2004 Legends of China Presidential Award
Legends of China proudly announces its 2004 Presidential Award Winner: Dr Yolanda Garcia!
Yolanda M. Garcia
Executive Director
Student Academic Support Services
University of California, Santa Barbara
The Silk Road to the Future has now established a sterling reputation in both China and in the U.S. But, when we first started our program, we faced many great difficulties, among which was to make American universities realize the uniqueness and exclusiveness of this great program. When we introduced The Silk Road to the Future at UCSB in 2002, Dr. Yolanda Garcia, a great visionary who immediately recognized its golden value, decided to help Legends of China promote the program. She dedicated her time, due to her love of students, and brought over 50 students, faculty and staff from UCSB to China in 2002. In all of this she enjoyed the strong support and encouragement of UCSB Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, Dr. Michael Young. Her courage and efforts opened UCSB participants’eyes to the wonderful educational opportunity offered through the Silk Road program. For this valiant effort to the program, she will be remembered forever!
Speech from Dr. Yolanda Garcia (2002)
On behalf of the University of California, Santa Barbara, Vice Chancellor Michael Young, the University of California campuses and all of the University and Colleges represented in the audience, we are humbled and honored that you have made such a beautiful welcome to us. This is my first time in China and I believe that it is the first time for most of us in the audience. I want to share with you very briefly my impressions of the last few days.
I have been taken, and humbled by the vastness, depth and beauty of this country and the values of this culture and its people. In the United States, we are very young in comparison. We have much to learn and there is much that we need to understand in order to grow. We have many different cultures in our Country, and we have been struggling to forge together to understand who we are as a Nation. Those experiences, I believe have shaped my last few days, and will continue to shape my life.
I have learned through working with many people and with many different ethnic groups in the United States about culture. You have shared with us something so beautiful and we are truly humbled by the experience. I have come to understand that I have much to learn about your traditions. I have a yearning that I did not have before we came to learn, to understand and to appreciate all the traditions and past you offer us here. Although I have seen many differences across our people in the last few days, I have also noticed the many things that we have in common. We share universal values. The value of culture. The value of loving youth The value of loving learning. We believe in the future knowing that the question at the hands of our youth is peace.
What I have begun to conclude is that the peace to be found in the future is not only on the "Silk Road to the Future", but is on a road that is built on mutual respect. On behalf of those in the audience, I thank you for allowing us to experience a slice of China and for making this trip possible. Thank you very much.