Developing this website for learningCHamoru is the result of many people sharing their ideas and working together for several years. As we now are able to begin using this amazing language learning environment and as we now can even further span the involvement and creative participation of CHamoru language learners, it is very important that we give credit and thanks to the many people who paved the way for this website and who now are building this website. 

I especially thank Señora Rosa Salas Palomo. More than 20 years ago she began to teach me CHamoru when I miserably was failing in my efforts. Nevertheless she has been encouraging and helpful throughout my years of trying without succeeding. Since we began talking about this learningCHamoru website years ago, she always has been very helpful and visionary in the development of the site. She still patiently teaches me CHamoru and she is now one of the main generators and creators for this website. THANK YOU.

Rhaj Sharma, Tony Blas and the other team members of GuamWEBZ have been the best possible partners in creating the best possible online platform to practice and to advance the learning of CHamoru. They fully embrace the vision of our website while they competently and creatively lead the technical dimension of our website development. THANK YOU.

Michael Lujan Bevaqua made extremely valuable direct and indirect contributions to this site. During his many CHamoru classes at Cafe Java as well as during many informal instructions and conversations on the campus of the University of Guam, I could gain most valuable insights about the uniqueness of learningCHamoru; in particular about the historicity and political dimension of learningCHamoru. His strong and continuous commitment to the development of CHamoru Studies at the University of Guam has created very positive social and institutional environments for the development of learningCHamoru. THANK YOU.

Kruu Ladawan is the best language teacher I have ever met; she teaches Thai in Bangkok, Thailand. She develops Thai teaching materials, supervises and supports Thai teachers, and is teaching herself in the classroom and online. Her competence and dedication to the teaching of Thai has become an ongoing source of inspiration for my commitment to learn how to learn CHamoru. THANK YOU.

Elizabeth Allgäuer-Hackl, who lives and works in Austria, speaks fluently several languages and dedicates her professional life to the study and promotion of multi-linguistic and multi-cultural learning paradigms. Her community activism, her institutional consultancy work, as well as her kind professional and personal support in my study of issues pertaining to language learning have profoundly helped me during the past two years. THANK YOU. 

Ray Torres, Zita Pangelinan and Sister Trinie Pangelinan are the most patient CHamoru friends I could wish for. They all are fluent CHamoru speakers, their friendships and their ongoing encouragement to learningCHamoru have made it possible for me to always come back to learningCHamoru and to always try again. THANK YOU.

Rufina Mendiola, Ferdinant Franquez, and Peter Onedera were the other CHamoru teachers at the University of Guam who were always very kind and supportive during my countless re-starts of learningCHamoru. THANK YOU.

Ann Marie Arceo and her team of the Hurao Academy gave me the opportunity to participate in one of their CHamoru classes for adult learners. This was a pleasant and educational experience with valuable observations and experiences regarding teaching and learning CHamoru. THANK YOU.

When I recently became a formal student in the CHamoru Studies program, my class mates have been very encouraging in my learningCHamoru and very supportive in thinking about and planning this website. Especially the class “CM301 Advanced CHamoru” with Señora Rosa Palomo as the instructor, during the Fall 2014 semester, has been very instrumental in the planning and development of this site. Carmen Baza, Francisca C. Blanco, Antonio Borja, Gabriel T. Cruz, Colleen Roberto Dirige, Lourdes Meno Farfan, Andrew Gumataotao, Joey Leon Guerrero, Rosalie N. Lujan, Eileen R. Meno, Victoria Mesa, Sheila Hope Paulino, Tess Salas, Joseph T. San Nicolas, Elyssa J. Santos, Fu’una Sanz, Dallas Taijeron, Brian J. Terlaje, Nathaniel B Untalan, and Louis T. Wabol created a very positive experimental situation for the development of the various learning paths of the website. All students contributed in one way or another to the positive momentum of the development. The personal enrichment of the peer relations with these fine learners and teachers of CHamoru language has been a true privilege and honor. THANK YOU. 

The other most recent significant contributing group is the special CHamoru class at the University of Guam that focused on the online dictionary of the website. Within only a few weeks, during July and August 2015, have they entered more than 5,000 words into our online dictionary. The members of this extremely productive group were Roseann Chargualaf, Rosie Howser, Amy Chargualaf, Victoria Mesa, Maxine Bigler, Andrew Sole, Raymond Lujan, Francesca Blanco, Joe Babauta, and Carmen Gallman. THANK YOU.

Ronald T. Laguaña and his staff of the Division of CHamoru Studies and Special Projects have been encouraging, supportive and very helpful in the development and planning of the website. Their work has been a very instrumental frame of reference in the site development. The initial use of the Division’s publications on the website is very promising and indicates an emerging win-win partnership with the Division of CHamoru Studies and Special Projects. THANK YOU.

Mrs. Alfoncina Cruz and Pale Jose Villagomez, OFM Capuchin have been very willing and helpful to do the audio recordings for a story of the Fino' CHamoru Column in the Pacific Daily News and the "Our Father" prayer in the Media section of our site. THANK YOU.
 

Overall, and in the long run, the most important source of encouragement and support for my involvement in learningCHamoru is my wife Vivian, our two daughters Alexandra and Jessica, and my familia as a whole. Although none of them speaks CHamoru, they all encourage and support me during weekends and evenings when I am at home studying and working on learningCHamoru. THANK YOU.

For the photos of Guam's natural beauty in the skill and review tests we especially thank John LeonGuerrero and Ron Castro. THANK YOU.
 

On behalf of all current and future learners of CHamoru on this website, THANK YOU ALL ! 

si gerhard

Site-Steward and Webmaster