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By Sydney Walker, Church News
A three-part series on the “Living Record: A Church News Documentary Series” on BYUtv called “People of Faith” features pioneers from Brazil, Hawaii and the Philippines.
Part 1: Brazil
Violet Shibuta points to her name and wallet-sized picture on an expansive family tree displayed on the wall.
She is pictured with her husband, her two young children and more than 400 extended family members.
At the center of the tree is Emma Bastiani Tallevi — Shibuta’s great-grandmother and one of the first people to join The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ponta Grossa.
“Through her, a lot of things happened,” Shibuta said.
What started with a small Latter-day Saint branch of only 10 members has become three large stakes in Ponta Grossa today, she explained. Ponta Grossa is located in the state of Paraná in southern Brazil.
“We have to be examples,” said Shibuta, reflecting on her great-grandmother’s legacy and her own experiences being a pioneer in Brazil. “Being a member of the Church and being in Brazil is helping make the world a better place.”
This is true not only for Shibuta but also for Marcos Rossi and Carlos Martins — two others from Brazil whose pioneering stories are featured in the “People of Faith” Church News documentary series on BYUtv.
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Violet Shibuta, Marcos Rossi and Carlos Martins of Brazil are featured in a "People of Faith" episode of the Church News' 2025 "Living Record" documentary series available on BYUtv. Graphic by Allen Muy, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2026 Deseret News Publishing Company.Part 2: Hawaii
On a sunny day in Hilo on the east side of the island of Hawaii, Celeste Ha‘o and her eight children sit around a large circular mat depicting the hōkū pānānā — the Hawaiian star compass.
“This is what we use to tell direction,” she explains to her children, who range in age from 3 to 15. She then shows them a miniature model of a Hawaiian canoe called a wa‘a. “In our oceanic cultures, the wa‘a is such an important piece to our entire history,” she says.
Ancient Polynesian wayfinders were the first to voyage to the Hawaiian islands, possibly as early as 300 A.D. They navigated the ocean using the stars, planets and moon.
“I guess my kūpuna must have been astronomers,” Ha‘o said. “And if they were, I can be one too.”
Like her ancestors, Ha‘o is a wayfinder.
“I am very proud of my heritage,” she said. “One of the beautiful things about being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that there are so many similarities between my culture and between the gospel.”
Along with Ha‘o, Ryan Tanaka and Mufi Hannemann also share faith-building experiences from their lives as members of the Church in Hawaii as part of the “People of Faith” Church News documentary series on BYUtv.
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Ryan Tanaka, Mufi Hannemann and Celeste Ha'o of Hawaii are featured in a "People of Faith" episode of the Church News' 2025 "Living Record" documentary series available on BYUtv. Graphic by Allen Muy, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2026 Deseret News Publishing Company.
Part 3: the Philippines
In a medical clinic in Parañaque, Philippines, Alexander Castillo carefully removes a benign follicular tumor from a woman’s face. The woman tells Castillo she has been living with this tumor for 20 years.
Tears stream down her face when she looks in a mirror and sees bandages where the tumor once was. “Thank you, Doc,” she says with an excited squeal.
Castillo is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a dermatologist who specializes in laser surgery for skin cancer. He performed the surgery for this woman for free.
“The Philippines is a third-world country. Probably half of our population just live [on a] day-to-day basis,” said Castillo, a native Filipino who lives in Muntinlupa. “That’s why, when I see people who cannot afford [surgery] and yet they have skin cancer, I operate it for free. … That’s a way of giving back what the Lord has given me all these years in my life.”
Not only does he perform surgeries for free, he makes himself available anytime someone needs him. “I never follow office hours,” he said. “My hours [are] 24 hours a day. If you needed help, anytime, wake me up.”
Castillo is one of three Latter-day Saints of the Philippines featured in the Church News “People of Faith” documentary series available on BYUtv. Lilian Villamor and Lani Misalucha also share key moments in their faith journeys and everyday life as members of the Church in the Philippines.
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Lani Misalucha, Lilian Villamor and Alexander Castillo of the Philippines are featured in a "People of Faith" episode of the Church News' 2025 "Living Record" documentary series available on BYUtv. Graphic by Allen Muy, courtesy of Church News.Copyright 2026 Deseret News Publishing Company.Copyright 2025 Deseret News Publishing Company.