The second in a series of six public primary school graduations took place on the afternoon of Tuesday 20th June, 2023, as twenty-two Sixth Grade students of the Vivien Vanterpool Primary School, the Home of the Green Gathers, walked the aisle of the Ballroom of the Aurora Resort and Golf Club. The theme for this year’s ceremony was “Go Confidently in the Direction of Your Dreams”.
Moderating the programme was Teacher Malika Smith-Connor. She called on Mrs. Karen Morancie, the mother of one of the graduates, to offer a prayer, after which the National Song was rendered by Teacher Kaseem Thompson.
The school’s Principal, Mrs. Mavis Fleming-Webster, welcomed the audience. She stressed the significance of the theme, which was coined from a quote by Henry David Thoreau. She said that anyone who is moving forward for a particular purpose must be assured of what his or her goal is, while moving confidently towards it.
“We trust that you graduates are ready to move forward towards your goals,” she said. “We are immeasurably proud of you, for you have done a good job over the past seven years from Kindergarten to Grade Six. We have given equal opportunity to all of you so that you can realize your true potential. We want you to feel proud of yourself and be confident about the journey ahead.”
She told the graduates that their hard work had really paid off. “We have pushed you to work hard, and you did it. I do not regret having to push you so hard,” she said, “because that pushing has helped you to be here where you are today.”
Mr. David Christmas, Pastor of the Faith Baptist Church in the White Hill, delivered the Keynote Address. His inspirational message was focused on the graduates following their own dreams and not to allow someone else to dream for them. He used his father as an example of one whose dream was for him to become a doctor, but conversely, his passion was for flying and engineering and his ambition was to be a pilot, contrary to the desires of his Dad.
He reflected: “I decided to be man enough to have a conversation with my father in which I said being a doctor is your dream for me, Dad, but what about my dream? I had dreamt of flying planes; I dreamt of working as an engineer. And to cut a long story short, I have done both. All I needed from my Dad was his blessings…”
Turning to the parents, he said: “You have a dream for your children, I know, but they also have their own dreams. You are in their lives only in the capacity of supporting them and ensuring that they can confidently go in the direction of their dreams…”
Pastor Christmas’ motivational message was followed by the distribution of certificates as well as a host of special gifts and awards to deserving students. Among these were the Honourable Premier, Dr. Lorenzo Webster Award; the Othlyn Vanterpool ICT Award; the Teacher Kendra Brooks Awards; the Andre Samuel Regal Forms Awards; and the Oris Smith & Atrene Pemberton Awards.
This year’s Valedictorian was Ms. Nayah Jno-Baptiste. “I would like to say in confidence that we are determined to go confidently in the direction of our dreams,” Ms. Jno-Baptiste said. “Today, we celebrate the accomplishments of another milestone in education.”
“Our Father God has spared our lives,” she said. “We are healthy, happy and satisfied. All of us have worked hard, and now we are here to receive our Certificates of Completion, our medals and special awards. It is not just the graduates celebrating this graduation today, though, but it is everyone. Our parents and guardians have played a part in our accomplishments, and our amazing teachers have prepared us for the next level of our education…”
Following Nayah’s inspiring speech, the Graduating Class sang the Graduating Song, “The Children of Yesterday’s Dreams”. This was followed by the Vote of Thanks by the Salutatorian, Kory Morancie. The Principal then presented the Class of 2023.
