Sully Paea, born in Niue, came to New Zealand in 1968. Sully became involved in youth work in 1978 in the community of Otara, South Auckland. Sully worked with local schools and community groups to find after-hours activities for children. "When kids have plenty of time on their hands and nothing to do, they get into trouble. So I organised camps, clubs and activities - a base they could be a part of and felt comfortable coming to." While working with other youth organisations, Sully became frustrated by the limitations placed on him. "They didn't go far enough. So I decided that to achieve what I wanted, I was going to have to establish my own trust." In 2005 Sully Paea received the inaugural Dame Kiri Te Kanawa award for his years of work in South Auckland. In 2010 he was recognised with a Prime Ministers Individual Social Hereos Award. Sully has been in the media numerous times and he has spoken at many conferences, with one recently in April 2011