The Sandy Bank Primary School held their graduation ceremony on Saturday, July 5. A total of twenty eight students graduated.

Highlights of the ceremony included the wonderfully written speech given by the valedictorian, Tajera Vernon; the great advice given by the guest speaker, Treasure Beach’s own Earl Moxam; the handing out of the certificates by Mr. Redwood, Dean of the International University of the Caribbean. Mrs. Sheila Hamilton was the MC for the day adding a great deal of spice to the occasion. Mrs. Moxam, our principal, gave a wonderful report on the school’s successes in the last year. Very impressive, especially the high scores of our students in the GSAT’s compared to the rest of the island. Every score was higher than the rest of Jamaica’s average!

The only sad note was knowing this was the last year Mrs. Moxam would be attending the ceremony as the school’s principal. But after 37 years of dedicated service, she deserves a peaceful retirement.

See photos of the ceremony in the Photo Gallery,

http://treasurebeach.net/guide/pg/gallery/frame.cfm?D=654

Beautiful photos of beautiful children. Who is to be the next principal after Mrs. Moxam?

I have to say Treasure Beach has produced some of the most beautiful children. All those smiling faces! Just brought back some memorable school days at Sandy Bank Primary.

Keep up the good work.

The children look so beautiful.

The adults look beautiful too - they all look beautiful. Thanks to TBNet where we can enjoy these lovely pics.

So, who is the pretty lady in the red dress?

Hello CC, The lady in the red dress is Winsome Moxam formerly Parchment from Frenchman, the daughter of Mass Earl/Miss Ner, She's Earl Moxam wife.

um................who are those three beutiful young ladies at the front the graduating class not saying the others are not beutiful but those were the only three u could of see oh and look at those charming young men

I was wondering that myself

kemalia lyons dauhgter of Shamalia and Dez from Sandy Bank (the one at the end of the front row) Olethia Ford Daughter of Fay and Harold from great bay ( she is sitting next to Kemalia at the front) Sabrina Bernard daughter of Charmane and Wayne From great bay (she is sitting between the boys)

Is Kemelia one of the winners of the Treasure Beach Foundation Scholarships?

yes she iz

who is that beautiful little girl in the white dress with the matching beads she is georgious am i right to say thats laura moxam daughter

Lucky man, Mr. Moxam.

Yes old timer you are right,she is Shakiera Gordon,the daughter of Lloyd Gordon and Laura Moxam,thats pic#68.She is so pretty.

iz she a that pretti?????????omg

I looked at those children again, man they are beautiful,Gosh #59 have no idea who she is, she is so pretty , love her hair. God no say they are all beautiful in their own way.

Reach for the sky.

#68 she is such a sweet girl, she is also my cousin, she is so much fun to be around, she'll let you laugh till you cry.( YOU HAVE BEEN WARN ) if you cannot take fun and laughter, dont go where these 2 sisters are, OOOHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! I love my cousins longing to see you guys. cousin loves you all

Pretty Shakie#68 is my baby.

Hey Canada #59,is Dian Moxam daughter,Dian is the Granddaughter of the late Carl Moxam and Mazie Moxam.I hope this help.Yes they are all beautiful children.

Dian your daughter is a beauty. She has such a beautiful head of hair. Congrats to her on her graduation. Wishing her all the best in the furture with her education.

I'm not trying to cause trouble or anything, but shouldn't the focus be the childrens ability to graduate. I mean, treasure beach is a little fishing village and these children are its future. By graduating and moving on with top scoring marks, they show they can overcome the troubles of this village and help their families. Remember, as one ages beauty fades, but education last forever. Hopefully nobody takes this for only its negative aspects.

Piz#47 that's Mr handsome Kenroy James, I think i'm seing a future pastor in his eyes, Keep smiling Kenny

comment is straight from Pedro.

um.........dians daugther didnt graduate shes just accepting a present !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i aggre with u coppa

I have been lax in posting this and only hope that I can convey my experience of this day. While we were on holiday in Treasure Beach I was invited to attend the Sandy Bank Graduation on Saturday July 5th (a very big thanks Rebecca, and that doesn’t seem adequate). It was something that I will carry with me for a very long time and brings a huge smile to my face every time I think about it.

The entire ceremony was wonderful and I truly enjoyed listening to each and every speaker. So many good messages were delivered that day; to the graduating class, families and observers. I know I took a couple home with me.

The boys and girls who were graduating (and their respective families, I might add) all looked very handsome and beautiful. It was evident in their appearance how much pride they all took in celebrating their scholastic accomplishments! I was in awe of the speeches delivered by those so young; both content and delivery, and the wisdom of the words delivered by the more mature audience.

Congratulations to all the graduates, those in the younger grades for their awards and thank you for allowing me to be a small part of that big day! This is one more piece of Treasure Beach I will carry with me!

Shauna

Excerpts from the address given by Sandy Bank past student, Earl Moxam, at the graduation.

.................................................



Some of you are very happy today, and so are your parents and teachers because you succeeded in being placed at the high schools of dreams through the GSAT.

And, among this select group, several of you have achieved a further distinction, being recipients of scholarships from the Treasure Beach Foundation.

You deserve to be cheered on as you step out on this journey because you worked hard to achieve your goals.

Keep working hard and you will accomplish even more lofty goals.

But I also want to speak directly to those of you who will be going on to those other schools that might not have been on your list.

Let's face the fact: There were shouts of joy when the word came that some of you had been placed at my old school, Munro, or at Hampton, and STETHS and, significantly these days, at Black River High as well.

The voices were probably more muted, however, when mention was made of those who would be going on to Newell High, or BB Coke, or Lacovia etc.

At one level, I understand the differences in these responses, but, fundamentally, it is wrong!

It is important for those who will be going on to these less favoured schools to understand that your future can be as bright, as positive and as prosperous as that of your colleagues.

Unlike the situation that existed up to a couple decades ago, there are no longer significant differences in the curriculum available at the traditional high schools as against that provided for students attending the upgraded schools. You will all be studying the same academic subjects. And, in five years time you will all be writing your CSEC exams for these same subjects.

So... when you walk through the doors of any of our universities and say to the administrators, "I wish to enroll at this university"; it will not matter which high school you attended. The only issue of relevance on that day will be whether you have passed the requisite number of subjects for entry into the university.

This is a far cry from the situation that faced your parents who attended Newell, for example, in the 1970's and 80's. In a sense, they faced discrimination from the moment they stepped out of Sandy Bank and entered that school.

Despite the fact that many of them were capable of doing the O'Level exams that we were being prepared for at Munro and Hampton and STETHS, they were mostly restricted to doing exams that were regarded as inferior - the JSC and the SSC.

These were exams that were not given the same level of recognition by the University of the West Indies and the major employers in the country.

And, so, essentially what the country was saying to thousands of its young people was that they were not good enough for certain positions in this, the country of their birth!

What is more, this view was often reinforced by their parents and other members of the community.

Yet, even in those circumstances, some of those students prevailed. They refused to accept that they were children of a lesser God. Some took extra lessons outside of the school curriculum and did the O'Levels and even the A'Levels and qualified for university on that basis.

As a consequence there are many lawyers, doctors, nurses, engineers and other professionals in this country and elsewhere in the world today who are products of what were called junior secondary and later simply the secondary schools.

Others went on to teachers college where they excelled and are today among the leading educators in the country. Ironically, some of them are valuable members of staff at even the traditional high school which spurned them in the first place!

They proved that being a student of a so-called secondary school did not mean that you were a second-class citizen, even if your own country meant you to be so!

There may still be some additional steps that you might have to take. You might have to ask your teachers to give you some extra pointers outside of regular class hours; perhaps you may also find it necessary sometimes to return to even your primary school teachers for a bit of guidance in some of these subjects, but I'm sure they won't mind!

Some of you will no doubt seek your livelihood in various trades and some in the fishing traditions of your fathers and grandfathers.

These too are changing with the times as well, however, and only those who adapt to the changes will make it.

Grasp every opportunity to learn new things in the vocational courses that will be offered and you will rise to the top of your chosen field.

Again, I say, some of you may think you are not leaving here on an equal footing, but you can arrive at the same destination as a consequence of what you do over the next few years.

You only need to look at what has happened at Black River High over the past 15 years to appreciate my point.

Here is a school that was initially regarded as being just another secondary school, not a place of choice for bright, ambitious students or hopeful parents to turn to as an option for high school education.

Yet, today, it is one of the best performing high schools in the country and is as legitimate an option as any for our children!

That transformation has been brought about by a team of dedicated teachers and a supportive community and, importantly, by pioneering students who believed in themselves.

Significantly, that process of transformation is being led by a principal who exemplifies best the indomitable spirit required for such formidable challenges.

I speak of the Reverend Barrington Buchanan; a man who overcame his own physical limitations and poverty and, sometimes, the ridicule of others, to be recognized today as one of the leading educators in Jamaica.

You all should be proud of the fact that this man is a product of this community… this very school!

...What kind of future are you being prepared for?

I assert that the most important thing is for you, as young Jamaicans, to be prepared for Jamaican citizenship.

I cannot emphasise too much how crucial it is for Jamaica's young people to be taught the value of being Jamaican!

If each of us develops an understanding of how special our country is we will all work to make it better, and if each one does his part in making it better, then, ultimately, Jamaica will confirm its place as one of the greatest countries on earth!

Far too often we use the United States as our point of reference when we wish to talk down Jamaica and say what a backward people we are.

Well, I make bold to assert that you should never think any less of yourselves as Jamaicans in comparison with citizens from any other country on this planet!

If you are properly prepared for Jamaican citizenship then you will have been prepared to be a citizen of the world because Jamaicans have proved themselves to be among the best in the world.

But if there is a lesson that we can draw from the Americans it is about how they operate in their communities.

They do not wait for the Federal, State, County or City government to do for their communities those little things that need to be fixed. Their sense of civic responsibility drives them to do for themselves those things that they can do at the community level.

And so there are strong community organizations, the spirit of volunteerism is strong and they support their local schools because they know that, ultimately, their children and their community will benefit most from their involvement.

We often hear about the divisions along political lines in the United States between Republicans and Democrats and the Red States and the Blue States.

Yes, it is a vibrant democracy and citizens are fiercely loyal to their political parties, but that does not prevent Democrats and Republicans from cooperating in the interest of their elementary and high schools and their community as a whole.

And so, I issue this challenge to the parents and other adults here today. Do not allow your political differences to get in the way of your working together for the betterment of your schools and community.

This school belongs to neither the JLP nor the PNP. It is our school and we must all work together, alongside the MP, whoever he might be, for the benefit of our children and our community.

Graduates, there are endless opportunities and possibilities out there awaiting you.

Choose wisely, and you will not regret it.

Wonderful gruduation address by Mr. Moxam. I wish I knew him.

After reading Mr Moxam's speech, I was ready to start school again.

TB is fortunate to have someone with these perspectives in teaching.

Best of luck to all the graduates and students.

Sorry, Turey, Earl is not a teacher (if that is what you meant). He's a journalist.

Earl Moxam is a successful journalist who writes for the Gleaner and even though he does not live full time in his home town of Treasure Beach, he visits often and is still a very active member of the community. He is himself the very best example of what the graduates can accomplish professionally and also give back to their community. Thank you Earl.

Mr Moxam is a Treasure Beach icon to be proud of, thank you Earl for encouraging these students, and their parents, Thank you for not forgetting your roots like a lot of us do, but for reaching out always to help and encouragethe people of our comunity, God bless you

Can someone please tell me which school is BB Coke and where it is located? I have never heard of it.

I am curious as to who the grl in #45 is. Is she from Great Bay by any chance?

BB Coke High School is located in Junction, a thriving town which is about a 15-minute drive beyond Southfield. Yes, it is far away; this presents a transportation problem for many of the students, but they have learned to handle it. As with the other high schools, BB Coke offers grades 7 through 12.

B.B Coke is the former Junction Secondary School. It was renamed a few years ago in honour of a former MP for that section of the parish.

Yes #45 is from Great Bay.Her name is Tamara Ricketts.

Excellent speech, Earl has done us all proud. We knew he had it in him. he is really a good example of who we can become. Keep it up my brother

number 45 is from great bay marsha and tyrone daughter....





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Thank you Karen and GIR, now i know which school that is. Are High Schools in Jamaica now going to 12th grade or 12th grade is considered lower six?

LOOK AT MY HANDSON CUZ AT #37,YOU GO BOY!DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE SO BRIGHT.LOVE ALWAYS SONIA

Hey, lady with the red dress on!