austraLasia #3229
Mary, Our Help Ladies
Dormitory:
A REAL BLESSING … OF A DWELLING!
BOROKO-PNG:
4 June 2013 --
At 10 a.m. on 31st May 2013, the Don Bosco Technical Institute
(PNG)
Ladies Dormitory was blessed by His Excellency Archbishop John
Ribat,
MSC, DD, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Port Moresby. The
Salesians
Fr. Rafael Galve, SDB Salesian Delegate, Fr. Louie
Castañeda, SDB
Rector of DBTI and Fr. Valeriano Barbero, SDB simultaneously
blessed
the other buildings to assist the Archbishop.
His Excellency Grand Chief Sir Michael Ogio, GCM, GCMG, KStJ
and Lady
Esmie Ogio led the dignitaries present. The ambassadors of
France His
Excellency Alain Waquet and Korea His Excellency Whiejin Lee
also came.
They were welcomed by Rev. Fr. Rafael Galve, the Salesian
Delegate to
PNG-SI, Sr. Sarah Garcia, the Provincial Superior Phil-PNG,
Fr. Louie
Castaneda, DBTI Rector, and Mr. Noel Guillermo, the Principal
and
ushered by the cultural group from Central Province from the
gate of
the new ladies dormitory to the stage of honor. They were
greeted by
all the other guests, staff and students.
Fr. Valeriano Barbero, SDB, the Project Coordinator,
welcomed all the
guests, acknowledged and thanked the PNG Government
through the
Department of National Planning and Monitoring for
providing the 4.7
million kina to finance the construction of the Ladies
Dormitory. He
also extended "Thank You" to PNG Sustainable Development
Program
for contributing K200,000.
The welcome of all the guests was completed by the singing of
boarders’
welcome song originally composed by one of the MOH Boarders.
The Chairman of the Commission of Higher Education, Mr. Simon
Kenehe
who is also a member of the Governing Board of DBTI,
introduced His
Excellency Governor General before the latter’s keynote
speech. The
Grand Chief expressed his joy of being very much part of this
project
from the beginning of the ground breaking to the blessing now
of Mary
Help of Christians Ladies Dormitory. He said that the
completion of
this impressive edifice signifies DBTI’s deep commitment to
make the
National Government’s Gender Equity in Education Policy
objectives
realized. At the end of his speech, Sr. Sarah Garcia
presented him a
token of gratitude and a remembrance also of the occasion to
Lady Esmie
Ogio.
The Palm Tree planting followed. His
Excellency Grand Chief Sir
Michael Ogio enthusiastically planted the first palm of Faith
and
assisted all the rest in tree planting. His Excellency
Archbishop John
Ribat, MSC, DD, planted the second palm of Hope, Fr. Rafael
Galve,
Delegate of the Salesians PNG-SI planted the palm tree of
Love, Sr.
Sarah Garcia, planted the palm tree of Peace, Ms. Tania
Kaumas, a
third year bachelor student and the vice-dorm captain,
planted the
palm tree of Joy while Sr. Lyn Grace Palanca (representing all
FMA
missionaries), planted the palm tree of Commitment.
Then followed the cutting of the ribbon by the Grand Chief,
assisted by
Sr. Sarah Garcia. Immediately after this, the Mary
our Help Ladies
Dormitory boarders concluded the blessing with their Thank You
song.
In her speech, Sr. Sarah Garcia expressed her gratitude to all
the
people who made this great blessing of having useful and
practical
buildings, “a dream home” for the DBTI ladies, come to
reality. Then a
group of boarders performed a Buka dance to thank everyone for
being
part of this celebration.
“Give thanks to the Lord, acclaim His name!” (Is. 12:4)
