Go For It!

: Class 2015 Grade 6 Valedictory Speech - Cuitlauzina Cerbito

Introduction:

After all those days of wondering, wondering if we would make it to the end, FINALLY,
HERE WE ARE AT THIS VERY MOMENT THAT marks the summit of our journey.
Graduating class of 2014-2015, PLEASE join me in welcoming our guests. To our guest
of honor, Ms. Melizza Soriano, to our Chief Executive Mentor, Dr. Genevieve Ledesma-
Tan, to our school President, Dr. Marl V. Ferenal, to our Principal for Basic Education,
Ms. Marie-Vic Suarez, the management team, school officials, honored guests,
dedicated teachers, beloved parents and fellow graduates, a pleasant morning to all OF
YOU!

General Gratitude:

On behalf of every student here, I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to all the
teachers and mentors we’ve had in life. You are the candles that light the way. Thank
you for using your precious time and wisdom for us. You HAVE taught us and still are
teaching us to achieve excellence. You help us on our way to success. I believe that
we’re a much better person NOW than we would have been had we not met all of you. I
would also like to thank all the parents for your endless support and patience for all of
us. You have lovingly cared for us all these years and set the foundation for our future.
There are not enough words to express how thankful all of us are.

Change:

March 27, 2015. A MARK IN OUR HISTORIES THAT COMMEMORATES the hard
work... of not just the graduates, but also the teachers and parents. It is a very special
day that won’t be forgotten even if we leave Southville. Today, we acknowledge and
give recognition to the people we’ve met, the lessons we’ve learned, the tears, the
laughter, and the memories we’ve shared in our years as grade school students. For
everything we take with us, there is something that we leave behind. This school year
was filled with fond memories. It gave us good and also bad experiences. It taught us
many things. Most of us, if not all, are brimming with joy that we’re finally done with it,
that it’s all over now. But it isn’t. With every door shut, opens another. Now, this isn’t
necessarily a bad thing.

Today, we show our teachers, our parents, and ourselves that we’re evolving out of our
baby stage. Today, we show the world that we are ready to take on the next stage of
our academic life: High School. All this is possible because of everyone here and all
who are lovingly taking care of all of us. So, thank you.

Personal Gratitude:

I AM ALSO TAKING THIS OPPORTUNITY TO THANK THE SPECIAL PEOPLE... who

have made my achievements possible. I might not be able to mention all of you by
name, but know that I am a million fold times grateful to everyone who has put me on
this stage today.

To my adviser Ms. Juvy, I am so grateful of your honesty, sincerity, and giving your best
to us. Thank you to my SLGE teacher, Sir Raphael (Bruce) Fernando for sharing stories
and memories with me, and guiding me, aside from being a great teacher. Thank you
too, to my English teacher, Ms. Rhea Abat. No matter how rowdy the class was, you still
kept your stand. Thank you for being so understanding to all your students. It's like
we're your children. To Ms. Botalon, my Science teacher, thank you for making this year
great, and managing the whole Grade 6, while still being a teacher.

Not just all these names mentioned, I would like to thank every single teacher for
changing lives, and helping me learn more. Whether in Southville, or not, a certified
educator, or just a simple person I receive guidance from, thank you. You HAVE
instilled a love of learning in me. You HAVE helped me grow and guided me. And I’m
sure, many other people too.

To all my friends, classmates or not, thank you very much. Arizah, Kyela, Yannikka, AV,
Stefano, Andy, and Inigo thank you for sticking with me. Thank you for believing in me
even when I didn’t believe in myself. Thank you for having my back all the time. You
guys made me feel that I have a big wonderful family.

A great thank you from my heart to my parents. To my wonderful, beautiful mother,

Cynthia Cerbito for all the immeasurable love, care and time, effort and discipline you
are providing and building for me. Without you, mom, I could not make Valedictorian
possible. I hope I made you happy today. Thank you so much FOR putting up with my
antics, FOR your patience, and for waking me up each morning and preparing all the
things I need.

To my biological dad, Louis Goh Co, thank you so much, I mean it. I hope and pray that
we will see you soon.

I’m also forever grateful to my stepfather Terrence Lee Gildred for all the love, care and
support. You dreamed to have a more beautiful life with us, planned and brought us
here in Southville in preparing us to go outside the country, to have the finest education,
and be a happy family. And hey dad, we made it, I got valedictorian!

Success:

I am greatly honored to stand before all of you today as the Valedictorian of Class 2015,
not only because of the awards that I have received but because I’m also part of an
amazing batch - a batch that has achieved so much, a batch with so many different
personalities and talented people, maybe in big ways, and maybe in little. Some people
think that getting the highest award is so far beyond their dreams. Some people think
that it’s an easy feat, if you were born with the ability to skillfully memorize the whole
periodic table, and read the whole series of encyclopedic books. I may not be the right
person to give advice right now, maybe when I’m 70, I can give you better. But I will
share my experience, and what I have learned from it. First off, it isn’t an easy feat in
reality. There’s competition everywhere, there’s that pressure, and there’s just so many
things going on. Sometimes in the middle of trying to achieve goals, not just on getting
valedictorian, but goals in general, you will want to give up. Your body is saying, “I’m so
tired already...”, your mind will say, “You won’t get it anyway. Just give up.” This mindset
of quitting just adds to the obstacles on achieving goals. There’s one thing that I learned
in life: In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity. I’ve noticed that, when I’m in a tight
situation, I almost never notice, that there’s that open door, just there in the corner. I
don’t really realize that I can do something. That I can still achieve. The only time that I
have ever realized this is when I WANT to reach my goal. A friend once told me, “You
never know how far you’ve gotten when you give up.” Second off, it isn’t just achieved
with talent. It is in the mind, heart, and soul. Talent is useless without a strong mind and
the passion to achieve. Your goals might be far when you look at it now, but the first
step of trying is one step closer to your goal. There is no such thing as a small act,
every act creates a ripple with no end.

Fear, it can be wisdom, or it can be an obstacle. I say, march through the years with
courage driven by your passions. Each one of us here is born with the potential, the
spark waiting to be ignited, to achieve. It will be a confusing and bumpy road, but trudge
on, warrior. Every great hero starts with a small spark. Achievements do not have to be
grandeur, but what matters, is that you’re fighting for something worth fighting for. No
matter how small the difference, you are making way one step closer to success. Be
queer, be quirky, be odd, don’t let anyone ruin your dreams. Remember that, even if it is
hard to see in the midst of the chaos and confusion, the only thing stopping you is
yourself. MY FELLOW GRADUATES, Go for it.

Still don’t feel like it?

Well let me tell you something.

President Theodore Roosevelt once said, ‘Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win
glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to remain with those poor
spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight
that knows not victory nor defeat.'

Thank you, and have a wonderful morning!

Jeannie Rose I. Santos, 1st Honors, SY 2012-2013, Magdalena ES, Claveria East
District, Division of Cagayan

and

Earl John P. Santos, 1st Honors, SY 2012-2013, Namuac-San Andres ES, Sanchez
Mira District, Division of Cagayan)

Today features another milestone in the lives of graduating pupils like us. It is a
day to celebrate and it is a day to mourn. A celebration because after 6 long years of
acquiring our basic education, we are now ready to move forward one step higher in the
ladder of our quest to greater level of educational heights. Today is a mournful day
because we are leaving/ the portals of our dear Alma Mater which cradled us when we
were still little young boys and girls wanting to be involved in the daily school activities.

As I stand before you today, I am faced with the challenges of the fast changing
time. Our theme “Building the Nation’s Future Leaders through K to 12 Basic Education
Program” imposes a great task to fulfill ahead. Yes, it is true that the present generation
will soon take the lead in the future. We will soon be a part of a society where
competition will be more rigid than now. There will be more struggles in the job
opportunities, the acquisition of the basic necessities of life, and most of all, the
response to the changing needs of the global market. Thanks to the government!
Through the K to 12 curriculum, we will be kept abreast of the needed skills and
knowledge/to open wider opportunities for employment here and abroad. We will be
prepared to combat the battles that may come our way. We will be transformed into
more responsible, more competent and more skilled individuals ready to conquer the
world in its narrowest sense.

My fellow graduates, we cannot deny that not everyone of us will continue the
course of our studies and earn a college degree. But we can still be leaders in our
simplest ways. Applying the self-discipline and basic competencies offered by the K to
12 program will lead us to a brighter future/ and be a part of developing a society where
everybody enjoys the gift of living.

But before we finally leave the center stage of Magdalena Elementary

School/Namuac San Andres Elementary School, we would like to thank the personas
who have turned us to what we are now.

To our beloved parents, saan nga mabusbos nga panagyaman ti ipaaymi

kadakayo nanang ken tatang. Gapu iti adu nga sakripisyo ken ayatyo siraragsak dagiti
puspusomi nga mangawat ti diploma nga mangipaneknek nga addan kamin kadagiti
umuna nga bala a pangsaranget kadagiti ad-adu pay a karit iti panagadalmi. Dawatenmi
ngarud nga itultuloy dakami nga suportaran tapno maragpatmi dagiti ar-arapaapmi para
kadakayo iti daytoy a biag..

To our teachers, we are forever grateful for the sacrifices and selfless services
you have given us. itan nga maamirismi nga dagiti panangung-unget yo kadakami ket
para met laeng iti pagsayaatanmi. The knowledge and skills you have taught us will be
our armor and shield in facing the world with head up high. Thank you very much for the
opportunities you have given us to develop our full potentials and abilities.

To our friends and schoolmates, we are about to part ways to find the right track
that lies ahead. We will forever cherish the memories both laughter and pain we shared
together. But I know deep within my heart we may be miles away, we will always be
there in one accord chasing the impossible dreams that are planned for us.

To our dear Magdalena Elementary School/Namuac-San Andres Elementary

School, thank you very much for caring us for six long years. Now that we are leaving
you, we can not help/ but to carry with us the victories we have with you. the Class of
2013 will leave you a legacy which will forever be etched in your history as an institution
of basic education. The 15 graduates are proud to say that we have created a history
and set a record having produced the school’s first qualifiers to the Division and
Regional Schools Press Conference. Thanks to our coaches Sir Bernaldo, Mam Resty,
Mam Renalyn and Mam Jeannie

To all of you who in one way or the other helped us become what we are now,
our heartfelt gratitude.

Above all, the Almighty Father for the gift of life, the wisdom and the expertise
you have bestowed upon us. We pray earnestly that you continue to guide us as we
follow the direction towards the attainment of our dreams.

To this end, I urged my fellow graduates to be one with me in giving back the
honor and glory due to everyone who had molded us to what we have become. We can
be leaders in our own little way. Kaya ba natin ito? (yes we can!) kayang-kaya basta
sama-sama.