GREAT THINGS ARE POSSIBLE Brother Lawrence Humphrey, FSC Brother President In December 2019, experts watched anxiously as the emergence of a novel coronavirus was first identified. Within a year all of our lives would be impacted by the worldwide pandemic. In fact, it has been reported that the education of 90% of the world’s children has been disrupted by the virus. 2020 came, and with it, more global challenges. The Australian and US wildfires, the Beirut explosion, the devastating floods in Indonesia, the aftermath of the volcanic eruption in the Philippines, not to mention attacks on the dignity of human beings exhibited in matters like migration, exacerbated individualism, human trafficking, child slavery, and the like. One might ask: what worse could come after this? And nevertheless, even in the face of all these challenges, great things are possible. This has been the theme for reflection in Lasallian schools across the globe. Throughout the year, we have been asked to consider what the “great things” are, so that we Lasallians can positively respond to the challenges posed to us by the world today. This issue of Humanitas showcases how your overwhelming support for our Scholarships and Bursaries Fund through SINGALA III enabled us to award our very first batch of Lasallian scholarships in 2020. This 6-year scholarship programme enables us to extend the opportunity of an SJI International education to qualified young people from Lasallian primary schools in Singapore. This issue also features three of our scholars from the Class of 2019 who recount many of the great things that happened to them during their time at SJI International. One scholar describes it as some of the “most transformative years” of his life.
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While 2020 has been a year like no other, thanks to you, great things continue to take place every day at SJI International. Even while masked and safely-distanced from one another, our community proved that we could do virtually anything. For many of our students, these experiences are only possible because of your support. As they leave SJI International, they take with them the culmination of their learnings and discoveries that embody what it means to be a person of integrity and a person for others. I hope that you enjoy reading their stories in this issue and that they inspire you to continue to partner with us in our mission to reach out to the last, the lost and the least. Once again, for all that you do for our students and for making great things happen – thank you.
