13-year-old Bethsharon Mattocks from Tangaroa College started learning Samoan at church and entered this year's Samoan speech competition at the Polyfest.
Video / ASB Polyfest
Blue-eyed and blonde, no one would expect teenager Bethsharon Mattocks to be able to hold a conversation in Samoan.
The 13-year-old Tangaroa College student wowed judges and members of the public when she gave a speech in the Samoan speech competition at this week’s Auckland Secondary Schools’ Polyfest.
Translated, she tells the audience: “You are probably all wondering why I am speaking in Samoan, when I am palagi.”
She goes on to explain that it was in church, where there are Samoan parishioners, that sparked her interest in learning the language.
Speaking to the Weekend Herald, the young student said she and her family, who have strong links to South Auckland, are good friends with a number of Samoans in their local community.
‘When you speak in another language, it’s powerful’
“They’re like family to me, that I’ve just grown up with in church.
“I’m not sure of the first time I ever spoke in Samoan. But I remember...it was at church and there was always this couple that would give out lollies to the kids.
“One time, I got given something and my dad told me to go say thank you in his language. So I said: ‘Fa’afetai’.”
Bethsharon Mattocks, 13, performing with the Tangaroa College Samoan group at Polyfest. Photo / Ben Campbell
Last year, their church - South Auckland Bible Church - held a special cultural evening that encouraged members to show off their cultures in a unique way.
Bethsharon decided to do a special item with one of her Samoan friends. They did a siva (dance) Samoa and Bethsharon gave a Bible memory verse and short speech in Samoan - something she had checked with the Samoan Sunday school teachers and then memorised.
This year, she decided to study Samoan as a subject at school and credits the help of her teachers, Miss Lafaele and Miss Seiuliali’i, who helped to write her speech and have been big supporters.
“When you speak in another language, it’s powerful,” Bethsharon says.
“When you can communicate with somebody, you can do things like make them smile. You can make somebody laugh. You can make somebody cry - and that’s beautiful.
“If I’m walking in front of somebody, I’ll say: ‘Tulou’ (excuse me). Or I’ll say [the words for] please, thank you, hello. But I’ve never had any double-takes,” she laughed.
Tangaroa College student Bethsharon Mattocks, 13, has Welsh, English, Scottish and German ancestry.
Bethsharon has always loved learning and has a special love for reading, writing, languages and science. She will turn 14 soon, but her academic progress has resulted in her being put into year 11 this year.
During her Samoan studies, she discovered similarities with other Pacific languages, including Tongan and Fijian, and te reo Māori.
Some of her favourite Samoan words are from the lyrics of old hymns and songs - and she recently discovered the music of Samoan-Kiwi gospel singer Annie Grace and classic Samoan singer and song-writer, the late Rev Suliveta Kurene.
At Polyfest this week, there was rapturous applause from the crowd, judges and fellow participants after Bethsharon delivered her lauga (speech).
The festival, which wraps up today, has speech competitions as well as dance performances on the different stages - including Niuean, Tongan, Cook Islands, Māori and Diversity stages.
Yesterday, she was back at Polyfest to perform with Tangaroa College’s Samoan group.
Mum Rachel Mattocks, who homeschooled Bethsharon when she was younger, said she was proud of her daughter’s willingness to learn new things and challenging herself to learn a new language.
Asked if there was a message she wanted to share with young people, Bethsharon said: “One of the Bible verses that I was actually thinking about just this morning was: ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me’.
“I’d also encourage them not to just learn about their culture, but other cultures as well. There are so many other people in this world, so many other cultures - and it’ll be amazing if you could be able to communicate with one of them.”
Tangaroa College student Bethsharon Mattocks, 13, started learning Samoan last year. She performed on the Samoan stage at Polyfest yesterday. Photo / Ben Campbell
Vaimoana Mase is the Pasifika editor for the Herald’s Talanoa section, sharing stories from the Pacific community. She won junior reporter of the year at the then Qantas Media Awards in 2010 and picked up the best opinion writing award at the 2023 Voyager Media Awards.
