Editor’s note: This is the first in a three-part series on the “Living Record: A Church News Documentary Series” on BYUtv called “People of Faith.” Part 1 features pioneers from Brazil, and Part 2 tells the stories of pioneers from Hawaii. Part 3 highlights pioneers from the Philippines.
Standing inside her great-uncle’s home in Ponta Grossa, 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.
Violet Shibuta: A pioneer of autism awareness in Brazil
As someone who comes from a big family, Shibuta always dreamed of having a big family. When she found out she was pregnant with her first child, a daughter, she was thrilled.
“I had all this life planned for my daughter,” Shibuta said. “I always had a dream of her dancing ballet because I danced ballet when I was a child.”
When her daughter, Summer, was a few weeks old, Shibuta started noticing there was something different about her. As Summer grew, Shibuta researched some of her daughter’s unusual behaviors and determined she had autism. Shibuta received Summer’s official diagnosis when Summer was 2 years old.
Shibuta recalled: “I was so scared. … I started thinking, ‘Will she ever call me “Mom”? Will she be able to go to school? Will she be able to dance ballet?’”
Then other questions started to creep in: “What did I do wrong? Why me? Why with Summer? Why with my family?” she said.
Shibuta credits her husband, Marcel Stefanini, for helping her navigate the emotions and move forward. He reminded her, “Summer is here, and she needs us.” Together they found a therapist and other resources to help Summer with her social and language skills.
“Every decision, every step, I was praying. … I started realizing if God has given Summer to me, I know I can handle it,” Shibuta said.
Now, several years later, Summer communicates well in Portuguese and English, she attends school, and she dances ballet — everything Shibuta hoped for her daughter and more.
“We are very grateful because it wasn’t an easy journey. ... I’m here right now because of my faith. I think Summer is here because of our family’s faith,” Shibuta said, referencing her great-grandmother’s example.
As Shibuta gained confidence in helping her daughter succeed, she desired to help other families who have children with autism feel a sense of confidence too. “If I can use my voice and use Summer’s voice to help other people, then I’m going to do it,” she said.
Shibuta began recording videos of her and Summer talking in Portuguese about autism and posting them on social media. “All of a sudden we had this huge community watching our videos and learning about autism,” Shibuta said.
One day she received a message from a mother who had recently learned of her son’s autism diagnosis. “She told me that because of me, she wasn’t scared. Because of me, she didn’t cry. She didn’t have to be worried, because she knew that everything was going to be OK,” Shibuta said.
For Shibuta, messages like this are an answer to prayer. “It really makes me feel that God is answering my question of ‘Why me?’ because I was going to be able to help other people. ...
“Being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Brazil, people say, ‘Oh, you have something special about you.’ And I know that this special thing is my faith.”
Marcos Rossi: No hands or feet but a life of gratitude
Nearly 1,700 miles away on the other side of Brazil, Marcos Rossi rolls out onto the balcony of his home overlooking the beautiful beaches of Natal. He stretches out his upper limbs in his specialized wheelchair, taking in the sunshine and ocean air.
For Rossi, living in the moment is “a powerful tool.”
“Every day, I thank God [for] being born in this body because I know the size of my mission,” Rossi said.
Rossi was born with a rare congenital disorder called Hanhart syndrome that prevented his arms and legs from fully developing. Doctors said he would have a short life expectancy.
“They said I would not get far, and they were wrong,” Rossi said.
Being created in the image of God “means that you have power to create your life,” Rossi explained. “No physical body can determine what you’re going to do in your life. This is how God operates. You do your part and let Him do the rest.”
Rossi’s perspective and testimony have been shaped by various moments in his life.
He recalled being a young teenager and trying to talk to a girl he was interested in. Her response was demeaning and hurtful — words Rossi described as “a punch in the stomach.”
He’ll never forget his father’s counsel after that happened. “Marcos, what are the two most powerful words in the universe?” his father asked. “‘I am.’ Everything you say after ‘I am’ you are.”
Rossi continued the story about his father: “He put me in front of the mirror, and he said, ‘Look into your own eyes and say out loud, “Who are you?”’”
It was then Rossi learned that “every word has meaning and energy.”
Now, decades later, Rossi still looks at himself in the mirror every day and repeats “I am” statements. “I am a child of God.” “I am loved by the Creator.” “I am happy.” “I was born to be happy.”
Rossi said these “I am” statements have helped him become more confident and create the life he wants to live. He is grateful for the conviction he has gained through the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Rossi was introduced to the Church as a young father. Missionaries came to his home and invited him to read part of the Book of Mormon and pray to know if what he read was true. When the missionaries left, Rossi put the book in a drawer, expecting not to feel anything.
Later he found himself alone in his room and decided to start reading the Book of Mormon. He felt a warmth and peace that were difficult to describe.
“I opened it again the next day, and I felt it again,” Rossi recalled. “And on the next day, again, again and again.”
The feelings he experienced while reading the Book of Mormon prompted him to change, he said.
“I got baptized, and I decided to really be closer to God. That changed everything — changed my relationships at home, changed my business, changed everything. ...
“Being a part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is an opportunity to serve more, to help other people.”
Rossi soon became involved with public speaking. In 2018, world-renowned motivational speaker Tony Robbins came to Brazil, and Rossi was invited to open for him on stage. Robbins then invited Rossi to travel and speak with him.
Rossi’s message to listeners is simple but transformative: “Nothing is impossible.”
“I love life, I love God,” Rossi said. “I learned gratitude is the antidote of fear. Gratitude is the antidote of suffering. To me, prayer is gratitude.”
Carlos Martins: Preaching the gospel through daily actions
On a chilly overcast day in Curitiba, Brazil, Carlos Martins warmly embraces the man who introduced his father to the gospel more than 50 years earlier.
“I can tell you were an angel of God in his life because he had his heart ready to hear the truth,” Martins tells José Ataides. “We have immense gratitude for you.”
Martins shows Ataides a photo of the Martins family the day they were baptized — his father, his mother, his six siblings and him.
“This little photo, … it exists because of you,” Martins told Ataides.
Martins grew up in the outskirts of Curitiba, located in the state of Paraná, with loving parents who were concerned about how they could raise their children with Christian principles. “They were searching for the truth,” said Martins, who now lives in Campinas, in the Brazilian state of São Paulo.
One day Martins’ father, Antônio Martins, entered an elevator in the city to visit a client. Antônio Martins noticed the elevator operator was reading a book he presumed to be the Bible. The elevator operator, José Ataides, told him it was the Book of Mormon and asked if he could send missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to his home. Antônio Martins agreed.
The next week, two missionaries came.
Martins said the missionaries brought his parents the spiritual answers they were looking for. They also instilled in young Carlos’ mind a desire to study at a university in the United States and become a successful businessman.
“Thanks to the support and inspiration of Heavenly Father, I was accepted at Brigham Young University,” Martins said.
After graduating from BYU, Martins returned to Brazil to start a business of English-learning schools. He was busy during his first year, often leaving for work early in the morning and returning after his wife and children were asleep.
One day, he came home late to a letter from his wife, Vânia, on the kitchen table. In the letter, she expressed her love to him and how he needed to spend more time with the family.
“I knew that she was completely right,” Carlos Martins said. “That letter was really a turning point in my career. From here on, I could have my priorities straight.”
When Carlos Martins reflects on major decisions in their life, he can see Vânia has had a big influence. “It was her that had the inspiration that we could serve as a family,” he said.
From 2018 to 2020, Carlos and Vânia Martins served a humanitarian mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the border of Brazil and Venezuela. “We assisted over 20,000 refugees,” he said.
After returning home from their humanitarian mission, Carlos and Vânia Martins received a call to serve as social media missionaries in Brazil. By sharing their testimonies online and holding frequent live devotionals, they have been instrumental in countless individuals joining The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“Thousands and thousands of people have watched the program online,” Carlos Martins said. “They have asked for missionaries to come to their home. They have attended meetings. They have accepted the gospel.”
Martins thinks often about Ataides’ example and how he blessed generations of Martins’ family. “I have always kept a sense of gratitude in my heart for Brother José Ataides from Curitiba. It was thanks to his willingness to share the gospel that made all the difference.”
Like Ataides, “we need to preach the gospel every day,” Martins said. “Our actions, our attitude will speak much louder than our words.”
The Church in Brazil
The Church first arrived in Brazil in 1913 through German converts. For many years, German immigrants made up the main body of the Church. In 1939, Portuguese became the official language of the Church in Brazil, and 16,000 people were baptized in less than a decade.
Brazilians across the country continued to embrace the gospel, and in 1966, the first stake in South America was established in São Paulo. Brazil’s first temple — the São Paulo Brazil Temple — was announced in 1975.
Today, Brazil is home to 11 operating temples and more than 1.5 million members in nearly 2,100 congregations. Brazil has the third-highest number of Latter-day Saints, after the United States and Mexico.
The late President Russell M. Nelson, 17th President of the Church, said in 2017: “Brazil is part of the heart of the Church.”
Correction: The first stake in South America was established in São Paulo in 1966, not 1956, as previously stated.
