Western Hanover awards top PEP achievers for 2023

WESTERN BUREAU:

Twenty primary and preparatory school students from Western Hanover, who had excellent results in their Primary Exit Profile (PEP) Examinations, were fêted by their member of parliament, Tamika Davis, on Sunday.

The ceremony, dubbed ‘A celebration of excellence’, was held at the Grand Palladium Hotel in the parish.

Nine boys and 11 girls, and their parents and guardians, were pampered by Davis in the luxurious surroundings as they celebrate the success of the students, who will now move on to high school in September. Amid the celebrations, Davis presented the students with gifts and prizes for their achievements.

As she did on the two previous occasions that she staged her ‘Celebration of excellence’ ceremony for PEP students in her constituency, Davis presented each awardee with a certificate of achievement, a gift voucher valued at $15,000 redeemable at Sangster’s Book Store, trophies, medals, and school supplies.

Guest speaker at the function, Agriculture Minister Floyd Green, used a four-prong theme in his presentation to encourage the students to continue to move on a path of excellence as they transition from the primary-school level to high school.

The themes emphasised by Green entailed respect, hard work,choosing companions, and dreaming big. He said if those themes are embraced, the awardees would be putting themselves on a path to future success.

“High school is an exciting place, but it also is a place that if you are not careful, you can fall by the wayside,” he told the awardees. “It is against this background that I am urging you to exhibit respect and other simple courtesies because that is a good virtue to always exhibit.”

Green encouraged the awardees not to get complacent because they are at the top of their class at present, but to always be prepared to work hard and maintain the standards they have set, which has given them the success they have achieved at this stage in their lives.

“Watch the company that you keep. Not everyone who you come in contact with will be wanting the best for you,” said Green. “If they are not trying to push you forward, if they are not trying to make you a better version of yourself, and if they are not encouraging you to be your best, leave them alone.”

The agriculture minister also used the opportunity to encourage the parents and guardians to always support the children in their quest to become the best versions of themselves and to “dream big” for them.

In her address, Davis encouraged the awardees to strive to maintain their standard of excellence. She told them that only they can set limitations for themselves.

“Continue in all your endeavours to make Western Hanover proud,” she pleaded with the awardees.