Tribute to Mother In Law - Ruta Pata Sauni Pu'efua

We miss and love you Mom Ruta Sauni Puefua. You have been a pillar of STRENGTH & FAITH to our family. We miss your laughter, your beautiful voice when you sing, and your company but thank you for all the wonderful memories. We cry tears of sadness because we miss you being here physically yet we also cry tears of happiness because we know you're no longer in pain and especially because we know you are celebrating reuniting with Grandma & your brothers. We thank God that we were fortunate to have you in our lives. We will do our best to live the Gospel principles as you have taught us through your examples. Alofa'aga e le uma mo oe le Tina Peleina. Ia manuia tele lau malaga!

Tribute to Mom Ruta Pata Sauni - Pu'efua (by Andy Pu'efua)

I still can't believe you're gone, mom. I love you so much! You are my hero! I am who I am because of you and I want the world to know how much you cared and loved us as well as others. Even though you're physically gone, YOU will always be in my heart. Every moment we shared will be cherished and remembered. I will definitely miss your beautiful voice. Hearing you sing was the most pleasant and warming thing to me even to this day. Thank you for everything, mom! Thank you for raising and caring for me. Thank you for your never ending words of wisdom. Thank you for loving me and my brothers and sisters and THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME LIFE!!

Our lives didn't begin at birth and they won't end at death. Before we came to earth, our spirits lived with Heavenly Father who created us. We knew Him, and He knew and loved us. It was a time during which we were taught God's plan of happiness and the path to true joy. But just as most of us leave our home and parents when we grow up, God knew we needed to do the same. He knew we couldn't progress further until we experienced mortal life. So He allowed us to come to earth to experience the joy—as well as pain—of a physical body.

One thing that makes this life hard at times is that we're out of God's physical presence. Not only that, but we can't remember our pre-earth life which means we have to "walk by faith, not by sight". God didn't say it would be easy, but He promised His spirit would be there when we needed Him. Even though it feels like it sometimes, we're not alone in our journey.

Moms favorite song: "He Touched Me"

Shackled by a heavy burden, 'Neath a load of guilt and shame. Then the hand of Jesus touched me, And now I am no longer the same. He touched me, Oh He touched me, And oh the joy that floods my soul! Something happened and now I know, He touched me and made me whole. Since I met this blessed Savior, Since He cleansed and made me whole, I will never cease to praise Him, I'll shout it while eternity rolls. He touched me, Oh He touched me, And oh the joy that floods my soul! Something happened and now I know He touched me and made me whole.

From all of us: Dad, Me, Milla and kids, Adeleen and family, Sandra, Lola and family, Kelly and family, Adrian and family, Arthur, Jasmine and your baby Antoine....WE LOVE AND MISS YOU SO MUCH, MOM! TILL WE MEET AGAIN. R.I.P

Future TUIFALASA'I NFL Playa!

Last Friday night our Piedmont team faced Samuel Hancock a new football powerhouse from Stockton, which was loaded with more talent than we have seen at the high school level in 23 years of coaching. They had 4 amazing running backs and two huge linebackers that are all headed for full ride D1 scholarships. On the line we were outweighed by over 60 pounds a man. The team Samuel Hancock played a week earlier was so thoroughly wiped out, they were only able to manage a sole first down on offense towards the end of the game.In the first half our team traded punch after punch with Hancock. Their offense broke huge plays on our defense and we kept them off balance with a dizzying array of A-11 execution. Their 6-5 260 pound middle linebacker landed a thundering one armed club tackle on our quarterback that was something out of a movie. Our quarterback came right back and stung their defense with a perfectly placed fade for 40 yards. With a few minutes left in the half, we brought down the house with a perfectly executed double pass for a touchdown that put us up 27-20. Hancock came back and scored a quick touchdown to tie it up and cap one of the most exciting halves of football ever played at Piedmont.We knew the challenge we were up against the previous Saturday upon looking at the film of Samuel Hancock and there was nothing we could do except prepare for a brutal football game and “believe we could win”. That was our mantra the entire week of practice as we upped the toughness of hitting drills and intensity of our scrimmage sessions. We kept the pressure on the kids and demanded quick execution as we installed our “Einstein” no-huddle tempo. Our players rose to the occasion and as we left the locker room to hit the field every player believed we could win.That belief continued even as Hancock built a 21 point lead in the 3rd quarter. Our players kept executing our A-11 offense and put their defense on their heels. Our kids never believed we were out of it and hit another fade to cut the Hancock lead to 34-48. After scoring their final touchdown to make the score 61-34, Hancock was preparing to kick off. There was only 2:18 left in the game and what was amazing at that moment was our players could hardly wait to get back on the field and run more plays against their defense. Unfortunately we fumbled the kick-off and they ran the clock out to cap a great night for our team.Some might ask, “a great night in a loss?” Absolutely. The fact we ran our A-11 offense with command and hung 34 points on a team loaded with that much talent was a huge victory for our team. Without our A-11 Offense, Hancock would have trounced our team in similar fashion to their previous opponent. Instead, our players kept taking the fight to the Hancock players and even though the score doesn’t reflect it, gained more confidence as a team as the game wore on. The fact a team can develop in such a positive manner in a losing effort is one of the great lessons that playing football can give young men. Piedmont is going to be very dangerous the rest of the season.If anyone has a question about the value the A-11 Offense brings to the game of high school football, this game is a prime example of why the A-11 needs to stay. After watching this game and seeing how a physically outmatched team can keep it close against a superior opponent, there is no way anyone can justify their position that the A-11 is deceptive or a travesty of the game whatsoever. Would our detractors really prefer that a smaller and less talented team lose 80-0 with no first downs? You can judge for yourself by watching the game in its entirety "on demand" for free at www.a11network.com.
posted by COACH STEVE HUMPHRIES at 1:27 PM on Sep 14, 2008

This was an article written by the coach of the Piedmont football team. The lines in red refer to our soon to be PRO FOOTBALL PLAYA Lino Tuifalasa'i. Lino is my brother who is now a senior attending Samuel Hancock's private school. GO EAGLES!

Andy Jr learning how to write the letter A

My eldest son Andy Jr. learning to write his letter A's. He's a 3 year old in K-4 and he loves his teacher Leinati. At first he didn't like going to school because he's a shy kid. Now he loves to go because he gets to play with all the toys. AJ came home with his homework notebook and his teacher had written A's with a highliter and he was supposed to trace them. I got so excited watching him learn how to draw the first letter to his name. I realized then that my baby is no longer a baby. He's a big boy now and by the end of this week he should know how to write his name. My husband had taught him how to write the letter "n" yesterday when AJ came home from school. He loves to write and draw pictures now and gets excited to show everyone what he's written or drew. I'll post more pictures as he learns to write the other letters.