A ceremony has been held in the US state of Washington to officially establish a Tokelau association.
The American Samoa member of the U.S. House of Representative, Faleomavaega Eni Hunkin, was the key note speaker at the ceremony to launch the Tokelau Taku Pele Association.
It was attended by lawmakers from the state of the Washington as well as other officials.
While Tokelauans are few in number and scattered throughout the U.S., the congressman says the ceremony showed the great unity among island people to come together to create a better future for the younger generations.
He says to his knowledge Tokelau Taku Pele is the first formal Tokelauan association on the US mainland and he hopes other communities follow suit and work together to preserve Tokelauan culture.
