Christmas tree décor awes judges

The resourcefulness and creativity of elementary schools competing for the grand prize in the 6th Christmas Tree Decoration Contest went up a notch this year, with more inventive materials and inspired themes among all entries.

Eight individuals representing government agencies and private entities were asked yesterday to assess and evaluate the 16 entries.

All entries had Christmas ornaments made of various recycled materials—soda cans, water bottles, blank CDs, butane caps, juice boxes, straws, popsicle sticks, bento boxes, detergent and softener bottles, coffee wrappers, cookie containers, among others—which made it difficult for the judges to decide which school will bring home this year’s prizes.

Remy Buniag of the Women’s Affairs Office, who represented first lady Josie P. Fitial and has past experience judging the annual contest, said that seeing this year’s entries gave her goose bumps. “It’s really nice and they are all so creative,” she said.

Division of Environmental Quality director Frank Rabauliman said that this is the first time that he actually served as a judge for the contest since he only sent his representatives in the previous years.

“I compliment the participating schools, their students and teachers, for putting a lot of thought in coming up with their entries,” he told Saipan Tribune. “I’m amazed that all their hard work have become all these.”

Rabauliman described as “humbling” how children at such young ages “are really motivated to do the work and learn about the value of recycling.”

“The fact that they put time and effort into this just moves me to become a judge if I do get invited again,” said Rabauliman, adding that the support for recycling among schools is not just a one-day thing but is expected to go far.

The other judges were Marian Aldan-Pierce of DFS Galleria, James Nelson of Docomo Pacific, Ed Arriola Jr. of Tan Siu Lin Foundation, Tina Palacios of Power 99, Ruel Villacrusis of RNV Construction, and Arnold Palacios of the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

The judges scored the entries based on several criteria: use of old or used materials, 10 points; relevance to Christmas theme, 10 points; attractiveness, 10 points; creativity and design, 10 points; and durability, 10 points.

The same judges will also decide the winning entries from Rota and Tinian elementary students for the “My Holiday Greetings To Our Visitors” contest.

The annual contest is organized by the non-profit group PDM Promoters, Inc. to promote the importance of recycling among elementary students in the CNMI.

Winners will be announced during a program on Dec. 15 starting at 5pm.

Yesterday’s program was highlighted by the lighting of all 16 Christmas tree entries, along with the 30-foot Christmas tree in the middle of Paseo de Marianas.

PDM Promoters, Inc. director Misako Kamata acknowledged the efforts of participating schools in making the event a success.

“Every year, it’s getting nicer and more creative,” said Kamata. “Everybody is happy and they can all feel the Christmas spirit.”

Kamata said PDM Promoters has long been a staunch supporter of the environment with its monthly cleanups.

“We appreciate the schools a lot, especially the teachers who give guidance to children regarding recycling. That’s our goal, to educate the students and we would like to continue that tradition,” she added.