Today we’d like to introduce you to Oreta Masina Mapu-Tupola.
Hi Oreta Masina, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I was born in Honolulu, Hawaii raised in the small town of Laie on the island of Oahu. My journey in life has involved a rich and blessed upbringing from maternal and paternal grandparents who joined the Marine Corps and the Army in search of a better life for their posterity. I was raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, my parents divorced when I was in the 9th grade, and both remarried. I am the eldest child of 3, and altogether have 7 siblings. I was married straight out of High School to my High School sweetheart, who was raised in Inglewood, California—we are young parents who raised 4 children (2 girls/2 boys). We both came from humble beginnings with the prayers of our parents that we would get a good education, obtain a strong work ethic, and represent our family and culture well as we built our future.
Fast forward, our paths were not as our Parents had hoped. However, my husband and I were raised very well with strong foundations of love, identity, values, culture, life skills, faith, and a supportive community and family. I knew in all that I did that there was more for me. And although my goals were to be a great Mother and wife, I always felt a burning desire to do more because I had so much passion for serving the community and sharing my love, especially for those who experienced hard times. A passion for serving the needs of vulnerable populations became a theme and passion I never thought would become my career. It led to my education in Social Work and then to a career combining my resources of culture, lived experience, education, and community connections to several created positions in Community Health, Public Health, Policy and Advocacy, Non-Profit work, and building my own consulting business. I could not have prayed for a more aligned path where I could implement my faith and values along with my lived experience and education into building the capacity of community members to work through their most trying times into positive life outcomes.
Every day I can impact so many lives by empowering them to recognize their light and self-worth, and it amazes me every time to witness their “come back” stories as they find happiness and success because they were able to better navigate life situations that made things difficult for them to see a light at the end of the tunnel.
I moved to Utah for a better future for my sons, and I, too, couldn’t see why my journey led me here, as my goal was to serve in my community. What I didn’t know was, I could build a new community and still serve them the way I had been in Hawaii. And I have been doing just that here in Utah.
For the past 10 years, I have been serving and building the most vulnerable populations in Utah by empowering them through training, education, professional development, and building trust as a collaborative partner with State Departments, Utah Legislators, Utah Health Systems, and Government, and with the Community. My vision was to build vulnerable community members by supporting them in recognizing their strengths and implementing those strengths and lived experiences to help others navigate similar experiences. Through this, we build a workforce of Community Health Workers who, with this exact concept, are trained in how to transfer their skills through professional development training and state certification to get paid for their support. I led efforts to build this career pathway and workforce through the development of the state’s infrastructure and workforce development that included coalition building, community organization and participation, training and education curricula, job development, recruitment and placement, policy and advocacy, and organizing a state CHW professional association. I led and consulted with community champions serving as crucial consultants during the COVID-19 pandemic on the Governor’s Multicultural Advisory Board. I serve on several other local, state, and national Coalitions and Community Boards to ensure the voices of vulnerable populations are heard and not forgotten.
From my childhood to now, I have been a caretaker, a giver, a supporter, and someone who looks out for those who have “less” support or are in need of more support for whatever reason. I don’t feel sorry for them, I feel familiar with them due to my own experiences of loss, grief, heartache, and difficult times. My heart draws me to support the community to recognize their potential and find value in their struggles, as it is a strength we can use to our advantage. I have and do so many things and people often wonder how and why and what is exactly that I do. And all I can say is I help people.
I am at another crossroads with where I am at in my life and it has led me to enter the city council race in Eagle Mountain where we have decided to make our new home. And I am excited for this new adventure win or lose. I know that all the things that I have and am doing and learning will be a huge contribution to what my Heavenly Father has in store for my future. I have leaned on his guidance in my life to serve and he has never steered me in the wrong direction. He has only led me in the direction where my learning can help me as well as others to make wiser decisions for our futures. And if I can do this for the rest of my life and serve community especially our under-served and underrepresented I know I will be able to leave this life in a better place than I entered it. At the end of the day, its about legacy, service, kindness, and justice for ALL. Its the reason my grandparents sacrificed so much for me to be where I am. I would dare not take advantage of the privileges Ive had to do the same for others. There is so much more to my story and mission in this life but this is how my journey continues.
I am now turning 50 this year and have been blessed with 3 grandsons and my family continues to grow. Utah has become our home away from home as we have settled in Eagle Mountain!!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Life has a way of challenging you when you are just trying to make a positive impact in this world. Utah, especially, has been an interesting exploration as I learn new culture, new perspectives, and new history when it comes to resources and barriers of access to resources, especially involving underserved and vulnerable populations. I want to be clear that these populations are not defined by color, race, ethnicity, or citizenship status. These populations are comprised of community members who have difficulties accessing resources to support them in living healthy, safe, and financially stable lives. They come from all walks of life and are different colors, shapes, and forms. I have helped rich community members to the poor, navigate barriers of health and justice systems. So again, although discrimination and racism are key factors of the populations we serve, it does not exclude any race, gender, ethnicity, age, or status.
My voice is strongest when it comes to advocacy, and many of the challenges I have faced in my efforts to build capacity, connect the community to resources, and collaborate with State, County, Private, and Government entities have been addressing the inequities within systems that have been the biggest barriers of access for vulnerable populations.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion have been misrepresented in a way that has become a barrier to the services we provide and support, but it has hurt the work that we are doing that provides funding for capacity building through training and education. skill building, networking, resource connection, Social drivers of health resources, financial literacy, health literacy, etc.
Building education pathways through our work with Elementary, Middle and High Schools to support Higher Education or Trade School options that will ensure skilled professionals in Utahs workforce which also impact other areas of a thriving economy where families can better provide and contribute to a more healthy and safe state are more difficult with the federal funds to preventative programs.
This has been a huge downfall and stress on the workforce that I have been trying to build because many of us have lost our jobs, have had to get jobs with lesser pay, and have had to change career paths or take on additional jobs to provide for our families.
As a “family-friendly” state, I am seeing burnout with our parents, stress and mental health issues rise for our children and families because of limited access and affordability of basic necessities, etc.
My stress and mental and emotional health are also impacted because this is not just a job for me. I truly and wholeheartedly want to see communities thrive, and if they can’t survive in this economy because they can’t access the necessities of life, how do we continue to claim Utah to be a healthy state when a small portion of our community members are still experiencing inequity? I believe that when we invest in the small percentage of community members who experience barriers to access, it will be a cost-saving for the State in the long run. But, it seems that the bottom line for large systems and companies is more important than the people they serve.
This continues to be the pattern of every discussion around support and collaboration with larger systems as they prioritize their financial impact over human impact. I can’t say that they have not been somewhat cooperative, however, I can say that it has been to their benefit. Community perspective and awareness of their efforts of change are promoted. But again, that change is led by strategy to the system’s benefit.
I would be dishonest if I didn’t mention that tokenism and racism are also barriers and struggles, especially when my goals are forward movement change, acknowledging the history and past, identifying needed change in the present, and organizing actions required to improve that need for a better future.
I don’t have all the answers, but I know so many good people who want better change, and are willing to implement new systems of change; however, political bureaucracies make things difficult.
The positive side of dealing with these barriers is that you find your true allies and supporters who create opportunities for more networking and strategic ideas that support the goals of equality, equity, and empowerment. After all, this is the land of opportunity. The land of freedom. The land where I am proud to be an American and am blessed to serve in the capacity that I have been called to. This is my mission. These struggles have been stepping stones to better change and although slow, we are making forward progress.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a daughter of a loving Heavenly Father, a mother, a wife, and a servant of GOD first. Professionally, I am a born Community Health Worker, trained Social Worker, and Public Health Advocate. I specialize in People not Profit. As I look back at my life, I recognize how much I have impacted and built a foundation from a strength-based perspective that made people feel empowered to make changes in their lives that would heal their hurt or get past their struggles for a better future. it is always shared with me by others, both people I know and strangers or acquaintances, that people feel my genuineness and heart. And that they love my authenticity and how I am open to sharing my vulnerability. What I am most proud of is that it has also been shared with me all my life that I am too nice, too kind, and that my vulnerability is a weakness because it allows people to walk all over me, and that it makes me weak. They said, “People will not follow you because you can’t handle it, you are not strong enough”.
I am proud to say that my grandparents and parents instilled a strong foundation in who I am. My identity was nothing but solid, and I didn’t allow the talk of others to dim my light. I took the negativity and I used it as motivation to accomplish all the things that my heart was moved to do. I am most proud when I see people WIN! In life, in difficult situations, in business, in overcoming a struggle, in accepting support, and making changes that support healthy living and build positive relationships.
What sets me apart from others is, when my parents were divorced and my Mother was left to raise me and my siblings, I later learned of her dark struggles to continue her life. Although I didnt witness first hand her struggle because she always kept a strong front for me and my siblings, she has shared how hard it was but that her children were gift of life and reason for her survival. I recognized my ability to maintain cultural identity, my traditions, and values while adapting to new circumstances at an early age and that cultural fortitude has afforded me very niche opportunities to utilize my lived experience, education and strong foundation of resilience to engage, gather and build capacity in community.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I have been blessed to have many mentors in my life. More specifically the women in my family who are all educators, leaders in community and who believe in servant leadership. From my grandmothers both paternal and maternal teachings and examples these women have guided me through out my life to always remember who I am first, a daughter of a loving and forgiving Heavenly Father. That spiritual foundation and knowledge along with other cultural and family values lives as a reminder to me that I come from a strong lineage and that I have a responsibility to uphold the respect, love and leadership that my ancestors sacrificed a lot for so that their posterity would be afforded a better life. I also had mentors from my faith, young women leaders as well as my father and his brothers who provded a safety net for me so that i could walk confidently in this world and not feel threatened by judgment of others. Lillian Makaiau a dear and close friend and mother of one of my High School classmates was my Early Head Start Home Visitor. She inspired me to share my story as a young Mother with the teen mothers class at my High School alma mater and then encouraged me to take on leadership roles within the Head Start Program. From that she encouraged me to go back to college after having my four children. I played college softball, graduated with my bachelors in Social Work, and with the empowerment from my BYUH Social Work Professor DebbieHippolite-Wright and Sharlene Wong, I continued into a Masters Program of Social Work and then an EdD program at Argosy University for Organizational Leadership. I didn’t complete my doctorate program due to moving to Utah but my path for success and to empower community continues because of these mentors in my life. Here in Utah, Susi Fletch-Malohifoou, Joyce Kim, Tatiana Webb and Dr. Ivette Lopez have been key influencers in promoting my passion to bridge community and systems in Utah with the goal of addressing inequity, social justice and capacity building for ALL Utah community members.
