WILMER JOEL
The former capital building was turned into a Tropical Christmas Wonderland illuminated with flickering lights which embellished the entire area during the Christmas Lighting Ceremony last Friday arranged by the RMI government and the Mejerik Club.
The venue was packed with children as well as families waiting for the Christmas lights to shimmer and sparkle all around. First Lady Ginger Kabua offered her appreciation to all the people who lent their hand in preparation for the annual holiday ceremony. She also thanked the workers of the RMI Public School System and the Ministry of Works, Infrastructure, and Utilities who provided the manpower.
After her speech, the countdown was commenced for the Christmas to begin flickering: one set of Christmas lights after another turned on until they all radiated reaching to the Christmas tree which gave the best shimmer of all. Everyone shouted in excitement as the tree lit up.
As soon as all the Christmas lights turned on pandemonium broke loose, everyone scattered everywhere to take photos. Tommy Lokeijak, the man behind “Photo Booth Majuro” sensational Photobooth organization, got very busy. He told the Journal that he and his buddy Santa Claus Ben Wakefield had about 300 customers flooding in the photo booth to get their photos taken with Santa.
The program ran smoothly under the supervision of Assistant Chief of Agriculture of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Commerce Randon Jack with performances from various schools including Delap, Long Island, Rairok, Rita, and Laura elementary schools, Majuro Middle School, and Marshall Islands High School.
During the ceremony, the RMI Office of Commerce, Investment and Tourism also announced the winners for the residential Christmas lights contest that it sponsored:
• 1st Place: Glen Joseph (Ajeltake) $1,000.
• 2nd Place: Handyme Lamin (Rairok) $750.
• 3rd Place: Moriana Phillip (Rita) $500.