The Sakman Chamorro a.ka. "The Flying Proa" for
San Diego Is Now A Reality. History in the Makings!

Introduction - On Saturday, August 8, 2009 at approximately 10am, quite a few of San Diego County Chamorros and friends participated and witnessed history in the makings with the first phase of resurrecting a lost Chamorro art since the 17th century.

The Lost Art - The Mariana Islands consist of the main islands of Guam and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI); Saipan, Rota, Tinaian, and smaller uninhabited islands.The Mariana Islands were named after the Queen of Spain Mariana of Austria, widow of King Philip IV of Spain. The Spaniards were the first of the beginning countries to colonize the Marianas.

Previous to the Spanish era, the native Chamorros were known as and with early documentation expert craftsman of canoes with sails.This being their only type of transportation in the Pacific Ocean waters, their art of canoe-making included unbeknownst to mathematical symmetry which resulted in agility and speed.

The Chamorro flying proa was once so numerous in the Marianas that 17th Century Europeans wrote in their journals of the hundreds of proas that could be seen plying the waters up and down the Marianas. The Europeans had never seen anything like it in Europe nor in all of Oceania. There were no sailing vessels that could come near to matching its speed. Sometimes exceeding 40 feet in length, they were capable of speeds in excess of 20 knots!

In their efforts to suppress the Chamorro people, the Spanish forbade
the Chamorros to sail on the open ocean, and by the mid 1700s the
flying proa ceased to exist. One of the last to be seen was captured
in 1742 by Lord Anson of the English ship "Centurion", when a Spaniard
and four Chamorros sailed a flying proa out to meet the Centurion off
of the coast of Tinian. The Centurion's expedition draftsman made a detailed
drawing of the flying proa with precise measurements. Soon afterwards,
Lord Anson ordered the proa burned so that it could not be used to
sail to Guam to notify the Spanish of the English presence in the islands

History in the Making - The Sakman Chamorro is an educational constructional project by three leading Chamorro organizations: Chamorro Hands in Education Links Unity, Inc. (CHE'LU, Inc.), Sakman Chamorro Inc., a CNMI nonprofit organization, and Traditions About Seafaring Islands (TASI) from Guam are collaborating to revive the lost Chamorro art of canoe building and sailing.

The leads for the canoe building project is Mario R. Borja (CHE'LU, Inc.), Noel Quitugua (Sakman Chamorro, Inc.), and and Dr. Lawrence J. Cunningham (TASI).

San Diego's History in the Making began in March 2009 when a Chamorro couple who shares the cultural passion and vision with our project Lead, Mario Borja in resurrecting the lost Chamorro art of canoe building and seaworthy navigation. Their personal donation of the log and the lead coordinator with his Chamorro relay team who trained and swam the English Channel as a fundraiser for the Sakman project in Saipan, and also contributed project seed money for San Diego.Gof Dankulu Na Si Yu'os Ma'ase Pete and Emma Perez!

The coordination and delivery of the log on August 8, 2009 involved the volunteers; CHE'LU, Inc. and many Chamorros and friends. We need to first acknowledge and thank Robert and Linda Goldkamp for contributing their Chamorro landscape property in allowing our organization to place and build the historical Sakman Chamorro.

We are also very appreciated for the professionals services of Maxim Crane Works Greg Keys for his contribution, and crane operator Julio Ibarra. Without their expertise in the lifting and placing of the 15,000 pound log and other wooden materials would have not been possible. Other professional contributors of their time included the video taping of the delivery; Billy Pitts and photographer Tom Rouse. We would like to thank CHE'LU's very own Financial Officer JoJo Borja for coordinating the contributions of the professional services mentioned.

STR Transportation, Steve and Therese Roberts from Fort Bragg, CA. loaded the log in nearby Mendocino, CA keeping in constant communication when they arrived in San Diego so that CHE'LU's cultural advisor and lead project Mario R. Borja, and board members Co-Chair Greg Diaz, Secretary Janice Waller Bouffiou, volunteers June Sablan Hawkins, Debbie Lizama and Pam Oliva met STR Transportation and escorted them to the project site. Executive Director Randy Camacho and board member Ray L.G. Sablan stayed at the project site awaiting the arrival along with volunteers Cutie and Victor Diaz, Anissa Acfalle, and Laurence Goldkamp.

Our entire CHE'LU team had met over the past year in planning this historical event. Our board members on Guam, Thelma Z. Hechanova and Dr. Miget Lujan Bevacqua were kept apprised of the plans.

Once all wood was placed on the property site as planned, Mario R. Borja led us in a initial traditional blessing of the wood. San Diego Chamorros, History is in the Makings!

 

The Blessing Ceremony
Saturday, August 15, 2009

"Hunggan, Hunggan, Hunggan, Magahet." ("Yes, Yes, Yes, It is True.") was the response during some parts the Chamorro tribal chanting which took place at the historical and blessing of the Sakman Chamorro log on Saturday, August 15, 2009 in El Cajon, CA. Invited dignitaries and guests witnessed and participated in the historical makings here in San Diego County.
It was a well organized blessing of the log as indicated by our guests; they participated and walked away with anticipation of the completion of the seaworthy Sakman Chamorro next year. Our culturalist and Project Lead Mario R. Borja conducted the Chamorro tribal blessing with the assistance of Greg Diaz, Ray L.G. Sablan, Jayven Chargualaf, and Mario's twin brother Tony Borja.

The ceremony began after the traditional blowing of the conch shell by Robert Goldkamp and June Sablan Hawkins. Randy Camacho, executive director of CHE'LU, Inc., welcomed our guests and introduced our entire team of board of directors and advisory committee members. Tony R. Borja introduced our dignitaries and our special guest Pete Perez who presented the history of the Sakman Chamorro to its current revival of the canoe.

The actual blessing of the log: The traditional Chamorro blessing of the log started when Mario, in the Chamorro language, thanked the gods for the trees and the wood it produced for the Chamorro people for their way of transportation. Tony Borja engaged our guests by asking them to respond with "hunggan, hunggan, hunggan magahet". Mario's other assistant's Greg Diaz and Ray L.G. Sablan in an organized manner began uncovering each layered sheet of the log handing them to the native Chamorro dressed and youth Jayven Chargualaf.

Mr. Borja continued the blessing ceremony by chanting special invocations and having all the guests stand around both sides of the log to bless it by pouring water and sand which came from the Pacific Ocean. Afterwards, he called up all the canoe carvers who bowed their heads on the log and prayed and chanted asking the gods for special blessings for the skills in the art of canoe-making.

In completing the blessing, Mario requested some of our manamkos (seniors), youth, and special guests to each symbolically sever the roots of the log. Invited dignitaries including Guam Governor and Mrs. Felix P. Camacho, Rear Admiral William French, and Rear Admiral Peter Gumataotao also participated in the root severance part of the ceremony and afterwards each spoke to our guests on their perspectives in the reviving the Sakman Chamorro in San Diego and its importance.

Special recognition and appreciation to June Sablan Hawkins, Debbie Lizama, and Janice Waller Bouffiou for creating the one-of-a-kind handcrafted leis with shells for CHE'LU, Incs' Board and Advisory, and our Dignitaries. Also special recognition to Cutie Diaz who made the headpieces and coordinating the food, and Blessing Greeters: Clare Borja, JoJo Borja, Louann Guzman, and Janice Waller Bouffiou.

 

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