BSI-CSR launches photo contest for children

Eleven-year-old Easton Cabrera Dela Cruz from Hopwood Jr. High School is excited about this photo contest. (Contributed Photo)

Best Sunshine International, Ltd.’s Corporate Social Responsibility team presents its 2nd Annual Photography Contest with this year’s theme focused on the celebration of the indigenous cultures in the CNMI. The BSI CSR Cultural Heritage Photography Contest’s slogan is: “Ta Silelebra Manhayi Hit. Mwareti Iyo Ghiisch. Celebrating Who We Are.”

The BSI Cultural Heritage Photography Contest is open to all public and private school students, from Kindergarten to high school.

BSI CSR executive director Geri Dela Cruz said, “As a continuation of Cultural Heritage Month, Best Sunshine International’s Corporate Social Responsibility team really wants to focus on recognizing the indigenous cultures of the CNMI.”

“This photo contest is mainly for students in different clusters and its primary goal is to promote the continuation of cultural heritage within our children. We would like parents and family members to encourage their kids to participate in this photo contest. Hopefully, this will encourage stirring up our cultural practices within their families and allow the children to learn more about their culture,” Dela Cruz added.

BSI wants to give students the opportunity to dig deeper into past and existing cultural traditions practiced by the indigenous people of the CNMI.

Eleven-year-old Easton Cabrera Dela Cruz from Hopwood Jr. High School is excited about this.

“For me, it’s important to have traditions so other people can learn a little bit more about our culture. We practice it so when we have kids of our own, we can pass it down to them. I’m proud to be Chamorro because we have a very respectful culture. For example, I was taught to ‘fangingi’ our elders. When you see an elder, you go up to them and you ‘amen’ them and then they bless you. I also like learning about cooking different kinds of Chamorro foods. I’ve learned about Chamorro foods by watching my family cook these dishes many times. It’s important to watch our elders so we can teach future generations what we learned, like how I learned traditions from my family.”

Students are allowed to submit one raw unedited photo for the contest that they believe is a befitting representation of the indigenous cultures of the CNMI. Photos that are digitally enhanced or altered will be disqualified.

Each student’s photo must be submitted electronically from Oct. 3, 2016 to Oct. 28, 2016, to mosablan@bestsunshinesaipan.com.

All photos must be in .jpeg or .jpg form and no larger than 2MB. Students must indicate in the email their full names, school, grade, email address, and telephone number.

They must also include the official title of their photo and a short caption explaining why they believe their photo is a representation of the indigenous cultures of the CNMI.

A photo will only be accepted as long as it is taken within the timeframe of the photo contest. All photos taken before the duration of the photo contest will be disqualified.

Prizes will be given to each division: Kindergarten/Head Start, elementary, middle school, and high school. Students with the best photograph in the Kindergarten/Head Start division and elementary division will win a cash prize of: $200 for first place, $100 for second place, and $50 for third place. Students with the best photograph in the middle school division and high school division will win a cash prize of: $300 for first place, $200 for second place, and $100 for third place. A grand prize of $500 will be given to the school that has the largest number of submissions and the money will go toward their CCLHS program.

If anyone has any questions regarding the photo contest, email BSI CSR manager Alexander Palacios at apalacios@bestsunshinesaipan.com or BSI PR & Communications liaison Monique Sablan at mosablan@bestsunshinesaipan.com. (PR)