Valedictory Speech

June Clarisse B. Canguilan

Valedictorian, Class 2010-2011
San Gabriel Elementary School
San Gabriel, Tuguegarao City

Our Guest of Honor, Atty. Salvador C. Malana, Jr.; DepEd Officials, both
from the Division and District Offices present this morning; our very active
principal, Ma’am Vissia Asuncion and the whole teaching staff of SGES; our very
dynamic barangay officials led by the Honorable Barangay Chairman, Marcelo
Narag, the very supportive officers of SGES Parents-Teachers Association; the
proud parents, grandparents and other relatives who really made sure they are
around to witness today’s Commencement Exercise; fellow graduates and other
pupils of SGES; friends, ladies and gentlemen, Good Morning.

There are many reasons to be thankful for, and today is one of them. At
the outset, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all of you for attending
our program. First and foremost, I thank God for making this day possible. I
thank HIM for all the blessings and for bestowing upon us, good health, so that
we would all be present here today . This is also an opportunity for me to thank
all our mentors for patiently imparting their knowledge, talents and skills so that
we could successfully complete our elementary grades and prepare us for the
next level of learning – the secondary education. On behalf of all the graduates,
let me also express our gratitude to all our parents and guardians who have
always been so supportive of us, be it morally, emotionally, spiritually, physically
and of course, financially. Through thick and thin, through good times or bad
times, even when we think our best friends have forgotten us, our parents are
always behind us. To all of you, thank you so much. But, given this chance, let me
single out my parents, Quirino Dupaya Canguilan, Jr. and Nerissa Balisi-Canguilan
who must be the proudest parents at the moment, for all your hardships Daddy
and Mommy, I dedicate this honor to you. If I had the chance to live my life all
over again, I would still choose you to be my parents. You brought me to this
world and to a great extent, have molded me into what I have become. Thank
you and I love you.

Our theme for this year’s Commencement Exercise is “The Graduate: A

Partner Towards Transformational Society. An Answer to Societal Change.” To
my young mind, this may yet be very difficult to comprehend and fully understand
the underlying meaning. But as I pondered upon it, I think I can also share my
thoughts about it from the point of view of an elementary grades graduate.

At 11 or 12, the task of bringing about transformation in our society may

seem to be a huge task for us. For some, this may leave us asking ourselves,
“Bata pa ako, may magagawa ba ako para sa pagbabago ng lipunan?“ ; still, for
others the question in their minds may be “kung ang mga matatanda nga, walang
ginagawa para makatulong sa pagbabago, ako pa kaya?”. Sure, these questions
and many more may trouble our young minds but I challenge you, fellow
graduates to listen and think about what I have to say. Every person, young or old
alike, have a stake in societal change. As aptly said by our national Hero, Dr. Jose
Rizal, “The Youth is the hope of our fatherland.” “Ang Kabataan ang Pag-asa ng
Bayan”. Let us understand the meaning of the theme by relating it with Jose
Rizal’s famous saying.

So what can we do? Let us reflect upon ourselves and analyze what traits
and values we have. Let us ask ourselves, what have we done in the past that
may have elicited the ire of our parents and teachers. If our actions, the words
we have uttered and the decisions we have made have made them mad, then we
must have done something wrong. If it was wrong, then it must not be within the
norms and standards of society. If not, then we have to change them. Change
must start from us. Change must start while we are still young. I can still
remember a verse from the Bible which I have memorized since I was in pre-
school which goes this way: “Train up a child in the way he should go and when
he or she grows old, he will old, he or she will not depart from it.” Indeed my
friends, who should know your habits but you. Who should know better who you
are but you. We are not getting younger. As we grow old, let us become better
citizens by becoming better sons and daughters first and everything else will
follow.

We can help in the transformation of our society by making ourselves

better citizens. Young or old, boy or girl, let us be inspired by what our President,
His Excellency Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III tells us “Samahan Niyo Akong sa
Pagtahak sa Matuwid Na Daan.”

In closing, I share you this saying that I have read “ Watch out your
thoughts, they become your actions. Watch out your actions, they become your
habits. Watch out your habits they become your character. Watch out your
character, that becomes your destiny.”

Ladies and gentlemen, twenty years from now, we shall come back to this
Alma Mater of ours. We hope you will still be around to see what we would have
become. We will make you our parents and mentors proud of us. Once again,
good morning and thank you so much.