Samoana Integrated Learning Initiative - SAILI

We’re excited to share the release of a new article, “Landlocked Voyagers: Samoans in Utah at the Turn of the Twentieth Century,” featured in the Winter 2026 issue of the Utah Historical Quarterly. The piece explores the early presence of Samoans in Utah and traces the roots of a vibrant community that continues to help shape the state today.

Fa'afetai tele lava to the Utah Historical Society for their help in sharing this important history.

Landlocked Voyagers: Samoans in Utah at the Turn of the Twentieth Century — SAILI This publication expands the historical record while honoring the resilience, mobility, and cultural strength that have shaped Samoan communities across the Pacific and in Utah.

Our wayfinders spent the morning with the 6th grade voyagers .

With Tuloutele Celeste, students practiced using the star compass, gaining insight into traditional navigation. Tapena Fani guided hands-on lessons in tying knots and identifying the parts of the va‘a (canoe).

Fa‘afetai tele lava to PHA for welcoming us and helping share the knowledge of wayfinding with our youth. It was a beautiful morning of learning, connection, and cultural grounding.

We had a wonderful time at Pacific Heritage Academy Official Site. Your voyagers are amazing! Faafetai to all your administration, staff, and teachers for helping us create a wonderful space for learning. ❤️

Our Mighty Voyagers were able to learn so much from Wayfinders Celeste Ha’o and Fani Bruun! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us! Thank you Representative Jake Fitisemanu, Laneta, and Nu’u from SAILI for making this happen! We hope to have them back again! #WeAreMightyVoyagers #PacificHeritageAcademy #PHA #PHAOhana #Wayfinders #Hokulea #Gaualofa #Hikianalia @jakefitisemanu @celestehao @fanibruun

On Tuesday, we had the privilege of hearing from Fani Bruun, the Tautai o le Vasa (captain) of the Gaualofa. Fa’afetai tele lava, Tapeni Fani, for sharing your knowledge, experiences, and powerful message that resonates both on land and at sea:

We don't just carry culture, we live it, we breathe it, and the same values that guided our ancestors in living sustainably that respect for balance and relationship with the environment, are the very same values that guide us in traditional navigation.

Traditional navigation is not just about reading the stars or keeping the canoe alive. It's about keeping our heritage alive. The chants, the healing knowledge, the language, the wisdom of sustainability, and most importantly the ability to pass it on.

You listen, you feel, you engage.
This is wayfinding.

📷 Leilina Tilo

Fa’ataugali

The Samoan ‘alia were double-hulled sailing canoes, similar to the Fijian drua and Tongan kalia. One notable example, the Fa‘ataugali, was built in the 1800s in Safune, Savai‘i, and is still documented in several surviving photographs. In 1902, the Fa‘ataugali was brought to Apia as a planned gift for German Emperor Wilhelm II*. However, logistical and financial challenges, particularly the estimated 15,000 marks needed for shipping, prevented its transport. By 1911, the plan was abandoned, and the Fa’ataugali was likely dismantled.

*Mata’afa letter annotated by Hilke Thode-Arora, Museum Funf Kontinente

To kick off Utah Wayfinding Week, we highlighted some of the early Samoans who made the voyage to Utah, including young Samoans who came in search of educational opportunities. One of them was Ida Mae Thorn (Fa’ateaina Tamasepani), the first Samoan nurse to graduate from the LDS Hospital School of Nursing in 1918.

Charles Schwenke, the son of Charles Schwenke of Apia, Sāmoa, and Tilesa Taefuafua Tofilau, arrived in Utah in May 1905. He became the first person of Samoan ancestry to graduate from college in Utah, earning a degree in Zoology from Brigham Young Academy, now Brigham Young University, in 1914. In 1915, Roy Purcell graduated from Brigham Young University. He was a talented orator and vocalist and served as a student body officer.

Coming to a new land and succeeding in these ways was no small feat. Their stories remind us that the spirit of voyaging and wayfinding lives on, not just in canoes, but in classrooms, careers, and communities. These early Samoans navigated new worlds with courage and purpose, just as our ancestors did across the Pacific.

Photos were sourced from the Brigham Young Academy Banyan yearbooks and the Ida Mae Thorn folder in the Mary Hooper Blood Linford Photograph Collection at the J. Willard Marriott Library.

Wayfinding Week is just around the corner!
Join us in celebrating and reconnecting with our seafaring roots! Learn more at saili.org.

Fa’afetai KSL.com for highlighting this special week!

https://www.ksl.com/article/51318632/wayfinding-week-activities-aim-to-connect-pacific-islanders-with-their-seafaring-roots

Wayfinding Week activities aim to connect Pacific Islanders with their seafaring roots Wayfinding Week activities, organized by the Samoana Integrated Learning Initiative, are focused on connecting Pacific Islanders in Utah with their seafaring roots.

When not in active use, an outrigger canoe was pulled onshore and propped up to dry on wooden support beams, where it could be inspected for damages and prepared for its next expedition.

A person who is reliable and always ready to help and serve is compared to a proven canoe that is propped up and ready to sail at any time.

Join us for Utah Wayfinding Week rsvp for our free events at saili.org.

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We are so excited for Utah Wayfinding Week!

Journey with Tuloutele Celeste Manuia Haʻo as she shares an ancestral and personal voyage across ocean and identity—weaving together wayfinding, cultural revitalization, and the sacred responsibilities of a taupou living in diaspora into a powerful story of return, resilience, and renewal.

RSVP today at: https://www.saili.org/wayfinding-week/event-three-w9hld

Join us for Utah Roots Oceanic Routes featuring Jake Fitisemanu and Fealofani Bruun. Explore the rich history of Utah’s Samoan communities and the enduring wisdom of ancestral wayfinding.

RSVP today and check out our other Wayfinding Week Events at https://www.saili.org/wayfinding-week

Join us for an evening of wayfinding at Clark Planetarium on May 29th!

Admission is free, tickets required. Get your tickets at https://www.saili.org/wayfinding-week/tloa-rising-reconnecting-through-smoan-wayfinding