Sione Tavo Manukia was an influential figure amongst the Tongan community in New Lynn. He moved to Aotearoa in 1970, working for a couple of years at Crown Lynn Potteries, before setting up a significant Tongan church in New Lynn [1].  

Sione was born in 1936 on Niua Fo’ou, a small island in Tonga. He married Meleseini Kaihau in 1959, and they had six children. In 1970, Sione made the journey to Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland. His sister, ‘Amelia Leha Clark, was already living in Glen Eden and Sione stayed with her while he found his footing.  

During this time, he began working at Crown Lynn Potteries as a brick maker. While working for Crown Lynn, he was extremely generous in making remittances to Tonga. This enabled many Tongans to settle in New Zealand themselves – many of whom worked in factories just like Crown Lynn. When Sione’s wife arrived in New Zealand, she also found employment at Crown Lynn Potteries.  

Sione purchased their family home in 1974, and his family joined him a year later. They continued to live there until 1988.  

Sione was closely connected to the local Tongan Methodist community and helped to set up the Pulela’a New Lynn Tongan Methodist Church. It was initially based in a small brick building on Hutchinson Avenue. Years later, the congregation moved to a building on Margan Avenue which had close links to New Lynn brick-making, being made of ‘Gardner Reds’ - a kind of brick made by the Gardner family just around the corner. An official building for the congregation was established in 2002, and the church remains there today. 

Religion was often an integral community-building resource for many recent Pacific migrants. Within New Lynn, there were several different churches – each catering for a different denomination. Churches functioned as a cultural cushioning for people transitioning from life in the Islands to one in a foreign land. Sione’s work would have drawn together many Tongan migrants in this area, many of whom would have been employed by Crown Lynn Potteries.  

[1] Rubinstine Manukia, Like a Dove, Wellington: Philip Garside Publishing, 2016.