The overall goal of the proposed study is to systematically examine the needs of Pacific Islander communities living in 7 states and recommend practical solutions that could potentially develop into useful ministries locally. The study represents a valuable opportunity to establish essential baseline information on the well-being of Pacific Islander Americans to inform planning and the allocation of limited resources throughout the United Methodist Church ministries serving the Pacific Islander American community. As stated in the original proposal (Kelemeni & Tuitahi, undated) Religion and the Church are fundamental to Pacific Islander socialization, value system and way of life. As Pacific Islanders leave the islands and migrate to the United States, the Church is seen not only as a spiritual home, but a safe haven and an important source of support and information in the transition.
Pacific Islanders in the United States represent a distinct and rapidly growing population with ancestral ties to the indigenous people living in the Pacific Basin. Traditionally Pacific Islanders have been aggregated with Asians to form the broad Asian and Pacific Islander (API) category. The small size of the population requires that most information on it either be collapsed or suppressed in national surveys due to confidentiality concerns when releasing the data to the research community for analysis. Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islanders (NHOPI) represent a classic example of a numerically small but highly heterogeneous population that is severely understudied despite significant disparities in areas of healthcare and socio-economic development. The majority of NHOPIs in the U.S. have not had the educational opportunities or training needed to make the transition from an agricultural, noncompetitive, and non-technological way of life to an independent, urban, competitive and highly industrialized society (Grieco, 2001; Panapasa et al, forthcoming; 2009; U.S. Census Bureau, 2005). The NHOPI people are significantly challenged to adapt to the unfamiliar values that help other Americans participate in political, social and economic life in urban areas. Likewise, for the general U.S. public, NHOPIs are not always an easily distinguishable minority and are often mistaken as members of other urban minority groups with whom they share physical characteristics.