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Proud to be Me is a series of profiles of ordinary and extraordinary people in the Selwyn District. To mark Samoan language week, Coen Lammers this week speaks to Marie Utuvai, a Samoan student at Rolleston College about adapting to New Zealand and keeping her culture alive.

Marie Utuvai and her family arrived just over year ago to Rolleston, but the Year 12 student is adapting quickly to her new life in a new country, at school, at home, on the rugby field and in the local Samoan community.

Saturday mornings can be tough for Utuvai when she pulls on her boots in the bite of a Canterbury winter that took her a while to get used to.

“The weather and the language were quite difficult in the first few months. It was very, very cold compared to home,” smiles the Rolleston College student.

Sport has helped make the new place feel familiar. Utuvai plays rugby for both school and the Ellesmere club, moving between centre, fullback and wing.

She also plays volleyball and basketball, preferring days that keep her “active” to time spent stuck behind a desk. “Yes, I think I enjoy sports the most at school.”

Selwyn has a fast-growing Pacifica community, but Utuvai was surprised that most of her New Zealand-born schoolmates did not speak the language of their parents.

“The elders, they do speak Samoan, but their children, they can’t even speak Samoan,” says the native Samoan who has instantly become a cultural asset for students and teachers.

“They ask questions like how to say this word and this word in Samoan,” says Utuvai who is proud of her Samoan heritage and has embraced her role as accidental cultural ambassador.

“Yeah, I’m proud to be Samoan,” she says. “And I try to carry my culture with me.”

She explains that means putting Samoan values into everyday life.

“It’s about respect, family, and community,” she says.

Utuvai enjoys getting to know her new Kiwi environment and the many cultures represented at Rolleston College, but is reminded of her Samoan heritage wherever she goes.

“At home it is everywhere, but also through church, food, music and family gatherings. Even at school, those values still stay with me.”

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Growing up with core values around family, community and respect, Utuvai has been surprised by the way some of her  New Zealand classmates interact with their teachers.

“When I first saw students talking back to their teachers I was shocked. I would never do that. In Samoa, discipline is much stricter and I when I watch some other kids, I appreciate how I have been brought up with respecting my teachers and elders.”

Utuvai has watched the Pacific community around Rolleston expand quickly, alongside the town itself. She points to more cultural events — from community festivals to school cultural nights and language weeks — as a way younger people stay connected. Those celebrations matter, she says, because language can fade fast after migration.

Utuvai enjoys connecting with her Samoan culture and celebrating the Pacifica community in Selwyn in the upcoming Samoan Language Week and by taking part in events such as Polyfest and cultural nights.

During Samoan Language Week, Rolleston College is planning activities across both its campuses.

“Our school is planning to celebrate across the week with different activities each day,” Utuvai says.

Students will visit Lemonwood Grove School to share greetings and language with younger children, before performances on campus and a day focused on food.

“We will provide food to teachers and staff, so they can enjoy Samoan food.”

Utuvai’s move to Rolleston was driven by her father’s new job at South Pacific Meats in Selwyn, where the family was welcomed by her great-grandmother and other family members already living in the district.

Asked what she enjoys the most about Rolleston, she smiles and points at her living room behind her.

“The houses, they’re brand new. And everything is very clean around here.”

Outside of the district, she enjoys going to Christchurch where Ninja Valley in Riccarton has become one of her favourite new destinations.

Utuvai may be a recent arrival in Selwyn, but she is quickly carving out a place in her new home, one new phrase, one cultural gathering and one tackle at the time.

Last modified: 25 Jun 2026 8:56am