Building a Legacy of Kindness: Men of St. Savio called to Lead with a Heart

Boroko, Port Moresby: In a powerful reflection of faith, duty and character matching the vibrant colors of gentlemen’s attire and decorations - white, blue and red - the gentlemen of Don Bosco Technological Institute gathered to celebrate the advance Feast Day of St. Dominic Savio on 23^rd April, 2026 with the theme “Listening with a Heart, Acting with Kindness” – The Saint Dominic Savio Way.  The event was led by the Laura’s Club of the institute facilitated by a volunteer Teaching staff, Ms. Arlene Abital and was centered on the life and catechumen journey of St. Dominic Savio. The event served as the roadmap for young men to navigate the complexities of modern life through the lens of spiritual maturity.

Apart from the dynamic and beautiful intermission item of the ladies from Years 1 & 3 and the trivia, adding depth to the celebration was the invited resource speaker, Mr. Donald Sai’i–The National Health Manager for the Salvation Army Health Services in Papua New Guinea, who challenged the traditional concept of ego. In a world where pride often dictates action, Mr. Sai’i encouraged every gentleman to love their future wives and respect them in public arena, he further encouraged the participants to instead become a ‘proton’ – a positive force that reacts first. He further elaborated that being a proton means being the first to respond to family issues and the first to offer a solution. Mr. Sai’i urged the gentlemen to ‘check the intent of their heart’ and attending to one’s duty – whether in the classroom or at home as a ministerial duty in making sure that every moment must be an investment in God to ensure a final “homecoming’ with Him.

Laura’s club projected two Audio-Visual Presentations that highlight the messages for the gentlemen from Mrs. Lucy Kibai, the Research Officer, Sr. Carmencita Rodriguez, FMA and Laura’s President, Rialah Sai’i and the powerful images of the gentlemen from various technologies and sections in the campus. Rialah recounted and acknowledged the vital role men play in maintaining a clean, safe school environment and embracing the idea of ‘gender equality’ in helping to create a space where everyone is respected, given a space to breathe and given space to demonstrate their God Given talents. The event also was the ladies’ gratitude day for the gentlemen during the International Women’s Day. It was a touching and a great sight to see ladies who tirelessly prepared cards, garlands or leis made of flowers and candies and gave them during the song presentation of Years 2 and 4.

The special event moved on the second segment of the activity hour. This occasion also brought an important figure, the Rector of Don Bosco Technical School, Gabutu, Fr. Ambrose Pereira, SDB as the Guest Speaker, who gave informative insight on the abundance and over-indulgence of young people to Social Media platforms. Fr. Ambrose Pereira, SDB, started off with the physical ‘Tech neck’ by saying it as a negative way of reshaping the body frame when constantly succumbing to the gravity of the screens. He urged the participants to make self-evaluation and assessed themselves on how much time they have invested into mobile phone just to go on internet.

The session continued into stating the importance of losing the ability of the brain to ‘read deep and memorize’ because of easy access through Artificial Intelligence driven platforms. He further elaborated by saying that exposing every data on social media is another method of losing ourselves soon. He encouraged the students to use artificial intelligence positively for the good of themselves and of society.

On behalf of the institute Fr. Joseph Vanga, SDB –VP for Pastoral, Fr. Pankaj Xalxo, SDB –VP for Finance & Administration and Vocation Orientation Mentor and Mr. Julius Pagaurea, Vocation Orientation Leader presented the certificates and tokens to the two invited special speakers of the day.  The two activities ended with instructions for the gentlemen to share cake and ice cream from the school and from anonymous donors during the lunch hour. Concluding prayer was done by the Club’s Secretary Penniella.