a cultural Ambassador, I've learned culture and taken what I learned back home and the values I've learned and I have applied it in my life so that even though I am PNG I am Miss Pacific islands. The way I carry myself and the values that I hold dear (are those I remember when) I represent the region.”
 
Abigail said from her experience and her journey she has learned that beauty pageants are about representing your people, your country and your culture and while there are a lot of expectations and a lot of challenges, if you have what it takes to stand and represent your country nothing should stand in your way.
 
Miss Pacific Islands was asked what her message would be for the eight contestants and she said, “Know your purpose in life. My message for all the contestants to always stay true to purpose because purpose comes from God. If I gave you a spoon or a fork one hundred thousands years ago, would you know what it was for... obviously you wouldn't, you’d probably use it as a weapon, yet the original purpose is to eat with it... and it comes back to us, when we don't know our purpose we put ourselves to many things that were not supposed to be fulfilled, but if we know our purpose we will live meaningful lives, we impact others, that is my message — find your purpose, know why you were put on earth, because just by living out our purpose you impact other people’s lives and you’ll be the change that you wish to see in others and that’s how I live my life.”

Apia, SAMOA— It was a well-deserve win was the comment by many at the 30th Miss Pacific Islands Pageant and on social media when Miss Fiji, Anne Dunn won the title. She was crowned by the outgoing Miss Pacific Islands, Abigail Havora, at Tuana’imato gymnasium Friday evening (Samoa Time).
 
Samoa News coverage of the 30th Miss Pacific Islands Pageant is brought to you by Sheraton Samoa Aggie Grey’s Hotels & Bungalows , Sheraton Samoa Aggie Grey’s Resorts and Polynesian Airlines.
 
Daughter of Filimaina Kunaika and Charlie Dunn, the new Miss Pacific Islands while born in Fiji was raised in the United States. According to the booklet from the pageant, Anne’s adolescent life were in American and then after graduating high school she moved back to Fiji in 2011 where she attended University of South Pacific and studied law. She graduated earlier this year with her BA in law and is currently waiting to further her studies in order to practice law next year.
 
The new Miss Pacific islands is an avid reader and she’s also into movies and dancing. Her short-term goal is to become a prosecutor in Fiji but long term she wants to be a human rights lawyer for the South Pacific region.
 
Dunn won the best Traditional Wear and she also received the best interview award. Miss American Samoa, Antonina Lilomaiava, was first runner up and she won best sarong and also won the National Tourism Award.
 
Miss Solomon Islands, Camilla Grossmith was second runner up and she also won the Talent category. Third runner up was Miss Samoa, Priscilla Olano who won the Miss Personality award. Fourth runner up was Miss Cook Islands.
 
Other special prizes, such as the Miss Internet was won by Miss Nauru, Lucina Detsiog and Miss Tonga Leila Melaia Rene Lauti was Miss Photogenic.
 
The next Miss Pacific Islands will be held in Nandi Fiji next year. More in our Monday print edition.

A beloved Auckland-based minister has lost his battle to remain in New Zealand, despite the Samoan church claiming he's the only man fit for his job.

Iosia Pati, 59, and his wife Ruta, 57, have run a Samoan methodist church in south Auckland since 2011; their lawyer said that without them, the church would be "completely destabilized".

Minister Pati's visa ran out in in 2014 and Immigration New Zealand had declined his bids to stay in the country under religious worker or essential skills categories.

The head of the Pati's church in Samoa had supported the minister's pleas to remain, claiming there was no one else in New Zealand qualified to take his place at the the 70-family parish.

"If [the Patis] are unable to remain in New Zealand, the parish will therefore not have a church minister and this will have a devastating and destabilising effect on a significant number of the parish", court notes reported the church having said.

However, the church failed to provide Immigration New Zealand with evidence of the dearth of ordained ministers

Pati's final bid to stay argued that the damage his congregation would face without him and his wife amounted to "exceptional humanitarian circumstances".

Nevertheless the Immigration and Protection Tribunal, in charge of the family's fate, ruled that the Patis would be deported.

Its ruling acknowledged "there was no doubt from the many letters written by members of the congregation" that the couple had earned "respect and affection" within their community.

Educators, administrators, family members and others gathered last Friday evening to celebrate and honor the 2017 Territorial Teacher of the Year (TTOY), Dana Love-Ili, who says that teaching was always in her heart, although at the outset others influenced her to look at other professions, because teachers are not appreciated — and are underpaid.

Some 100 people attended the celebratory event at the Tradewinds Hotel Pavilion, where Love-Ili was described by ASDOE’s head of Teacher Quality Office, Diane Ameperosa as the “Ambassador for all teachers of American Samoa.” ASDOE acting director Philo Jennings, who offered welcoming remarks in Samoan, also cited a Samoan proverb, which he translated, “The sun has slowly settled, just how a pigeon would flutter to its nest.”

“The galaxies have flashed across the skies, the stars are shining brightly in the sky, and the evening stars are singing, rejoicing,” he said amid an early evening of clear skies as stars have started to appear. “Singing to this special occasion.”

Love-Ili is a Special Education teacher at Nu’uuli Vocational Technical High School (NVTHS), whose principal, Tupa’i Rod Atafua told the gathering that “the best teacher... teaches from the heart, not from the book.”

“The impact of such act by such teacher embodies, and amplifies their work,” he said as part of her introduction of Love-Ili, who is the second teacher from NVTHS to be the winner of TTOY and is the daughter of Philip and Teuila Love. Additionally, Love-Ili is married and a mother of three and she is expecting twins next month, Tupa’i said to applause from the audience about the expected twins.

“She’s a true product of the education system in American Samoa,” he said, after pointing out that Love-Ili was educated in American Samoa from pre-school through the American Samoa Community College where she earned an Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Arts.

The TTOY 2017 holds a Bachelor degree in Education as well as a Special Education certification and a Master’s degree from Argosy University- American Samoa campus. She has been an ASDOE teacher for 10 years and 8 of those years she taught at NVTHS. “She’s committed to her work, she’s very passionate about her students,” Tupa’i told the audience which included Love-Ili’s family members.

In her speech, which started out with a Samoan salutation, Love-Ili said she is humbled and honored to be the TTOY 2017. “My journey to this day, was a long and strenuous one. For as long as I can remember, I knew in my heart that I wanted to be a teacher. I heard God whisper this calling of teacher to me, but I chose to ignore it,” she explained.

“I was influenced by comments from people — such as ‘teachers are underpaid’, ‘teachers are unappreciated for what they do’, [and] ‘there is no future in being a teacher’,” she said, adding that she then sought out other professions, in her mind, deemed successful — such as doctor, lawyer, and businesswoman.

After graduating from ASCC, she went on to the University of Hawai’i- Manoa in Honolulu. “While I was there, I changed my major every semester. I was lost, confused and met failure at every corner,” she said. “Like Jonah from the Bible, I denied my calling. But as we all know from that story, we can never run away from God’s call. So I was swallowed by a whale and spit back on the shores of American Samoa.”

Upon returning to the territory, she applied for Special Education and was hired immediately. “Talk about divine intervention. It was then for the first time in my life, I felt I was exactly where I was supposed to be. I was complete,” she said.

“When I reflect back on where I was and where I am today, I am in awe and wonder of God. I see that nothing in my life was by chance — people I had met, choices I had made, everything that had ever happened to me, even the hardships, were all part of a grand design that led me to becoming the teacher that I am today,” she said.

She expressed appreciation to many, including her family, who helped her through her journey as an educator. She also thanked all her fellow teachers and administrators, who “have influenced me in my teaching career. Without your friendship, collaboration and challenging me, I would not be the teacher I am today.”

2017 Territorial Teacher of the Year, Dana Love-Ili (2nd from left siting), with her colleagues and friends from Nu’uuli Vocational Technical High School, at last Friday evening’s TTOY celebration at the Tradewinds Hotel Pavilion.

[photo: FS]

She acknowledged the work of the TTOY selection team, saying that, “I know my competitor June Seiuli [the 1st runner up] is a very talented and committed teacher. And I’m sure deliberating between the two of us must not have been easy.”

Besides beeingTTOY 2017, Love-Ili is also the NVTHS teacher of the year, Special Education Division teacher of the year, and Secondary Education Division teacher of the year. She received numerous prizes including cash awards from the community, and from ASG — it included a monetary check, a plaque and kava bowl.

Also recognized and awarded many prizes as well as certificates, are Seiuli, Coleman Elementary School teacher of the year and the Elementary Division teacher of the year; Edney G. Apulu, Tafuna High School teacher of the year; and Aitulagi Tuiasosopo, Leone High School teacher of the year.

Other awardees are Maluelue Toli, Tafuna Elementary teacher of the year; Avau Mary Va’aali’i, Matafao Elementary teacher of the year; and Jay Maeva, Lupelele Elementary teacher of the year.

As part of the ceremony, 15 former teachers of the year, who are currently working at ASDOE, were recognized. The evening included Samoan siva for each division as well as the former TTOY, before dinner was served.

According to ASDOE, the five-member TTOY selection team included four members from various sectors of the local community, and they are: Rev. Iasepi Ulu of the Fagatogo CCCAS; Bluesky country manager Filifou Va’ai-Tinitali; ASPA staff engineer Edna Noga and NOAA education coordinator Isabel Gaoteote.

ASDOE official and TTOY coordinator, Evelyn Lili’o Satele — the 1986 TTOY — is the 5th member of the selection team.

One of the few moments in life when people can smile and cry at the same time is when a child reaches a milestone in his or her quest for success. Such was the scene at the Manumalo Academy chapel last Friday when the school inducted seventeen members — levels 7-12 — into its prestigious Honor Society clubs.
 
(National Junior Honor Society or NJHS for middle schoolers, and National Honor Society or NHS for the high school students).
 
Proud parents, family members, friends, and teachers gathered to witness the momentous occasion that included the traditional candle lighting ceremony.
 
Leading the program was NJHS advisor Puamemea Ifopo. 
 
One of the highlights for the evening was the special remarks offered by Tish Peau Folau of the American Samoa Historical Preservation Office, who is also a long time educator and member of the Manumalo school board.
 
Folau likened the four pillars of the honor society ideals to the ingredients necessary to produce the perfect cupcake.
 
She spoke of the need to incorporate all four criteria: scholarship, character, leadership, and service, into a recipe that can - and will - stand the test of time.
 
In other words, if one of the ingredients is flawed, insufficient, or even missing, the final product will not be complete. It will not be perfect.
 
She challenged the inductees to continue on with the good work and strive to be the best they can be.
 
Friday's ceremony was the first time that students have been inducted into the NHS since Manumalo reopened the doors of its high school two years ago, although the NJHS has been in full force, challenging the 7th and 8th graders to put their best foot forward in preparation for high school. 
 
The inductees were accepted by Li'omatua Hailey Ripley, chairman of the Manumalo school board.
 
The evening ended with remarks by school director Papalii Laulii Alofa who quoted the Bible verse: "a wise son brings joy to his father". He thanked all the parents, including the faculty, staff, the parent-teacher association, the school board and the NHS council for their continuous effort and contribution in molding the students to become accomplished individuals.
 
Manumalo Academy stands proud in the fact that it is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and continues to shine with top placements in various territorial competitions.
 
For the parents who were there to witness Friday's event, tears could never be sweeter than when they are shed in celebration of what is hopefully one of many achievements these young people will attain in their lifetime.
 
Congratulations to the new inductees and Malo Lava to those who continue to maintain their position in such a prestigious group.
 
The following are the names of the new inductees:
 
NJHS:
 
Apollonia Seva'aetasi
 
Janella Maribelle Musni
 
Lana Lei Fiaui
 
Elzira Noga
 
Kanoelani Satele
 
William Spitzenberg
 
NHS:
 
Aitulagi Alofa (Secretary)
 
Ben Schuster
 
Hewlitt De Lara
 
Komisi Suani
 
Raquel Mamea
 
Talalelei Auva'a
 
Aomaluoaiga Masunu (Historian)
 
Brodie Blizzard (Treasurer)
 
John Leulu
 
Alice Park (Vice President)
 
Seon Wong Ham (President)

The late local patron and businessman Lealaifuaneva Peter E. Reid, Jr. will be honored tomorrow night during a Christmas concert, the first-ever public performance by 68 students from the Dancing Fingers Learning Center (DFLC) and the Strings of Psalms, an advanced strings ensemble from Calvary Temple AOG.
 
The concert starts at 6:00 p.m. at Calvary Temple AOG at Lepuapua (Leone) — is free of charge and the public is invited to attend.
 
Leala’s six grandchildren— Peter Reid IV, Rodney Reid, Jr., Michael Reid, Annaura Gillet, Reginald Reid, and Raenalynn Reid — are taking violin and piano lessons at the center. 
 
As part of the tribute, Annaura Gillet will say a few words before she and her cousins perform ‘Edelweiss’ from the Sound of Music (Rodgers & Hammerstein) followed by the concert orchestra with ‘Amazing Grace’ (Trad.). “I never had this many students from the same family… I  guess it’s fitting they do something special for their beloved Papa,’ said Poe Mageo, director of the DFLC.
 
Rev. Dr. John Mailo will offer the opening prayer while Mrs. Marissa Taamu, an English instructor from ASCC will be the narrator. Ms. Malaea Estherlene McFall, a classical pianist and music apprentice, will be conducting the concert orchestra.
 
Dancing Fingers Honorary Patron of Arts — Gov. Lolo Matalasi Moliga and First Lady Cynthia Moliga — along with Mr. and Mrs. Lesa Lolo Pilimai, owners of Pacific Grading Company, Mrs. Teresa Passi of the Teresa Passi Scholarship Fund, parents, families, and friends are among the invites.
 
Dancing Fingers is known for its range of world-class repertoire from classical music, opera, Broadway, and jazz.
 
Performances include: three early intermediate piano students, who will perform Clementi’s sonatinas; first-time trumpeter Wesley Alexander McFall and first-time flutist Heavenly Tuaau, who will perform solos; as well as Michelle Lo, cello, and Kevin Lo, violin (brother and sister), who will perform a duet. 
 
The highlight of the concert is the 68-piece concert orchestra (strings, horns, woodwinds, piano). “You don’t hear that sound anywhere on island. So this is a holiday treat for our families this Christmas,” said Mageo.
 
To avoid confusion, the former Dancing Fingers Exclusive Piano Studio at Petesa Uta was officially closed in 2014 after a successful 10-year run, and when Mageo moved to the Fine Arts Dept. at ASCC to teach music. 
 
However, after a benefit concert in May where Mageo and his advanced violin and piano students staged ‘A Night at the Opera’ and raised funds to complete the American Red Cross building in Tafuna, parents insisted that Dancing Fingers must open again.
 
As a result, Mageo ordered instruments and held an orientation for new parents and students on the last week of August; a week later, music lessons began. And now as they say the rest is history. With the help of Cathy and Lesa Lolo Pilimai, Mageo was able to move to the Tafuna Industrial Park, across from BOH.
 
Next month, Mageo will team up with colleague Dr. Sybil Johnson to launch Painted Slippers, a children’s theatre company. Like Mageo, Dr. Johnson has an extensive experience with drama and theatre as well as the literary arts.

A singer with American Samoan roots has stunned reggae regulars and followers by surprisingly earning a 2017 Grammy nomination in the reggae category for 2016. Here are ten things you should know about this 59th Grammy nominee:

1: He is J Boog

While J Boog is not a name that may be familiar to Caribbean reggae fans and to Jamaica, where the musical genre of reggae originated, he has been on the reggae scene since 2007 when he released his first solo album ‘Hear Me Roar’ which peaked on Billboard’s Top Reggae Albums chart at #8. His music is considered reggae tinged with R&B, ska and lover’s rock.

2: He was born in California.

J Boog was born Jerry Afemata in Long Beach, California but raised in Compton, California. His father serves as chief of the family village in Alao, Samoa. Afemata was the youngest of eight other siblings – seven brothers and a sister. He got the nickname “Boog” from his brothers, in reference to his inability while young to sit still. “I know it’s just a nomination but if a Samoan kid from Compton can be nominated for a Grammy then anything is possible,” he wrote on Facebook on Wednesday after the Grammy announcement.

3: His sister got him interested in reggae.

J Boog was introduced to reggae by his sister when she brought home and played a Bob Marley song book for him. He has said in past interviews: “[My family] always sing feel good music and reggae was the best way for us to express that. Reggae music was the only music we could turn up loud which our parents wouldn’t turn off when we were kids.” Later on he got interested in other reggae artists like Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs and Sugar Minott.

4: His first performance was in Hawaii

J Boog took time off from his day job at an oil refinery near Los Angeles to travel with friends to Hawaii in 2007. There he met reggae singer George Veikoso, aka FIJI, who he gave a mixtape he’d been working on and who then let him perform in front of the staff at South Pac in Hawaii.

5: His debut album was in 2007

J Boog and Fiji began recording Boog’s debut solo album “Hear Me Roar” soon after in 2007. “It was pretty much more easy-going, island/Hawaiian reggae,” he has said. Fiji produced ‘Hear Me Roar’ and is featured in a number of songs. The album was released in early 2007 on South Pac Records. Later that year it was reissued through Eskay Entertainment, and peaked on the Top Reggae Albums at #8 on Billboard. He is on the Wash House Ting label.

6: He befriended Gramps Morgan

In 2009 J Boog befriended Jamaican reggae artist Gramps Morgan and the two began collaborating, eventually travelling to Jamaica to record in studios such as Bob Marley’s Tuff Gong Studio, Don Corleon’s Hit Maker Studios, Bobby Digital’s Digital B Studios, Shaggy’s Big Yard, Sugar Minott’s Youth Man Promotion, and others. Boog considers his breakthrough song to be “Let’s Do It Again,” which he recorded during the sessions in Jamaica and which was produced by reggae label-owner Don Corleon before it was released on commercial sites such as iTunes.

7: He’s collaborated with a number of Jamaican reggae artists.

J Boog has collaborated with a number of Jamaican reggae artists. He released the reggae tune “She Give Me Lovin’” featuring Tarrus Riley; has written and recorded the Grampa Morgan-produced song “Got To Be Strong,” recorded with Peetah Morgan of Morgan Heritage and has worked on a project with reggae artist Richie Spice. He has also shared stages with artists such as Damian and Ziggy Marley. On Wednesday, Buju Banton actually took to Twitter to congratulate J. Boog on the nomination. “Congrats on the #Grammynomination fam!,” he wrote.

8: He has toured worldwide

J Boog has toured extensively. He began touring extensively in the United States including Hawaii after the release of his 2007 debut album and has never stopped. He has performed internationally in Africa, Dubai, New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Norway, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, Austria, Portugal, and Italy. When not touring, J Boog lives in both Hawaii and California. He is on another US tour from January 2017 beginning in Santa Ane, California. See here for tour dates.

9: He has released five albums.

J Boog has four albums under his belt including the 2016 Grammy nomination, ‘Rose Petals.’ His second album was a self-titled EP – J Boog – which was released in 2011 following “Hear Me Roar” in 2007. In 2011, he also released a full album called ‘Backyard Boogie.’ Two years later, in 2013, he released Live Up! Rose Petals, released this year, is a new five track EP featuring “Good Feeling” by Stephen “Ragga” Marley, “Good Cry’ by Chaka Demus and “No Pressure” by Snoop Dogg aka Snoop Lion.

10: He’s won reggae awards before and has endorsements.

J Boog was named Best New Entertainer at the 2012 International Reggae and World Music Awards (IRAWMA). He’s endorsed by a number of companies primarily in Hawaii or California, including hip hop clothing brands and companies like Diamond Supply Co, Cukui, and Selah Int’l.