Fafa'nague (Instructor) - GWHS

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Fu'una Angelina Sanz

Fu'una Angelina Sanz, of Yona, is the daughter of Raymond Sanz and Sonia Suobiron. She started her journey with Inetnon Gefpå'go at 11 years old. As a 7th grade student, she was chosen by Siñot Vince Reyes to enroll in his "Cultural Dance and Arts" class at Inarajan Middle School. At the time of her audition to be a member in the traveling group, the group was still under the name of Inetnon Natibu. It was not until her 8th grade year that the name changed to be known now as Inetnon Gefpå'go.

Fu'una went on to attend Notre Dame High School, where she continued her active participation in the dance group. At age 14, she received her Chamoru name: Sangåni, which means "to say" or "to tell". Reyes gave her this name not only because of her ability to speak Chamoru but because of her strong potential and passion for the culture. He believed in her potential to become a future leader and educator of the Chamoru culture. In her senior year of high school, Fu'una began employment under Inetnon Gefpå'go as a dancer for the first full Chamoru dinner show at the Sheraton Laguna Guam.

After her graduation from high school in 2011, Fu'una continued pursuing further education at the University of Guam while also remaining committed to Inetnon Gefpå'go. Along with being a full-time college student, she traveled yearly with the group to participate in international dance festivals and competitions throughout the world. In 2015, she chartered the very first University of Guam Chapter of Inetnon Gefpå'go, which was the only Chamoru student organization on campus at the time. As president of the UOG chapter and with the help of her fellow members, the UOG chapter organized fundraisers, recruitment drives, performances, rehearsals, and auditions at the university.

Fu'una graduated from the University of Guam in May of 2016 earning a Bachelor of Arts degree with a double major in Pacific-Asian Studies: Concentration on Chamoru Studies and English: Language Emphasis. Soon after, she was hired by the Guam Department of Education to teach Chamoru language and Chamoru traditional arts at George Washington High School. While teaching full-time, Fu'una also enrolled in graduate school and is attending classes to work towards earning a Master of Arts degree in English Linguistics.

Under the traditional arts program at GWHS, Fu'una started the Inetnon Gefpå'go Chapter of George Washington High School ("IGGW"). During her first year teaching, she entered UOG's Chamoru Language Competition, the Incha'igen Fino' CHamoru, competing in the Kanta yan Baila (Song and Dance) category, Låhi na Kakanta (male solo singer) category, and Palao'an na Kakanta (female solo singer) category. Her students won first place in the song and dance category, and second and third place in the male singer and female singer category, respectively.

She continued her commitment to Inetnon Gefpå'go and participated in the annual retreats held every summer. During the most recent retreat in June of 2017, Fu'una was honored with the title of Fafa'någuen Bailan CHamoru (Chamorro Dance Instructor) by Reyes. She also received the Fafa'någue necklace which consists of three orange spondylous, thirty small orange spondylous beads, and six turtle shell beads. Fu'una continues to teach language and culture at George Washington High School in hopes of inspiring the love of the Chamoru culture to the future generation of our island.

Countries and Festivals traveled to with
Inetnon Gefpågo

2006

  • Osaka, Japan

2007

  • Osaka, Japan

2010

  • Taipei, Taiwan (Taipei International Travel Fair)

2011

  • 2011: Seoul, Korea (Korea World Travel Fair; "KOTFA")
  • Cheonan, Korea (Cheonan World Dance Festival)

2012

  • Rodez, France
  • Fribourg, Switzerland (Festival de Fribourg)

2013

  • Cheonan, Korea (Cheonan World Dance Festival)

2014

  • Maribor, Slovenia (Festival Lent)
  • Sibenik, Croatia
  • Porec, Croatia
  • Karlovac, Croatia (Festival Folklora Karlovac)
  • Rome,Italy
  • Venice, Italy
  • Maritgues, France (Festival Martigues)

2015

  • Athens, Greece
  • Istanbul, Turkey (16th Annual Festival Buyukcekmece)
  • Pitesti, Romania (Festival Carpati)
  • Amsterdam, Netherlands

2016

  • Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  • Passo Fundo, Brazil (Festival Internacional de Folclore de Passo Fundo)

2017

  • Barcelona, Spain
  • Sofia, Bulgaria (Festival Vitosha)
  • Istanbul, London (18th Annual Festival Buyukcekmece)
  • London, England

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