To Sasa Zibe's father, education and hard work were second to none. He continually instilled these ideals in the mind of his young son. "When I was little, our home was so small and we didn't have much, but my father still taught us that if we worked hard and got a good education, we could change things for ourselves."
Sasa (pictured at left) carefully observed his fathers every move. Over time, the family's circumstances did indeed begin to change.
"He set an example to me. I watched him work and I watched our surroundings change. Our family didn't live in that small house too much longer. I learned that what you work for, you receive."
Not only was his father, Zibe Kokino Sasa, able to bring his family out of poverty, he earned the position as the Secretary of Health in the Parliament of Papua New Guinea, currently working one on one with the countries Prime Minister.
Sasa's father had a firm desire for his children to follow in his footsteps, continually encouraging them to pursue education. When he came across missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints he was immediately impressed by the young men's appearance. "He thought they looked really nice. They looked like young men who were educated and who knew what they wanted from life," Sasa recalled.
These young men emulated what Zibe wanted for his son. As he continued speaking with them, he learned how important education was in their religion. He also learned their church offered exceptional opportunities for education.
Excited about this, he immediately picked up the phone and called Sasa. "He said that if I joined the Mormon Church I would get a good education. He told me to join. He was very persistent."
Sasa, who was only 14 at the time, was shocked. He hung up the phone with his dad but surprisingly did not need very much time to make his choice. "I knew that it would make him very proud if I joined the Church. I quickly decided that I would do it!"
Sasa was taught all of the Church's introductory content in only two days, a process which normally takes weeks, if not months. Even though he still had plenty of questions in his inquisitive mind, Sasa made his decision and he was promptly baptized. "I was very nervous, but I liked the missionaries. I knew that I would learn more about the Church as I kept going along," he said.
Soon after his baptism, Sasa left his family in Papua New Guinea and moved to Tonga to attend Liahona, the Latter-day Saint high school there.
"I got to Liahona and I loved it right way. Everyone was so nice to me. The teachers and the leaders were amazing."
During this time, Sasa earned his high school diploma, but even more valuable, he learned more about his religion. After much study and prayer, he gained a stronger testimony of the truthfulness of the Church. "It was impossible to not feel the Spirit at that school. Everyone had it. Eventually, after all I had discovered about the Church, I had it, too."
With a burning desire to share his beliefs with others and faith his in heart, he eagerly left to serve a full-time mission in his homeland of Papua New Guinea, where he had numerous miraculous experiences that taught him the power of faith and of God.
"One time my mission companion and I were walking to an appointment when it started pouring down rain. I was nervous because we were meeting the people we were going to teach outside and it would be hard to do it in the rain."
Sasa and his companion chose to exercise their faith. "My companion commanded the rain to stop and to not start again until after we had finished teaching. Right then, the rain stopped. We were able to meet with the people and teach them. Afterwards, as we were walking home, out of nowhere, the rain started again. I could not believe it!"
After completing a successful two-year mission, Sasa had a fervent desire to continue his education. "My mission president had told me about BYU-Hawaii. I knew that I should go to school there because I thought that it would be similar to Liahona High School. I knew the same Spirit that was at Liahona would also be at BYU-Hawaii."
Sasa Zibe arrived on Oahu in January 2008, and is thoroughly enjoying his first semester as a student at BYU-Hawaii. "I love it here! I love the Spirit that is on campus. It is so neat meeting people from all over the world."
He is majoring in accounting and plans to return to his homeland. He believes that by doing missionary work, positive changes would undoubtedly take place in his country. "I will build the Church when I get home. If there was a larger percent of the population in Papua New Guinea that were members of the Church, there would be less problems in my country," he believes.
For now, Sasa is setting an example for his family by getting an education and by living Latter-day Saint principles. His real hope is that his younger sisters and parents will one day join him on his quest for spiritual knowledge.
"My family means so much to me," he said. "My father is the one who introduced me to the Church. I want him and the rest of my family to have the blessings and knowledge the gospel brings."
— Photo by Megan Smith