Maisie Tenorio, late Dolores Ichihara Marciano

Two women will be recognized for their contributions over the years at today’s R.I.S.E. Women in History Awards Ceremony, which is organized by Imperial Pacific International’s Corporate Social Responsibility as part of the CNMI’s Women’s Month celebration.

Maisie Tenorio is this year’s Imperial Pacific’s R.I.S.E. Women in History honoree for public service and the late Dolores Ichihara Marciano will be hailed for her tremendous contribution to cultural promotion and preservation.

Tenorio, the late Marciano, educator Paulette Tomokane-Sablan, healthcare advocate Margarita Torres-Aldan and the late pioneering businesswoman Escolastica Cabrera are the five recipients of the pioneering R.I.S.E. Women in History honors that will also unveiled today at a 10:30am at the Pacific Islands Club.

R.I.S.E. Women is defined as Respected, Inspired, Strengthened, and Empowered Women.

Public Service award
Tenorio, who is being recognized for her contributions and unbending stance against domestic and sexual violence, tells of her journey in the field of public service: “To me, public service is all about community service. Everyone is involved in public and community service if they work to create a better Commonwealth for everyone.” 

“Whether you work for a private company, the government or a non-profit organization, working toward the common good is everyone›s responsibility,” she added.

Tenorio’s first venture in public service was in high school as part of the Saipan Youth Council, the group that advocated for the creation of the CNMI Youth Congress. She has also signed up several other groups promoting youth issues.

While in college, she expanded her focus toward working with children, volunteering as a mentor in a program that served youth with disabilities, among others.

When she returned home to Saipan as a college graduate, she volunteered in various community activities including at the House of Manhoben, which was then ran by Karidat. She was also part of a group that worked to create the CNMI Youth Alliance, a non-profit organization and served on the board of the Micronesian Youth Services Network.

In 2005, Tenorio was invited to attend a meeting with a group that was committed to ending domestic violence and sexual assault. That was the start of Tenorio’s lifelong commitment to the anti-violence movement.

“Effective public service work means to be passionate about what you do and to do it to the best of your ability, whether you are a counselor, police officer, wholesaler, baker, wait staff, caregiver or mason,” Tenorio noted.

She believes that every single person has the power to impact others around them and effect change in the world. It is like the concept of paying it forward. “Kindness, hope and courage are contagious. If everyone focused on passing it on, we›d have one amazing community.”

On behalf of her team, she shares some words of wisdom to women everywhere: “At the Coalition, our message to women and girls has always been «You are enough. You matter. You are valued and you deserve respect.»  

“It is quite an honor that there are members of our community who value the work of the Coalition. While we will continue to passionately serve the CNMI without accolades and recognition, it feels good to know that our work to create a violence-free CNMI is recognized,” she added.

Tenorio is executive director of the Northern Marianas Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence.

Arts and Culture award
The late Dolores Ichihara Marciano is the recipient of R.I.S.E. Women in Arts and Culture honor for the promotion and preservation of the local culture through education and performing arts.

Marciano is credited for promoting both the Chamorro and Refaluwasch cultures through her teachings and work at the then-Department of Education, Chamorro Bilingual Program, CCD (Confraternity of Christian Doctrine) religious education and as a songwriter and choreographer for the sunset cruise dancers.

Upon graduating from Hopwood Intermediate School in 9th grade, she went into teaching. She attended the San Jose State University and University of Guam before moving to Hawaii to attend and receive her bachelor’s dgree in Elementary Education from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Her children recalled their upbringing with their “Mom Ling” and how they consider her as their “superwoman.” They saw the “strength of a woman” in their mother.

“My mom got me interested in education,” said daughter Luella. “My mother wrote short stories in Chamorro and translated fairy tales like Snow White, Cinderella, Rapunzel, and oral history tales such as the Sleeping Lady, which she heard from my paternal grandfather, David Marciano.”

The late Dolores Marciano also wrote few books of her own. Her daughter recalls how her mother, after obtaining her bachelor’s degree, moved back to Saipan to teach. She was a Chamorro bilingual curriculum writer until she became the district’s director of the program.

After getting off work at the then-Department of Education, she would also teach class at the Northern Marianas College. After her NMC class, she would go home and start her dance lessons for children ages 5 and up.

Son Gordon Marciano has fond memories of his mother.

“She had to make so many sacrifices while she was raising us. My father was in Guam working and she was working and going to school at the same time so, to make things easier, my siblings and I split the house chores,” Gordon Marciano remembers.

One unforgettable moment was when his mother brought them to the zoo and spoke to them in the Chamorro language while they replied in the Carolinian language.

“Sundays it was a must for us to go to church. This is where we would meet other Chamorros and Carolinians. She always reminded us about never forgetting who we are and that even though we were in Hawaii, we are not Americans but Chamorros and Carolinians from the CNMI, added Gordon Marciano.

In Hawaii, Dolores Marciano’s children grew up around bilingual-speaking women that included the late education commissioner Dr. Rita Hocog Inos, Carmen Taimanao, and Dr. Ebert-Santos.

“If she was still around today, the message she would express to her fellow educators would be to strive and to continue. Start early and do not stop. Do not lose the bilingual program.”

Another daughter, Leilani, express her profound appreciation for honoring their late mother.

“We want to say thank you to all the people who want to honor my mother. Thank you for perpetuating my mother’s songs and dances. It really means a lot to us and I’m sure if she was here, she would be saying the same thing.” (PR)