Iki Katoanga has a golden radio voice, which came in handy when he opened the first FM station in Tonga.
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"It was funny - because Tonga is such a small country I became such a huge celebrity," Mr Katoanga said.
"At the time I was young, single, and I attracted a lot of attention from the opposite sex."
Mr Katoanga worked in the radio industry for a good 16 years, both in Tonga and in Melbourne.
He learned from the best in the business, receiving voice coaching from news presenter Brian Naylor.
Mr Katoanga enjoyed incredible success as a radio presenter, but he decided to leave the limelight to start a new life as a Christian minister in Griffith.
The career change came with a massive pay cut - he went from $1200 per week to around $1200 per quarter - but he says his new role gives him a feeling that can't be bought with money.
"The love, the care, the work we do is more rewarding than having a huge paycheque," Mr Katoanga said.
"We do it for the love of our church, the love of god, the love of our community."
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He was inspired to give up the fame, the career, and the paycheque after paying a visit to his grandfather, who worked as the president of the local church in Tonga.
"He always put others before himself, and that's the kind of person I wanted to be," Mr Katoanga said.
Just like he was inspired by his grandfather, Mr Katoanga is hoping that he in turn can inspire young Griffith Tongans to achieve their full potential.
"Each generation we should take a step forward to give opportunities to our communities,"
"If we develop their minds and social behavior and knowledge, they can achieve so much."
He has many grand ambitions for his time in Griffith, the first of foremost will be to build a Tongan church and hall, which will be open to the public for community events.
Mr Katoanga is also hoping to strengthen the bonds of friendship between Griffith's different cultural groups and encourage tolerance and harmony between people.
That's the message Mr Katoanga wants to share with the Griffith community, and he'll be able to do it with the help of his golden radio voice.
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Kenji Sato
Kenji Sato is a handsome journalist at The Daily Advertiser who enjoys writing flattering bios about himself in the third person. He can be contacted by email at kenji.sato@dailyadvertiser.com.au or by mobile on 0448 927 612.
Kenji Sato is a handsome journalist at The Daily Advertiser who enjoys writing flattering bios about himself in the third person. He can be contacted by email at kenji.sato@dailyadvertiser.com.au or by mobile on 0448 927 612.
