At the heart of Kokomo Private Island’s Yaukuve Spa Sanctuary is a woman whose presence alone has the power to soften your breath. Her name is Wanise Kuruloa Leileivuna, but we know her as Winnie - a mother, a healer, and a therapist with over two decades of experience whose work is as intuitive as it is profound.
Winnie’s journey into wellness began long before her formal training. As a child growing up in Fiji, she was drawn to care in its purest form - stopping to give to those in need on the street, eager to offer what little she had. “I always loved to serve people,” she recalls. “That love was nurtured in me from the beginning.”
It’s this same instinctive kindness that has carried her through more than 20 years of spa work across resorts in Fiji, and ultimately to Kokomo - where her deep sense of purpose, strength, and softness now shapes the spa experience for guests from around the world.
Whether she’s performing a grounding facial or guiding someone through Kokomo’s signature Pacific Mastery Massage - a deeply restorative treatment rooted in traditional Fijian Bobo massage - Winnie brings a level of care that feels ancestral. And in many ways, it is.
The Fijian Bobo massage is passed down through generations. Winnie’s first experience of it came not through learning, but receiving - as a baby, cradled and gently massaged by her mother. The tradition had been handed down from her grandparents to her mother, and now, she’s passing it on to her own daughters. “Whenever I’m sick,” she says, smiling, “I ask my girls to help with massage. The legacy continues.”
The Bobo technique uses deep, rhythmic strokes - not just with the hands, but with forearms and elbows - to stimulate circulation, support injury recovery, and unlock physical and emotional tension. But it’s not just the technique that makes the treatment stand out at Kokomo. It’s the hands behind it.
“When a guest comes in, the connection starts with the first smile, the first touch,” Winnie says. “It’s energy. If your intention is good, if your heart is open, your guest will feel that. And they’ll leave not just relaxed - but loved.”
For Winnie, massage is more than a physical practice. It’s an exchange. A conversation without words. Guests often describe feeling deeply seen, even transformed, after time with her. But she doesn’t see herself as doing anything extraordinary. “I just give what I have,” she says. “It’s a blessing to be able to do this work.”
She’s part of a team at Yaukuve Spa - a group of extraordinary Fijian therapists trained across the entire wellness menu. This allows guests the flexibility to follow what their body is asking for on the day. “We’re versatile,” she says, “but what we all share is heart. We work with good energy. We laugh, we support each other, and we hold space not just for guests, but for one another.”
That camaraderie is part of what fuels her. So too is the resilience she draws from her faith and family - particularly her three children, including 16-year-old twins. She admits that the early days of motherhood, especially with twins, were challenging. But love, she says, makes even the hard things feel natural. “Once you see their faces, it becomes easy,” she reflects. “It’s like that in my work, too. When you lead with love, it flows.”
Even after a long day of back-to-back bookings, Winnie doesn’t speak of exhaustion - only intention. “If I come into the room with the right energy, if I take a moment to breathe, to let go of everything else - then I can give fully. That’s what matters. And when the day is done, we laugh together. We hug. We remind each other: you did a great job today.”
This is wellness, the Fijian way. Not something to be performed, but something lived. Soul-led, heart-held, and passed from one generation to the next - through oil, through hands, through love.