We celebrate with pride and joy the launching of the children’s book “Ti Dakkel Nga Armang” by the Municipality of Luna.  It is written by five Grade 1 teachers of Rimos del Norte ES who underwent a storytelling workshop conducted under the USAID’s EdGE Program some three years back.

“Ti Dakkel Nga Armang” tells the story of a boy who saved a giant shrimp and what the giant shrimp did to return the boy’s good deed.  It teaches children about good values and taking care of the environment.

Mayor Vic Marron of Luna says that the book is not only a children’s book but a book with many inspiring stories behind it.  And he is right.

The book is a story of the huge accomplishment of five teachers who never dreamt that they would one day write a book for schoolchildren to read and enjoy.  Theirs is a story of inspiration for all public school teachers.

The book is a story of a small fishing village whose simple life and rich harvest of “armang” from the seas will now be told to children not only in Luna but in other municipalities as well.  This brings pride to the community of Rimos del Norte.

For us, the book is a story of the vision and leadership of Mayor Marron.  Under Mayor Vic’s chairmanship, the Local School Board of Luna allocated a budget to support the children’s book project.  And it is a story of the unselfish support to promote reading by people from The Storytelling Project, other nongovernment partners, USAID and Synergeia programme officers and staff.

The children’s book launch is made doubly significant as it coincides with the culmination of the summer reading camp for 753 non-readers and frustration readers of Luna.  We congratulate Luna Mayor Marron and the entire community for this exemplary achievement.  It really takes a village to make our children learn, and Luna is showing all of us how.