A guiding light for a child’s education.

02 — The story behind the name

A joyful heart. A curious mind.

Sidney himself coined the name SIMOCA, bringing together the first two letters of each part of his name: SIdney, MOen, and CAiro. He consistently used SIMOCA Films in his short videos and films as the name of the company he dreamed of establishing, bringing together his passions for photography, filmmaking, and storytelling. Today, the Foundation carries forward a name he created, honouring both his creative spirit and his quiet generosity.

Sidney Moen Cairo was born on May 14, 1999, in Saipan, in the Northern Mariana Islands. On July 10, 2004, he and his family immigrated to Winnipeg, Manitoba, beginning a new chapter together.

Growing up, Sidney was a happy, inquisitive child who loved books, history, and conversation. His parents affectionately remember him as a chatterbox, always talking, asking questions, and sharing what was on his mind. He was eager to learn more about the world and to talk about what he discovered. His parents nurtured that curiosity through travel, taking family trips around the world two or three times a year so he could experience different cultures and deepen his understanding of other people’s traditions and ways of life.

Sidney’s understanding of different cultures and nationalities also grew through the international students his family welcomed into their Winnipeg home. Ramon and Clarisa began hosting in September 2011. They hosted Estuardo Villagran in 2012 from the beginning of February to the end of June. Over the years, they welcomed students participating in high school exchange programs, completing senior high school, or pursuing university degrees. Their decision had two intentional purposes: to give Sidney the experience of sharing home life with siblings, and to offer students living far from home the warmth and support of a family setting.

Over the years, the family hosted students from China, Korea, Japan, Spain, Italy, Pakistan, Germany, Brazil, Mexico, India, Ghana, and Guatemala. Sharing everyday life with students from different backgrounds deepened Sidney’s appreciation of other people and cultures. He used to say that he had “brothers from all over the world.” After some students returned to their home countries, the Cairo family visited their families there, extending those connections beyond the students’ time in Winnipeg. The family stopped accepting new homestay students after Sidney’s passing on June 27, 2020. Saad Bin Mustaque, a student from Pakistan who lived with the family for more than six years, extended his stay until October 2021.

His love of learning began early. On August 24, 2003, at four years old, Sidney started pre-kindergarten at Brilliant Star Montessori in Saipan. His parents remember how excited and happy he was to begin, and how eagerly he shared what he had learned each day.

After the family moved to Winnipeg, Sidney attended Montessori Academy for pre-kindergarten, followed by Chancellor School from Grades 1 through 6. He continued at St. Maurice Catholic School for Grades 7 and 8, then attended St. Paul’s High School, an all-boys Catholic, Jesuit school in Winnipeg, from Grades 9 through 12.

Sidney went on to the University of Manitoba, pursuing a Bachelor of Arts with a major in History as his path toward studying law. At the time of his passing, he was in his third year, continuing the love of history and learning that had been with him since childhood.

Sidney had a deep passion for photography as well as filmmaking. He collected vintage film cameras, reflecting his interest in photography’s earlier tools and traditions. His creative ambitions extended to the company he hoped to build, SIMOCA Films. He loved James Bond films and collected the complete series—sometimes owning more than one copy of the same film. He watched them repeatedly, not simply for entertainment, but to study how films were made: the cinematography, storytelling, pacing, characters, and many small details that come together to create a memorable movie. His father came to understand that these repeated viewings were part of Sidney’s way of learning his craft.

Sidney dreamed of studying filmmaking in California. His father supported that dream but asked him to earn a bachelor’s degree first, encouraging him to choose a path toward engineering, law, or medicine before pursuing filmmaking. He wanted Sidney to have a solid educational foundation and a dependable alternative if a career in film did not work out. Sidney chose law and pursued a Bachelor of Arts in History at the University of Manitoba as his pre-law path, with the understanding that he could pursue his love of filmmaking afterward. Throughout his university studies, photography and filmmaking remained central to his creative life. He created many short films and creative video clips of his own, some of which his family hopes to preserve and share as part of his lasting creative legacy.

Sidney loved people. His parents remember how easily the people he met became his friends. Friendly and warm, he treated everyone with respect and listened closely when others spoke. His special regard for elders reflected the Filipino values that came so naturally to him. He had natural leadership qualities and a sense of humour that were part of his warm, engaging personality.

Many friends and others who knew Sidney described him affectionately as an “old soul”: someone whose thoughtfulness and outlook seemed mature beyond his years. His love of history, appreciation for older films and cameras, and consideration for other people help give that description meaning. Alongside this reflective side was the lively, talkative young man his family knew, with his curiosity, humour, and enjoyment of conversation.

Even as a young child, Sidney showed a thoughtful concern for other people’s feelings. When he had a personal observation about someone, he would often wait until the family was home to share it privately with his parents. He did not want his words to hurt or embarrass anyone.

That same consideration was reflected in his quiet generosity. Only after his passing did his family discover that he had been sponsoring girls in Peru and El Salvador, when letters and messages from the sponsored children arrived. His parents continued that support for another three and a half years.

On June 27, 2020, while hiking with his family at Riding Mountain National Park, Sidney suddenly collapsed. He did not recover and passed away en route to Neepawa Hospital. He was 21 years old.

SIMOCA Foundation carries his name and his spirit forward through a commitment to children’s education: honouring a young man who loved learning, welcomed people, and cared about the lives of others.

Remembered by his parents, Ramon and Clarisa Cairo.