“Get Ya Yum On”

By Deidre Fanene 09 August 2016, 12:00AM

‘Get Ya Yum On’ manufactures a range of unique grain free bread with flavours including Tandoori, Pesto Herb and Garlic, and Linseed Chia and Raisin Cinnamon spice.

The mixes are made in Australia and designed by Kiwis, Jo Linney, Jeremy Faumuina and Shelley Gibb-Faumuina.

In an interview with two of the three founders of the ‘Get Ya Yum On’ Jeremy and Shelly Faumuina they said the whole idea of the product was to help educate girls at the Samoa Victinm Support Group (S.V.S.G.) and provide life outside of the shelter to learn skills that will enable them to start a new life and help bring change to the next generation and to stop the cycle of abuse.

“I have been part of the S.V.S.G. for the last six years and I brought my sister with me on one of the trips. She fell in love with Samoa instantly on her first trip, but we have both grown up alongside Samoans and she just had a heart for Healthy Living with Humanity and came up with this,” said Shelley Faumuina.

“We run a Home Stay programme here in Samoa which we launched last year. We take girls from the shelter that have been there for a while to bring them to New Zealand for three months for the Home Stay programme where they get to experience something more than the four walls and a wider fence.

“[And] so the whole idea and we started last year and it was going really well we will be bring another two girls next month.

“This little cost is where the idea of the bread mix came along and we thought of how do we keep this sustainable long term and so we thought, what if we start a business where it will help Samoa and help the girls who come to the Home Stay programme.”

Jeremy Faumuina said their work here is specifically about bringing awareness to the forgotten children.  

“Under “Samoa Alofa”, an initiative based out of N.Z., we work alongside S.V.S.G,” he said.

“We have a vision that victims of violence and sexual abuse should be well supported, safe and in control of restoring their lives.

“So we are part of S.V.S.G.’s Global Team and travel to Samoa five times a year where we continue our ongoing work in building relationships with the most vulnerable members of the Samoan community. 

“All of whom are survivors of sexual and domestic violence and are housed within S.V.S.G’s shelters.  Many of the babies in the shelter are born from incest or rape of  the young girls.’

The Home Stay programme is a long-term commitment where they will continue bringing girls to New Zealand for 3-12 month stays. According to Jo Linney, the third founder of the ‘Get Ya Yum On’ the vision behind the  bread mixes is not just about the bread itself but about the why behind the brand. 

“Being brought up in a multicultural community I had friends from all walks of life but my closest friends were predominantly Samoan.

“I loved the people and I loved the culture, they used to call me their ‘akeha cuz’, but these days I would be called a “sister from another mother!”

“My sister Shelley and her husband Jeremy have been working alongside S.V.S.G. for some years now in advocating and bringing awareness for the children of Samoa to speak out against sexual and physical abuse and to help bring change, hope and a future for these beautiful kids. 

“The House of Hope Shelter in Apia Samoa was founded by Lina Chang and this amazing woman has provided a place of safety for many victims who through no fault of their own, have been victimised and abused, some from as early as 2 year olds. 

“Many of these children and young girls come into the shelter pregnant having been raped, abandoned, or tossed out by their family or village due to the shame of being pregnant and the perpetrators remain protected.”

She went on to say that 50 percent of all profits goes to work alongside Samoa Alofa Trust and S.V.S.G. to help fund a sponsorship programme in Aotearoa, New Zealand to help educate the girls and provide life outside of the shelter to learn skills that will enable them to start a new life and help bring change to the next generation and to stop the cycle of abuse.

“We want you to know that every pre-packaged ‘Get Ya Yum On’ bread mix you buy, you are sowing into a life to restore what has been stolen from these kids.

“This is our story this is where it begins, we know you will love our bread and we want to thank you in advance for helping us be a voice to the voiceless.”

By Deidre Fanene 09 August 2016, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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