Tinian leaders take Hafa Adai & Tirow Pledge

MVA
Elected and business leaders gather at the Tinian Mayor’s Office on June 11, 2021, to take the Hafa Adai & Tirow Pledge, vowing to promote the indigenous Chamorro and Carolinian culture of the islands. The pledge ceremony was also attended by representatives of the Marianas Visitors Authority and Saipan Chamber of Commerce, joint organizers of the program. (MVA)

Elected and business leaders of Tinian are the latest to join the Hafa Adai & Tirow Pledge program, vowing to help promote the indigenous Chamorro and Carolinian cultures of the Marianas.

Last Friday, June 13, Tinian and Aguigan Mayor Edwin P. Aldan led 14 other individuals in a pledge ceremony with representatives of the Marianas Visitors Authority and Saipan Chamber of Commerce, who jointly operate the pledge program.

“The community of Tinian is renowned for its hospitality, which makes this pledge ceremony with Mayor Aldan and others who have take the Hafa Adai & Tirow Pledge even more meaningful,” said MVA managing director Priscilla M. Iakopo. “As we are all a product of the Marianas, our traditions, history, language, values, and arts shape who we are, and most importantly, it is the preservation of our cultures that keep our identity alive today, tomorrow, and in the future.”

Joining Aldan were 18th Tinian Municipal Council chair Joseph E. Santos, 22nd Tinian & Aguiguan Legislative Delegation chair Sen. Francisco Q. Cruz, Tourific Tinian dba Fleming Hotel owner Deborah Fleming, JC Café Restaurant and Karaoke Lounge manager Lot G. Bunao, SAM E Corp. dba Tinian Oceanview Hotel manager Heeyeon Cabrera, HJ2 Corporation dba Good Tour/Car Rental owner Jang Moon Soo, MIK Tours owner Miho K. Evangelista, Bridge Investment Group, LLC dba Tinian Diamond Hotel accountant Rosalie R. Masga, Lorilynn’s Hotel owner Jun Chou, Triple J Saipan, Inc. dba Bar- K-Diner/The Western Lodge operations manager Jim Barton, Tinian Express owner Suzuki Atsushi, Queen’s Restaurant owner Meihua Xuan, and Susan’s Creations owner Mary Susan Perez.

The Hafa Adai & Tirow Pledge encompasses the action of “Ta Fan Un Kurason/Sibwe Tipiyeew” (be united), uniting public and private sectors and individuals in a commitment for the preservation and promotion of the Chamorro and Carolinian language, culture, and traditions. The program involves taking efforts every day to make a difference in the survival of these cultures in some way or another, including taking continuous steps to “go local, look local, and think local” in the areas of language, arts, traditions, history and values. The program welcomes all businesses, organizations, and companies interested in strengthening the core values and traditions of indigenous Chamorro and Carolinian cultures.

The ceremony was also attended by Senate President Jude Hofschneider, Sen. Karl King-Nabors, Rep. Patrick H. San Nicolas, Saipan Chamber of Commerce pPresident Joe Guerrero, and Commonwealth Ports Authority board chair Kimberlyn King-Hinds. (PR)