WMC Sends Off 'Hey Man' To The Real World

WM Communications Asia Pacific (WMC) "graduated" another valuable team member this week, Ulisese Saifoloi Paiaaua Toafa, our Samoan talofa (friend).  Sese, as he’s known to most of us, has been a huge help to WMC’s video department for the past couple of years.   So the WMC-AP team gave Sese a well-deserved despedida (well-wishers party), well-wishers video courtesy of the Video Department and a send off prayer of blessing as he moves on to apply his media skills in the real world down under in the South Pacific.

Sese began working with us a few years ago as a student at Asia Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary (APNTS) in the Master of Divinity program with major in Christian Communication. In addition to his media work, Sese was also heavily involved in student organizations. He excelled as Sports Committee Head of the Student Body Organization (SBO) during the SY 2003-2004, a time when APNTS won the most medals and championships during the Inter-Seminary Sports Fest (ISSF), competing against eight seminaries in Metro Manila area.

The following school year (2004-2005), Sese was elected as President of the SBO, and rallied the organization to new heights through the student projects under his leadership, including the development of a new APNTS Yearbook, “Bridges”.  Sese also represented the school at the Nazarene General Assembly in Indianapolis, USA in 2005.

In 2006-2007, as Sese enrolled for Master of Science in Theology, he was selected again to head an SBO Committee. This time he became chairman of the editorial committee -- the first to produce the “Bridges” Yearbook in CD format.

 In his years of schooling, Sese worked at WMC-AP under the Student Work Assistance Program (SWAP). “Hey Man” Sese -- as he‘s known at WMC for the way he usually greets his friends -- was assigned first to learn under the Audio Department. He created audio spots for the South Pacific radio programs in Fiji, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, and Samoa.

In 2005, he expanded his media skills through his work with the Video department. He became an all-around handyman for the department’s projects -- preparing, carrying, and setting up equipment and props, eventually becoming one of our steady camera operators, and occasional project editors. Some of the video projects he worked on included the Bayanihan Church Planting series, the Bicol Relief project, the Asia Pacific Women’s Coference, the APNTS promo video, and other projects related to Fairbanks School of Communication (FSC).   

“Hey Man” Sese leaves a big hole in our hearts as he flies back home to Samoa. For WMC though, it is not really a loss but a multiplication of media-minded people in the field. Sese now has the ability to utilize media tools and train young people in his area of ministry, wherever he will be called to serve.

In the meantime, Sese will be visiting his aunt and grandparents in New Zealand and hopefully establish contacts and resources there for his future ministry.

For both “Hey Man” Sese and the WMC staff, the despedida party was a very meaningful mix of sadness and joy as we shared good memories, prayers, and of course delicious food & fun.

Hey man, we wish to extend to you our appreciation for the way you served WMC-AP with humility and dedication. Thanks a lot talofa. God bless you!  Keep in touch.

this post was filed under Production Diaries on Jul 27, 2007