Chief Aghurubw remembered

More than a hundred members of the Carolinian community turned out yesterday to show their respect to Chief Aghurubw at the 39th annual commemoration on Managaha Island.

Nearly 200 years ago, Chief Aghurubw sailed from Satawal in the Caroline Islands after the islands were destroyed by a typhoon. He asked the governor of Guam if he could resettle his people on the island of Saipan, starting the Carolinian population in the CNMI.

Gov. Benigno Fitial and Washington Representative Pete Tenorio were in attendance at the event, organized by the Carolinians Affairs Office and Chief Aghurubw Foundation, Inc.

Fr. Nonoy Recaido led a Mass before attendees ate a variety of local foods.

During the program, Recaido called on the younger generation of Carolinians to remember their culture and not let it fade away.

“We’re so much preoccupied with new technologies, we leave out or forget or try to forget out culture,” he said.

Younger Carolinians need to listen to the man’amko in order to carry on the traditions, he said.

“From them you learn something and that learning will remain in your mind and heart…Some day the man’amko will pass, don’t let the culture and tradition of your people pass with them,” he said.

Fitial said he appreciated the expression of love for the Carolinian people and Chief Aghurubw before ending the program with a brief speech in Carolinian.

Celine Romolor-Route, who has attended the ceremony for several years, said the event is an important way to bring the Carolinian community together. It’s a good way for the children to become exposed to their culture, she added.

“The number one reason is to maintain and preserve our culture and values,” she said.

Romolor-Route said she was pleased the weather cleared up before the ceremony and many Carolinians turned out for the event.

Kodep Ogumoro-Uludong, a member of the Chief Aghurubw Foundation, said the commemoration is a signature event for the Carolinians because it reminds the community of Chief Aghurubw’s contribution to their history.

“He’s considered a great chief. He’s one of the first that arrived,” he said.

Chief Aghurubw lies buried on Managaha Island and an inscription in a monument dedicated to the navigator reads: “The monument stands in honor of the chief who changed the course of history in the lives of the people and who gave of himself to shape their destiny.”