Valedictory Speech of Katrina Sarmiento (Grade

School Class 2013 First Honors)

To our School President, Dr. Marl V. Ferenal, our Chief Executive Mentor, Dr. Genevieve
Ledesma Tan, Vice President for Academic and Research, Ms. Marjorie Guttierez
Tangog; Principal for Basic Education, Ms. Marie Vic F. Suarez; Deputy Principal, Ms.
Olive Flores; Head of Discipline, Ms. Nolie Duran; to our Guest Speaker, Ms. Kate
Evangelista; distinguished guests, faculty and staff, our parents and fellow graduates, a
pleasant morning to all of you.
“By the strength of our backs, by the sweat of our brow, and by the courage of our hearts,”
is a saying that I strongly believe in. It is telling us that success is earned and that it is
never a happenstance. Everything we need to accomplish great things, is right there in
front of us. It is actually our choice if we will sacrifice and work hard enough to achieve
our goals. It is our choice, to be brave enough to willingly take the risk to reach the top.
The journey to success is different for every person. Sometimes it does take long, but
giving up should never be an option. When you feel like you’re losing hope because you
think you have failed a lot of times, keep this in mind “I have not failed. I have just found
10,000 ways that won’t work,” a quote from Thomas Alva Edison when he was creating
the light bulb. He never lost sight of what he wanted to achieve. He was diligent and
honest with his labor. He never gave up until he was able to meet his goal.
To be able to stand here in front of you and do this speech as top of the batch is such an
honor. Believe me, it was not easy. I had to balance myself between academic
requirements, extra-curricular activities, and the time I spent socializing with my family
and friends. I sometimes would have sleepless nights and had to burn the midnight candle
to accomplish my tasks. In the end, it was all worth it.
I would like to thank my school mentors for helping me become a well-rounded person.
They offered me with a lot of recreational activities helping me develop my skills and
talents. Also, Southville guided me in improving my learning abilities by using different
and creative ways, such as DCIA Activities and GRASPS. I would also like to thank my
teachers for being unceasingly patient, they were always there for me. They never gave
up on me and they gave me infinite support. I would like to thank my adviser, Ms. Kaye
Mandia for not only being my teacher but a good friend as well. Thank you to my home
base teacher, Ms. Issa Leong for the great advises that I will be able to apply to my
everyday living. I would like to thank my class, Grade 6 – Perseverance, for being
cooperative during class time. I would also like to thank my friends, Derick Salvoro, Jievo
Garcia, and Nori Bandong for always being there for me. Even if we had our ups and
downs, we still got each other’s backs.
Lastly, I would like to thank God the Father Almighty. He has blessed me and guided me
throughout the entire school year, leading me to the right path to success. This school
year was fun and exciting. It gave us wonderful experiences and memorable moments.
Most of us are happy that we finally surpassed this level, but it is not over yet. After this
milestone, there will be a new beginning. A new beginning we all know as high school.
Usually, when we think of high school, we do not look forward to it, but I say we conquer
it without any sign of fear. We will come back next school year with our heads held high,
ready to tackle any obstacle that is put before us.
I cannot tell what will happen in the future. All I can tell you is to be prepared for the
unexpected and that when times get hard, never back down.
Once again, a pleasant morning to everyone and congratulations
to all the graduates. WE DID IT!!!!
Graduation Speech of Miguel Alzona, Grade 6 Class
Valedictorian (AY 2013-2014)
To our guest of honor, Mr. Arturo Caronongan III, to our Chief Executive Mentor, Dr.
Genevieve Ledesma Tan, to our school President, Dr. Marl V. Ferenal, to our Principal
for Basic Education, Ms. Marie-Vic Suarez, the management team, school officials,
distinguished guests, dedicated teachers, beloved parents and fellow graduates, a
pleasant morning to all!

Today is a day worth remembering all the hard work and sacrifice of all the graduates this
school year. Graduation Day – such a momentous occasion that will be cherished even
when you leave Southville.

Now, to start off, I know that every other speech in the history of valedictorians have all
been targeted on the same aspect: success. Success, such a word. Most say that
success is only for the best, but it isn’t. It’s for you, and you, and you, basically, every
single one of you. But success shouldn’t be taken for granted. Success isn’t just your alibi
or ticket to a better reputation, a better person in front of others. You achieve success,
because you want to, you need to. But life isn’t just about reaching goals and taking new
paths of opportunity. Life isn’t just about success. Life is also about happiness.
Now, what is happiness? Are you happy today? Have you been happy this year? Are you
happy with what you’ve achieved and done this year? There isn’t much to life when you
focus too much on one goal, so you back out from simple things that interrupt yourself
while reaching that certain goal, like going to a family trip to Atlantis (which isn’t even real)
or even more basic, like playing a board game or chatting with your crush (even if you
wanted to so badly).

Your journey to success is like a car on a road trip. On one end is success, and you’re on
the other end. And there are stops like gas stations, which resemble the little things you
do everyday. And, if you ignore those stops, you’ll lose gas and your engine will fail. Even
if you already have a full tank at the beginning; if you’re really aiming for that goal at the
end, you have to stop for a while to the things that make you happy, like the everyday
activities you do with your friends that strengthen the bond between one another. Never
forget the enthusiasm-aspired experiences we shared with our batchmates in CGS, the
Intramurals, for which we won overall champion, and a wide list of other things.
As you know, there are a huge number of different types of cars in the world. You can be
a Ferrari, or a simpler car, back to my analogy on success. You can repaint your car, like
if you want to change your personality for the better, never for the worse, remember that,
or you can lighten or darken the tint of your windows, like how open you want to be to
others, or not. You can choose your path in life, which road you want to take, and no one
has the right to get in your way. Don’t let others harm you, or, metaphorically, damage
your car. Don’t let others ruin your happiness.

There are times in life when you do have to be serious. When reaching a certain goal,
you have to have focus, or else you’ll lose track and wander off somewhere else. As a
car, you have to follow the route, the directions, or else you’ll go off-road and reach a
place far from your goal.
But sometimes, the road to success isn’t all that smooth. There may be humps, which tell
you that you need to slow down. In other words, you have to cool off and have a break
every once in a while to prevent “accidents”. There are also puddles and cracks which
may get in your way, like obstacles and challenges in real life do. And yes, other routes
may have, as they call it, detours. Detours are shortcuts that appear rarely in different
routes. Like in your journey to success, if you accomplish small tasks, you may receive
rewards, and those may represent the detours. Shortcuts only appear through hard work
and perseverance. These detours serve as advantages for a more convenient way to
reach your goals, but are not vehicles to be boastful for. Bragging and being boastful
should never be an option, and so does giving up, as quoted by last year’s valedictory
speech. In addition, you shouldn’t always trust detours because, like in real life, these
may trick you and lead you to somewhere far else far from your goal.

As I was writing this speech, I thought of sharing with you what I think made me successful
this year. I made my own acronym to add on to Southville’s long list of acronyms: the 3As
of an Achiever. The 3As are three words I want you guys to always remember in the
future, when you go for college or the like.

The first A is Aspire. To aspire is to aim. To aspire is to envision your plans. To aspire is
taking action, the first step to becoming an Achiever. Let’s say, you want to get a gold
medal, for instance, you have to plan out your strategies and routes on how to get that
medal. Your mind has to focus on that goal. You can take different turns, but your goal
will always be there, at the end. If you still keep driving, and it takes quite a while, then
that means you have a long-term goal, and if it takes shorter, then you have a short-term
goal. It depends on how big your goal or goals are. It’s all really up to you, because you
are the captain of your fate, you are the master of your soul. Wink wink. The second A
is Achieve. To achieve is to go and begin to take steps closer to your goal. This is the
part when you have to keep running. This is the part when you have to face obstacles
and life-chances and survive the risks you take, not because you want to, but you need
to. This is the part when you set out all your plans and targets and take gameplay. This
is the part when you say, “I can and I will.” The third, and final, A is Advance. To advance
is to take it to the next level, to deny your comfort zone and go out of the box. You know
what, just pretend like there is no box. When you graduate, it doesn’t just end there.
There’s still something even bigger after that, and after that. Life never seems to end, and
that’s the good thing about life, I mean, where would be all the excitement in
accomplishing things?

Now, do you remember the 3As? Never forget the three words: Aspire, Achieve and
Advance. Always remember that.

Yes, although at most times, you’d like to claim the award for yourself when there are
others who have contributed to your success along the way. I mean, to tell the truth, you
can’t actually do anything without someone else by your side. Success cannot be
achieved by one individual. One team sounds more like it. To all my teachers since
preschool until 6th grade, thank you for being a part of my journey. Without you guys, I
wouldn’t have stood up on this platform, speaking to everyone. Without you, I wouldn’t
have reached my goal of becoming first honors. Without you, I wouldn’t have graduated
and become who I am today. To my friends, my batchmates and classmates, thank you
for just about everything. Congratulations to all of us for finishing grade school! Let’s give
ourselves a round of applause!

We aren’t just a batch, we’re a family. Don’t stop me there and say, “Corny…” because
it’s true. We are one big family, the leaders of tomorrow, the movers of society, the people
of the future. But remember, it doesn’t just end there. Just follow the way life leads you
and look toward your family first because at the end, your heart will lead you back home.
Speaking of home, I would like to thank two people who have been the biggest inspiration
in my life. Mommy and Daddy, thank you. I know those two words don’t mean that much
for what you’ve done to help me become who I am. You were there since the beginning,
helping me to stand up, and take my first steps. You supported me every step of the way,
even as I grew older and gained independence. Thank you for being there in times of my
need. Thank you for bringing me up to Southville, where I gained my love for learning and
then became my second home. Thank you for everything. I’m going to ask you a favor
and stand up, and dear graduates and guests, let’s give a big round of applause for them.
I love you both.

Just remember the 3As: Aspire, Achieve and Advance, and, yes, there’s a big chance
that you will fail. But there’s even a bigger chance you won’t.
Thank you and once again, good morning!