“Pag-announce sa amua, number 16 (as winner), tumayo kaming lahat! Lahat tayo umiyak sandali. Salamat kaayo Apo Agua Infra. Salamat sa grasya nga inyong gihatag sa among school. Habang may buhay, habang lumalaki ang mga bata, habang may mga students pa, very blessed kami because of you. Salamat, salamat, salamat.”
English translation: “When the winning number was announced (number 16), we all stood up and cried. Thank you so much to Apo Agua Infra. Thank you for the generosity that you’ve shown to our school. As long as we live, as long as students grow up, as long as there are students, we are blessed because of you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
Rudith Santos, the winning school-team’s coach, shared this with much fervor during her speech at the Turnover Ceremony of item prizes, held at their school in Tugbok District, Davao City on Feb. 10, 2017.
Ms. Santos, along with her 5 students Jason Gepte, Norlejan Piquit, Enrico Baer, Jason Talin and Mark Joseph Borbon from Sto. Niño National High School, bested other 19 school-teams who joined the Davao City Bulk Water Supply Project: Scale Model-Making Competition organized by Apo Agua Infrastructura Inc. (Apo Agua).
The competition ran from September to December 2016 and was made for public secondary schools in Davao City. Twenty schools participated and created a three dimensional scale model of the Davao City bulk water supply project as entry to the competition. The scale models, which were created based from the general development plan provided by the organizers, featured miniature representations of the different components or infrastructure of the facility. More than that, the scale models were made using recyclable materials.
The competition aimed to educate the student-participants, their teachers, and their community about the project. This also aimed to provide an avenue for the youth to be creative and innovative in making use of recyclable materials in their scale model, and nurture in them an environmentally conscious mindset.
Three schools emerged to the top after the Final Judging and Awarding Ceremony last Dec. 13, 2016 at the Activity Center of Abreeza Mall. These were Sto. Niño National High School in first place, Bernardo D. Carpio National High School from Buhangin District in second place, and Maria Cristina P. Belcar Agricultural High School from Baguio District in third place. Aside from plaques, medals and certificates, these schools received the following cash and item prizes: P25,000 cash for the team and P150,000 worth of computer package for the winning school, P15,000 cash and P80,000 worth of science instruments package for the second placer, and P10,000 cash and P50,000 worth of library package for the third placer.
Cirilo Almario III, General Manager of Apo Agua and who was one of the five judges admitted during his speech at the Turnover Ceremony, that their job as judges “was really difficult.”
“Masayang masaya po kami dahil nanalo kami sa ganitong kompetisyon, kahit wala kaming gaanong experience sa paggawa ng ganito (scale model). Kung gugustuhin mo talagang manalo, gagawin mo ang lahat at pagsisikapan mong makamit ito.”
-Norlejan Piquit, member of the winning team from Niño National High School
English translation: “We are really happy because we won the competition despite not having extensive knowledge about making scale models. If you really want to win, you will do everything and labor to achieve what you aim for.”
A teary-eyed Ms. Santos recounted what their team went through. She shared how reluctant she was of joining the competition thinking that she does not know anything about creating scale models. She was grateful for the support, faith and trust she got from her colleagues and the hardwork put in by her team. She proudly looked at her them from the stage, where she was delivering her speech and described them as honest, patient and playful.
She then looked at the Apo Agua team and said, “Salamat sa pag-alala na may Sto. Niño National High School pa pala, (na may) maliit na school na may kakayahan. This is the home of the champions.”
English translation: Thank you for remembering that there’s still a Sto. Niño National High School, that there’s still a small school who can do great things. This is the home of the champions.
