Zalayhar Hassanali, wife of the late President Noor Hassanali, has made a stirring appeal to the country's students to choose the correct path and be responsible citizens of T&T. Hassanali made the appeal at the second session of the 2014 edition of Uniquely Worthy workshops at Cascadia Hotel and Conference Centre on March 21.
"You must realise that you are all uniquely worthy and you are special to your family, your parents, your teachers, your school and your community. You are unique in your own way with unique talents. You must strive to be responsible citizens of T&T," Mrs Hassanali, a patron of United Way of Trinidad and Tobago (UWTT), urged the students.
Uniquely Worthy is a collaborative initiative between United Way and BP T&T which involves the active participation of secondary school students in a range of self-development topics, including valuing one's self, discovering and fulfilling one's purpose in life and embracing one's peers.
Launched in 2009, the project is approved by the Ministry of Education, as well as the Division of Education, Youth Affairs and Sport, of the Tobago House of Assembly. The Cascadia session catered to students from north and east Trinidad.
Making her call as an upsurge of indiscipline has hit the nation's schools, she said the Uniquely Worthy programme has been very successful over the years, with students throughout T&T benefiting from its aims and objectives. She thanked bpTT and United Way for enriching the lives of the students.
In a release, Ronda Francis, Corporate Responsibility manager, bpTT, has underscored the company's support of the initiative, noting that the programme has provided thousands of students with a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity to understand their true worth and fulfill their purpose in life. The exercise, she noted, opened up creative avenues for the youths to lead positive lifestyles.
For Darielle Neptune, Form Four student of Bishop's Anstey High School East, Trincity, the experience was "mind-blowing."
"It made me look at life in a more positive manner. It has opened up my mind to what I can really achieve and become since there is a special purpose in life for me. I intend to share what I have learnt here with my schoolmates so they, too, can benefit from these lessons," said an enthusiastic Neptune.
Teacher Winzey Adams, Sixth Form Dean at Bishop's Anstey High School, Port-of-Spain, expressed the hope that the exercise could be made available to a greater number of secondary school students. "It is imperative that these workshops are open to a wider range of students to boost their morale and their sense of self-esteem. It instills discipline and purpose in their lives. I will ensure that my students share their experiences with others not fortunate to be here today," she pointed out.
The Uniquely Worthy initiative is facilitated by Don la Foucade, founder of In Full Flight motivational company, who took the students through his own personal experiences, trials and triumphs. He broke down various works which carry negative meanings to demonstrate positive derivations. He was assisted by L Anthony Watkins, an organisational development consultant, who spoke on the topic Discovering and Living One's Purpose in Life.
"This experience is truly unique and really worthy. It has given me the drive to go forward and focus on my academics and to improve myself as a person. We learnt that there are many positive avenues for us to channel our energy and achieve what we set out to do," said Dishion Robinson, a Form five student of San Juan South Secondary.
A total of 123 students, 25 teachers and one principal participated in the Cascadia workshop.
The third and last session in the Uniquely Worthy series comes off at Rovanel's Resort in Crown Point, Tobago, on April 4.