SINMI marks 4th charter celebration

Soroptimist International of the Northern Mariana Islands hosted its 4th charter celebration at the Kanoa Resort to mark the anniversary of establishing the local club in the Northern Mariana Islands. 

At that charter celebration, SINMI announced the winner of the Live Your Dream Award, which provides financial support to eligible women in the NMI to pursue their educational goals. 

Rachel Ashley P. Reyes, who is majoring in Education with Emphasis in Early Childhood and Elementary Education, was awarded $2,000 to use to offset any costs associated with her effort to attain higher education, such as books, childcare, tuition and transportation. A panel of three judges selected Reyes based on glowing recommendations from her instructors and a touching personal essay, which described the challenges that she has faced and her commitment to finishing her degree and caring for her child.  

All applicants for the Live Your Dream Award needed to demonstrate that they were the primary financial support for their families, financial need and enrollment in, or acceptance to, a vocational/skills training program or an undergraduate degree program. 

The keynote speaker for the event was Yvonne R. Pangelinan, who highlighted the need for girls to discover their strength and for the community to educate and encourage girls to pursue careers in fields such as math, science and engineering, where few women work today. Pangelinan movingly spoke about her individual struggle to attain higher education and improve her confidence while balancing the needs of her family. 

The event featured Kanoa Resort’s delicious shrimp skewers and tacos, a tasting of Gallo wines donated by D&Q Distributors, locally brewed beer from Saipan Brewing, Sweet Saipan chocolates as party favors, marine-inspired decorations and a photo booth in the shape of a ship’s rail, which was created and donated by Seafix.

During the event, artists Tanya Salas, Mark Robertson, Tammy James, Mike Ronesia, Jill Arenovski, and Meena Benevente displayed and sold their work, as well as donated items to the raffle held during the celebration. SINMI sincerely thanks them and the following for their contributions: Chelu Photos, Triple J Wholesale, Saipan Brewery, The Shack, Brabu, Vietnam Home Gallery, Monica’s Gallery, Natural Nail Spa, D&Q Distributors, Gold’s Gym, Sweet Saipan, G&M Corp., Emma Perez, Paradise Dental Clinic, Mariana Resort and Spa, Pacific Islands Club, Fiesta Resort and Spa Saipan, Hyatt Regency Saipan, Island Training Solutions, Margarita Wonenberg, Susan Satur, and Bel Busby.  Finally, SINMI cannot express enough appreciation to Kanoa Resort, which generously donated the spacious venue, wonderful food (with donations from Triple J Wholesale) and fabulous service.