PHOTO: The proud female honourees who came up in flying colours
By Austin J. Wisseh, jaustinwisseh100@gmail.com , Harbel-Margibi County
HARBEL, Liberia- Fifty-eight female pupils from the 9th grade class of the Firestone Liberia School System have been honored for maintaining high averages for the first semester of academic 2021-2022.
Firestone is Liberia’s largest natural rubber plantation company, which is situated 62 kilometers from Monrovia.
As part of the honoring program, the young scholars toured some of Firestone’s landmark facilities last Thursday, May 5, 2022.
Honoring young girls in the Firestone School System is somewhat new and a brainchild of the company’s Director for Human Resources and Social Services, Cllr. Marion N. Wreh-Socree.
Socree, who is also a practicing female Lawyer, spoke of a game changer during the tour: “We are doing this to help in breaking that culture of young girls having a child before graduating from high school and also build a reading student population. We are instituting programs that will encourage reading and comprehension in our schools.”
Mrs. Wreh-Socree praised the young scholars and encouraged them to do more.
“All my interactions with you so far, I’m impressed. You are trying and speaking Standard English. Keep reading and encourage your younger ones to read too.”
It seems certain, a vast majority of the young girls will enroll into the Division 44 Senior High School. Hence, visiting the Firestone Liberia’s lone Senior High School was on their radar.
The Junior High Honor Roll female studentss visited the School’s Science Laboratories. They also visited the company’s Hydro Power Plant and the Central Offices of Firestone Liberia, the Human Resources Department where they interacted with a much Younger Manager and the Superintendent for Pensions and Benefits, Mrs. Jacqueline Allison Saye and Madam Elizabeth Miller.
Mrs. Saye thanked the girls for raising bar and encouraged them further.
“God did not gave men extra brain. Continue the competition. It will help to make the society better,” Mrs. Allison Saye concluded.
Earlier, the young girls were graciously welcomed into the offices of the General Manager of Firestone-Liberia, Donald Darden.
Mr. Dardon had words of inspirations for the adolescent scholars.
“You’re here as our honored guests and we’re proud to have you. In this room, we have hosted Presidents, Ambassadors and many people have sat in those seats.”
The Firestone Liberia General Manager challenged the teen scholars to continue on this good path.
“Life can be difficult but in a way, life is very easy because you just need to know what you want. Do you want to be successful, do you want to be happy? Firestone has many successful women,” Mr. Dardon advised the young female scholars.
The 60-year-old Firestone General Manager went on to lift the girls’ spirit by adding: “You are a beautiful creation. You have to live up to your potentials. Education is a gift you’re getting and you have to decide what you want to do with it. Make sure you have a mission, plan and it all gets back to the simple question; what do you want? If you know what you want, it’s always going to be much easier to get to that goal.”
“Education will never end for anyone of you. I still learn every day. You’ve began a journey and it’s up to you to continue that journey,” he said.
Mr. Darden concluded: “I look out on you and I see beautiful faces. I see hope; you are very valuable. Others may see you in a certain way that’s not positive. You are valuable and that’s how you need to see yourself. We are opened for anyone who wants to come and talk to us and learn more about the company.”
Speaking on behalf of the all-female scholars and Junior High Seniors, a fellow 9th grader, Jile Z. Yawhy thanked the Education Department and the offices of the Director for Human Resources and Social Services for the experience and pledged to keep the touch burning.
“We say a big thank you to all who worked hard to make this day a success for us. Nowadays, not many people think about girls; not many people think about our future.”
Jile, who is 14, is aspiring to become amongst others, a lawyer challenged here peers. “We need to make a name for ourselves in society. This is why the experience [Field trip] was set. We’ve learnt from the experience and all the great people that talked to us; this will not be our stopping point.”
During the tour, the teen scholars also got words of motivation from Firestone Liberia Manager, Electrical Department, Alpha Jalloh; Accounts Manager, Margaret Cain, and Education and Training Manager, Mrs. Marcia C. Edwards.
Regional Principal, Kerkula Jones, who took the proud young honourees and the Human Resource chief at Firestone Liberia, Cllr. Marion N. Wreh-Socree on the guarded tour, admonished the girls to maintain their high honors.
He hoped that they’ll become even more successful individually, as they are now being seen as role models.