01.07.2025 - A call to reconnect: Wendy's call to returned Vanuatu volunteers in Hawke's Bay
After 30 years of teaching, trekking and transforming early childhood education across 16 countries, Wendy has found herself back in Aotearoa – still giving, still connecting, and now putting out a heartfelt call to fellow returned VSA volunteers who once worked in Vanuatu and now call Hawke’s Bay home. “I wanted to connect so that [returned] Vanuatu volunteers could revive their Bislama skills,” she says, noting that with the upcoming Vanuatu Bislama Language Week, it would be a great opportunity to “take part in activities, share ideas, and help to spread the language and culture.”
Wendy’s own story with VSA began with a posting to Bhutan that turned into a four-year adventure of smoke-filled classrooms, big ideas, and even bigger hearts. But it was her time in Vanuatu that left a lifelong mark. She immersed herself in the language and culture, was adopted into a local family, and helped redesign the entire early childhood education approach through a vibrant, hands-on learning system called The RainboWay. Her work – delivered on foot, by boat, and through cyclones – helped to lay the groundwork for what is now a national system that trains and pays kindergarten teachers through the Ministry of Education.
Wendy teaching in a classroom in Bhutan
Today, Wendy is based in Hastings in Hawke’s Bay and is the guardian of a girl from her adopted Vanuatu family who now studies at a high school in Havelock North. She also cares for 80 RSE workers from Samoa and Vanuatu, offering pastoral support, a listening ear, and, often, a bit of Bislama – a language she speaks fluently.
“There are up to 2,000 – 3,000 ni-Vanuatu in Hawke’s Bay during the harvest season,” she says. Many of these seasonal workers are eager to meet Kiwis who have been to their islands, who know their home, their culture. Wendy is helping coordinate the upcoming Bislama Language and Culture week celebrations in Hawke’s Bay, and she’s keen for returned volunteers to get involved. “We need people to join in the activities, speak a little Bislama, and help bridge the gap between local communities and our visiting workers,” she says. “Even just being there – sharing a story, a smile, a memory – can mean a lot.”
Wendy (second from left) with ni-Vanuatu in Hawke's Bay
She hopes to form a small local network of returned VSA volunteers from Vanuatu – people who, like her, are carrying memories of dancing ceremonies, language classes, shared meals and long boat rides. “Some might already be involved in their own way, but many might be looking for a way to reconnect. This is that chance.”
Wendy has already started a weekly Zoom group with returned volunteers and Vanuatu community members in the Bay of Plenty. Now, she’s hoping to grow something similar in Hawke’s Bay – something lasting and full of heart.
If you’re reading this and thinking, ‘Hey, I was there too,’ please reach out. “Just let me know if you are interested and we can meet up for a coffee,” she says. “It would be super to share the joy...because we have these amazing people from Vanuatu wanting to connect with anyone that has been there.”
Wendy (left) with some Hawke's Bay community members
If you’d like to reach out to Wendy for more information on the Bislama Language and Culture Week celebrations, or simply to connect, please get in touch with her via email: wendypgriffin5@gmail.com