"Distinguished guests, Sister Leonor Pagorogon, O.P., President of the Holy Trinity College; Sister Concepta Roque, O.P., Superior of the Dominican Sisters; Mr. Greg Wangerin, UNHCR Field Officer for Palawan; Captain Oscar Calingasan, our PFAC Officer-in-Charge; Sister Tomasa Rivera, O.P., Our School Coordinator; Heads of various Volunteer Agencies working in Philippine First Asylum Center; my dear co-teachers, assistant teachers and interpreters, students, parents, and all of you who are gathered here. Good afternoon.
Welcome to the twenty-second culminating activities of the Holy Trinity College, PFAC School for Children. Another highly successful term has passed and we are here, once again, celebrating the achievements of our beloved Vietnamese brothers and sisters. Although our students are in the most difficult times of their lives, being away from their homeland and families, they continue to strive and look forward to the future with optimism and courage. Their positivity inspires me and the many volunteers who came all the way from different countries to unselfishly offer their services in order to make a difference in other people's lives. Thank you very much, volunteer agencies on behalf of the Vietnamese Refugees. I am truly inspired by your generosity.
Our program is divided into two parts. The first part will be the awarding of ribbons to the honor students from the different levels and the awarding of certificates to those who have successfully completed the three-month module of the Advanced Level. The second part of the program will be a short musical entitled "A CHILD'S DREAM". This musical presentation is comprised of seven different dances skillfully choreographed by the teachers.
Our main objective in our school is to prepare our students for lives in the Western Countries by teaching them survival English to arm them with the necessary communication skills that they may need as they embark in their new lives in the United States, Canada, Australia, England, New Zealand etc. We all know that language alone is not enough to survive in their third countries so we teachers try our best to expose our students to performing arts to help them develop their self confidence. Making them stand in front of you today is already a great achievement. We hope that through these activities we may be able to give them courage and to overcome their fear.
On behalf of our school coordinator, I would like to extend my profound gratitude to Greg Wangerin and to the heads of all volunteer agencies and most especially to my co-teachers, who are working very hard for the benefit of our Vietnamese brothers and sisters. Without your cooperation and support, we will not be able to accomplish our goals here in the camp.
Once again, thank you very much, sit back, relax and enjoy the program."
ANDREW TAYLOR
HTC-PFAC School Graduation Ceremony
Summer 1986
