Speaking about stories in shaping the future of today’s youth, everyone has their own share of being involved in the advocacy. I would like to further mine by expressing that influencing the new generation’s direction is entailed with the acknowledgment of their role towards nation building. Only then can we see an incremental change.
Last July 15, our club have chosen Kristine Vera Marie Develos and Reiana Ross Belchez as our beneficiaries of two laptops and Wi-Fi packages. Both are outstanding students at Padre Burgos Elementary School in Pasay City and will be ending the school year as valedictorians. They will be incoming students at Pasay Science High School. Our club distributed alcohols and masks as well to the teachers and school personnel who tirelessly continue their duties in the face of hazards nowadays. It was all but heart-warming to see how their faces lit up upon receiving our donations.
The girls have set their hearts out on becoming a scientist and an engineer in the future. The careers they plan to take on after high school are what we certainly need during this time of recovery and in the many years to come. Many are the likes of Kristine and Reiana who are waiting for support. As we know, the new generation have plenty of bright minds but are vulnerable, as they have already been shaken by many setbacks. They have seen people lost jobs, they have followed political bickering through social media, have seen people trying to put food on their table and roof above their heads during the pandemic. All of which, are very taxing to contemplate for their age. Our role is to convert their challenging experiences into a motivational one. Let us steer them into the direction of starting young towards nation building.
It is empowering for me to imagine many Kristines and Reianas becoming scientists, engineers, medical practitioners, architects, teachers, public servants, and other professionals one day. What makes me more thrilled is the very thought that our club played a role, albeit small steps, in moulding social responsibility into the new generation. After all, the mentorship I received from the people who came before me in the Rotary Club of Pasay Cyber City is what led me to the right direction of serving others.
I am already a mother of four kids when I started out with the club and like most of us, I share the same vision that one day, my children shall take on a path that will be significant to others and to our country. Time will come when the youth of today will take our place. Building the future by our own will do not look promising however, we can build the youth to be the future.
LCP Peaches Pasion