Autobiography
I am Kenton Xavier Chance a sophomore student of Journalism and Mass Communication at Ming Chuan University International College (MCUIC) in Taipei, Taiwan. I was born in St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) on March 18th, 1981. I am the second of five children in my family.
I graduated from pre-school, elementary school and the number one high school in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. During my formative years, I was shy, reserved person. Though I had lots of friends, I spent most of my time reading. I was not very interested in music, sports, video games and most other things that children and teenagers of my time liked. I was captivated by the world that existed in books. I also loved nature, animals, the beach, and fishing. I have grown to love physical activities and enjoy working out in the gym, dragon boating, jogging, and basketball. I am a member of MCUIC basketball team and the Dragonriders dragon boat team.
During my high school years, I was a member of the St. Vincent Grammar School Scout Troup and received the Chief Scout Award, one of the highest awards in SVG. I also participated in a number of other extracurricular activities, programmes and workshops designed to build confidence, self-esteem, leadership skills and other positive attributes. These, in additional to serving in several leadership positions at my church, have helped me to develop into the confident, self-motivated person I am today.
In 1997, at age 16, I graduated from high school and decided that I needed some time to fully determine what career to pursue. I entered the job market and worked for Frederick Constriction Company and the St. Vincent Brewery Ltd. for 18 months respectively.
In 2001, I enrolled at the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College (SVGCC) for the two-year “Advanced Level” (A’Level) programme, registering for Literature in English, Sociology, Spanish and the compulsory General Studies. I was a member of the Sociology Club and served as Public Relations Officer and later as one of two vice-presidents. I also enrolled for a course in basic journalism offered by Searchlight newspaper. After completing the course, my classmates later selected me to edit the Young Vincentian, a magazine published by The Vincentian newspaper, using material written by SVGCC students.
On my graduation from the SVGCC in 2003, I received awards for Academic Excellence in Sociology, Excellence in Public Discussion, and Most Resourceful Student of the Year. Three days after my graduation, I was offered a job market as a full-time reporter at The Vincentian newspaper. Two months after I began working at The Vincentian, the editor vacated his position and I was asked to work in that capacity. The huge responsibility gave me a chance to develop my journalistic and leadership skills. The following year, I was awarded the Sport Photograph of the Year prize by the National Sports Council of SVG. I was also chairman of a committee that was tasked by fellow media workers to revive an association representing the interest of media workers in SVG. My work in the media gave me many opportunities to travel to participate in media workshops on a variety of topic in various Caribbean nations and Taiwan in 2005.
In 2006, I decided to exit the job market to read for a degree in Mass Communication and Journalism and applied for and received a five-year scholarship to study one year of Mandarin Chinese and read for an undergraduate degree in Taiwan.
I am a highly motivated, self-disciplined hard working, and considerate individual who gets along well with others. My Taiwanese classmates call me “Kenton Baba”, a term, in Chinese culture, usually reserved for addressing one’s biological father. This testifies of respect they have for me, which is a consequence of my respect for them and their culture and my willingness to help them and my other classmates.
I am Christian and many of beliefs and principles are informed by the religion. I subscribe to the principles of honesty, perseverance and hard work. I believe in the family as an indispensible social institution. I am engaged to be married to the young lady whom I have been dating for the past nine years.
