Tekura Tamatoa Traill, a proud Cook Islander raised in Auckland, New Zealand, recently graduated from BYU–Hawaii and returned home after four transformative years working at the Polynesian Cultural Center. From learning Māori dance for the first time to meeting global friends—and even her husband—her journey reflects the deep cultural and personal growth made possible through the IWES program.

When Austin TeNgaio opened a box from his grandfather, he discovered photos, stories, and an original Johnny Lingo script. His great-grandparents, Joe and Millie TeNgaio, helped build the Aotearoa Village at the Polynesian Cultural Center and preserve Māori culture. Joe’s unexpected role in Johnny Lingo became part of their legacy of faith, service, and cultural pride.

When Elder Michael Theobald and his wife, Sister Shauna Theobald, completed their volunteer service as senior leadership training missionaries for full-time employees and orientation for new Center student workers in October 2017, it wasn’t his first experience at the Cultural Center.

In the summer of 1963, while labor missionaries and community volunteers were still finishing the future PCC, Elder Theobald was a 14-year-old teenager who also had opportunities to help. Read his memories about those early Center days at:

https://blog.polynesia.com/michael-theobald

Timmy Mocodompis, from Tangerang, Indonesia, (a city of about 2 million people on the western border of Jakarta), exemplifies resilience and determination.

Senior Polynesian Cultural Center missionary Hella Lunnen—still spry at 89 years old—pulls her weight with the “younger” senior missionaries at the Mission Settlement, an area consisting of three buildings dedicated to honoring contributions of early Christian missionaries to Laʽie.