North Otago's largest town, Oamaru, is fast becoming the most Polynesian town in New Zealand.
One estimate says that one in four Oamaru residents are now Polynesian, the bulk of which are Tongan.
Roughly 10 Pacific island congregations are now up and running in a town of just 14,000 people.
"Seeing our people coming together, it feels like we're at home, looking at everybody coming with food, dancing, fundraising money, it just feels like this is Tonga," Katalina Veituna told TVNZ1's Seven Sharp.
The abundance of jobs at the local meat works and Auckland's high living costs are a drawcard for many in New Zealand's Tongan community making the move to Oamaru.
"In Auckland everything is fast, unemployment is high, crime is high, hard to control your kids in a place like that, it's much better in a place like Oamaru I believe," Tonga Havea said.
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