By Gerardo R. Partido
Variety News Staff

BREANNA Gah-Fung Lai, a student at St. John School, has been selected as a congressional House page upon the recommendation of Guam Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo.
She is the daughter of George and Debbie Lai of Barrigada Heights.
According to Bordallo, Breanna Lai is an exceptional student, an outstanding athlete, and a caring volunteer who will represent Guam very well in Congress.
“Her warmth, friendliness and bubbling personality will certainly win her many friends here in the nation’s capitol. She will make a wonderful goodwill ambassador for Guam’s young people. I look forward to seeing her at work in the Congressional complex,” Bordallo said.
Breanna Lai, whose nickname is “Boo,” has been an active member of the National Honor Society since middle school and remains a top ranking academic achiever in high school.
She is a member of Guam’s Under 19 Women’s Soccer Team and played in the Asian Football Confederation Championship against teams from Hong Kong, Vietnam and Taipei last year.
She also volunteered to help in a summer crime watch camp for children aged 6 to 14, and is a volunteer soccer coach for the 6 and under children’s league.
“My family, friends and travel have provided me with an invaluable understanding of and appreciation for many different cultures,” Breanna Lai wrote in her Page statement.
“This appreciation has in turn motivated me to participate in various community outreach efforts in hopes of making not only our tiny island, but perhaps someday the world, a better place,” she added.
The practice of having young people serve as pages in the House of Representatives dates back to the birth of the U.S. and is one of the most prestigious academic programs offered by Congress.
Being selected as a page is a privilege open only to high school juniors who must be sponsored by a member of Congress. Pages must be at least 16 years old, be in their junior year of high school and have maintained a 3.0 grade-point average.
According to Bordallo, pages earn a salary, live in the House Page Residence Hall, attend the House Page School, and work as a team in the Congressional complex. Their duties consist of delivering correspondence and legislative materials within the complex, answering phones in the members’ cloakroom, and taking messages for lawmakers who are in the House chamber. They also prepare the House floor for sessions.
The Congressional Page Program is highly competitive. Normally, each member of Congress only has the opportunity to nominate a page once every five or six years.
With the transfer of control of the 110th Congress, however, Bordallo said the ratio of majority to minority page slots shifted, giving Democrats the ability to present this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to more students. Bordallo took immediate advantage of the opportunity, but had to find and nominate a student who was both qualified and able to participate on very short notice.
During the 109th Congress, Jon Junior Calvo, of Toto, was nominated and selected from a huge pool of students to serve as a Congressional page. Calvo, who served as a page from January through June 2005, is a graduate of Father Duenas High School, and is currently attending college at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.