St. Anne’s Centre for Women and Youth Development celebrated its 9th Graduation Ceremony in conjunction with the 10th Anniversary of the St. Anne’s Centre in Satellite Town, Lagos on Saturday, 21st of November, 2015. It started at 11.00am with the Holy Mass which was officiated by Rev. Father Shola CSSR.
Those that were in attendance, were students of St. Anne’s Centre, ex–students, graduates and their guests, family members, the Sisters of Charity and the choir from the Church of Resurrection Ijegun Satellite Town. It was well attended!
The priest, during his homily equally prayed and wished the graduates well in their endeavors and also advised those invited to acquire a vocational skill to enable them to be self independent. Rev Father Shola also urged them to make use of the skill they have acquired in St. Anne’s Centre.
During the Mass, there was a thanksgiving session where we all had the opportunity to thank God for all he had done for us. The Mass ended with a speech from the present coordinator of the Centre. In the person of Sister Ngozi Monye.
From all indications, the Centre has grown and is still growing, the institute is presently recording 8,400 students after 10 years of operation the institute was established on the 16th of May 2005, and it presently has a total of a hundred and seventy (170) students. 2015/2016 session. The breakdown is as follows;
– Bead Making Department 20 students
– Knitting Department 5 students
– Catering Department 56 students
– Fashion Designing Department 60 students
– Adult Literacy Class 17 students
– Ankara Designing Department 12 students
The above also has a new department which is the Production Department. The aim of this department is to provide wider services to people and work towards sustainability into the future. The graduating students are a hundred and thirty-eight.
After the Mass, there was a brief interlude. During this time, there were picture shoots as well as the entertainment of the special guests. These included the officiating priest, the Sisters of Charity, the Chairman of the occasion as well as the sponsor. They were all fed and given souvenirs which were made to mark the occasion. The souvenirs included a calendar, face towels and plates.
On their return to the Centre, guests were introduced and the Opening Prayer was said by Commodore Theophilus Nnawuiha Kofi, from the Nigerian Navy, who was the Chairman of the occasion, afterward he gave his opening address.
The welcome song was presented by the students of the Fashion Designing Department. There was a parade by the Beading Department students showcasing some of their wonderful designs. The next activity was Cultural Dance. This was presented by the Beading and Catering Departments Students. It was a beautiful presentation and it got people of their seats. Some of them even joined in the dance. The Co-ordinator was even invited to dance and it was a fun.
There was a parade by the grandaunts of the Fashion Designing Department. They showcased various designs of wedding gowns. It was a lovely display. The next parade was that of the Catering Department. There were various designs of cakes ranging from wedding cakes to birthday cakes, traditional wedding cakes etc. there was a birthday cake designed as a football field with goal posts and goal keepers, another cake was designed as a gas cooker with the knobs. Another one was designed as a handbag in fact, it was awesome. There was also a Graduation/Anniversary cake which was baked for the occasion.
Towards the end of the ceremony, the various certificates were presented to the graduates of the various departments.
– 63 Beading Students
– 19 Fashion Designing Students
– 44 Catering Students
– 10 Ankara Designing Students
– 02 Knitting Students
While all these were going on, refreshments were being served. The event was planned for four hundred (400) people but we had more than seven hundred (700) people in attendance. There was no space, people were standing outside trying to get a glimpse of what was going on. This shows the impact the Centre is having in its immediate environment.
There was a vote of thanks by Rev. Sister Philomena after which the Closing prayer was said by the sponsor Mr. Uzoma.
The Ceremony officially ended around 5:15pm. People were not willing to leave and were dancing. It was a day filled with joy, laughter and thanks to God Almighty for a beautiful day with NO rainfall!
