Alumni Spotlight April 2012: Chrisian Hsieh
Christian Hsieh [Hospitality and Tourism ‘03] has a strong testimony of the blessings obtained by following the counsel in Doctrine and Covenants 6:7 to “seek not for riches but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you…” This testimony grew stronger through his experience at Brigham Young University–Hawaii. Christian served his mission in the California Arcadia Mission from 1998-2000, and before his mission he wasn’t quite sure he would return to college after completing his mission. But through the encouragement of his Hawaiian mission president Les Steward, who now serves as a stake patriarch in Laie, Christian made the decision to attend BYU–Hawaii in January of 2001. Christian says he never regrets making the decision to attend BYU–Hawaii because of how immensely enriched his life became because of the university.
Christian married his sweetheart Michelle, both of whom were raised in Taiwan, in December of 2000, and a month later they headed to Hawaii for what they like to call their “three year honeymoon.” While attending, Christian worked at the Polynesian Cultural Center and sat on the Student Advisory Council. Christian graduated in 2003 with a major in Hospitality and Tourism and a minor in Accounting. His first job after college was as a marketing manager for a multi-national specialty chemical company in Shanghai. The Hsiehs then moved to Utah to work with a start-up company for creative consumer-packaging products for large retailers, where he was able to work with retail, scrapbooking, media, and film industries. He also had the opportunity to visit hundreds of factories in China to oversee new product development and production. Christian then went on to obtain an MBA at the Marriott School. Currently he is employed in a banking and investment advisory for one of the Wall Street banks base in Singapore and has much success in his work.
Christian knows he gained much from his experience at BYU–Hawaii. While attending the university he received many scholarships that helped support his family. Now, he and Michelle love to give back to the scholarship fund on a periodic basis as a way of showing gratitude and to continue the support of the university. The Hsiehs grew to love spending time at the ocean together as a family while living in Hawaii, and Christian developed a strong passion for surfing that led him to surf in Florida, Taiwan, Indonesia, and Thailand. The Hsiehs also love traveling together and spending time in the outdoors where they can find the greatest peace.
Christian and his wife Michelle and their ten-year-old daughter Danielle are all very grateful for the church in their life, and they give much service through it. Christian is now serving in the stake high council and Michelle is serving as Primary President. Both Christian and Michelle dedicate time to translating, and Michelle has been a contracted translator for the Church for fifteen years. Their daughter Danielle is very focused on her studies but loves to pass the rest of her time playing either violin or ukulele. Recently, Christian had the opportunity to trace his family line to 823 B.C., and he is extremely grateful to have the privilege of completing temple ordinances for his family. He also looks forward to his future generations and knows that true happiness comes through the gospel of Jesus Christ.
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