(500 Sails) — Andrew Roberto has been named as the new director of community programs with 500 Sails, effective June 6, 2022.
Andrew Roberto, under the guidance of Master Navigator Cecilio Raiukiulipiy — not pictured — uses a poksai to steer Neni across the Saipan-Tinian Channel. Saipan is pictured in the background.
Raised all his life on Saipan, Roberto is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Andres & Dorothy Roberto.
Andrew Roberto brings his passion for sailing and love for teaching to 500 Sails, having served as a Lalayak instructor to its previous cohorts.
He has sailed thrice to Tinian over the past three years with 500 Sails with renowned Master Navigator Cecilio Raiukiulipiy and 500 Sails Executive Director Pete Perez, in order to re-introduce maritime sailing activities to the community and has sailed around Saipan in its most recent circumnavigation.
He has participated in various 500 Sails community programs including Lalayak, Dolphin Club Saipan, Peskan Taddong, and Sunday Sails and has even helped build some of the canoes that are sailed in the lagoon.
As a graduate of Saipan Southern High School, Andrew Roberto earned his Associate of Arts in Liberal Arts from Northern Marianas College and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Guam in 2015.
He has an extensive background in writing and social media marketing and production. His résumé is replete with authored works for the Guam Daily Post, Tropical Productions Inc, and Pacific Telestations Inc.
Andrew Roberto has written a number of plays for UOG’s Fine Arts Theater, including “An Act to Save a Marriage” and “Nobena Para San Jude.” He has authored “The Talisman,” featured in “Local Voices: An Anthology,” and has written several short stories for Guam’s Division of English and Applied Linguistics. His works feature snippets of everyday life as a Chamorro from Saipan, facilitating a deeper understanding of identity, society and culture in a rapidly changing world.
In addition to writing, Andrew Roberto has a deep passion for the ocean. He grew up fishing with his dad and swimming along Saipan’s beaches from Obyan Beach to the Grotto.
He grew up dreaming of canoes and vividly remembers a time in first grade when a historical scholar came to his class and spoke of Chamorro canoes and their disappearance during Spanish colonization.
Heartbroken over the demise of the sahguans, Andrew Roberto dreamt of canoes being back on the water. When he was in college, he caught wind of the building of a 47-foot Chamorro sakman, which brought him to following Mario Borja’s build of Che’lu and subsequently, Pete and Emma Perez’s nonprofit organization, 500 Sails.
“Becoming a formal part of this organization realizes a long time dream I’ve had — to contribute to the revitalization of the Marianas and her seafaring people. I’m happy to help 500 Sails develop programs that get people onto the ocean and in our canoes,” said Andrew Roberto.
Over the past year, he worked for the Northern Marianas Humanities Council, where he supported the development and logistics of several council programs, such as the Sengebau Poetry Competition and the My Marianas Writing Contest. His work centered on instilling a love for writing in our youth and ownership of cultural values to develop their communication skills, greatly complementing the community programs under 500 Sails.
Prior to his work for the Humanities Council, Andrew Roberto was a classroom teacher for Saipan Southern High School, engaging with high school youth to think more critically and even abstractly about the information they receive. His background provides added value to 500 Sails in engaging the youth and young people to instill cultural values of tradition and merge them with innovative techniques to keep up with the current times.
“Andrew has been with 500 Sails as both a participant and volunteer for many years. Previously, he has been an agent of socialization for youth on motivation and learning; he’s excellent with youth and young people and he has that passion for culture and maritime traditions that we look for in our team,” said Pete Perez, co-founder of 500 Sails.
About 500 Sails
500 Sails is a 501(c)(3) and CNMI tax-exempt nonprofit organization dedicated to reviving, promoting, and preserving the maritime cultural traditions of the Mariana Islands through community engagement in canoe cultural values and activities. 500 Sails’ vision is a healthy thriving native community that has successfully integrated traditional cultural values into modern life. Major supporting partners include the CNMI Office of Indigenous Affairs, IT&E, and the Chamolinian Cultural Village Inc. – Canoe Federation.
For more information on programs, call (670) 323-7245 (SAIL), email [email protected], or follow 500 Sails on Facebook and Instagram.
Andrew Roberto
