On the Radar Imagines...

MANILA, Philippines - These days, it just takes another status update or blog in your favorite social networking site for your friends, and even your friends’ friends, to be in-the-know of your everyday doings. Imagine being heard in a whole new level. Samsung made this possible through their youth-oriented campaign, Samsung I Imagine, which elicited hundreds of shout-outs from students all over the metro through their website www.samsungimagine.com.

With words that inspire and call us to action, the youth shared their shout-outs that express emotions, ideas, thoughts, dreams, hopes and ambitions for the Shout-Out Making Contest’s Talk category. Isabela Martinez, 18 y.o., taking up Fine Arts Major in Advertising at University of Sto. Tomas (UST) declares her own imprint through her shout-out, “I imagine and I will make it happen.” Aside from taking home some of the coolest gadgets from Samsung such as the Samsung Corby mobile phone, Samsung ST500 Dual LCD Camera, Samsung CLP-315 printer, and Samsung LapFit LD190G monitor, her shout-out will be printed in trendy hoodies by Folded and Hung. Through the Samsung I Imagine campaign, what was once just an inspired thought becomes immortalized through fashion.

Channel this inspiring shout-out and be part of this ground-breaking campaign. The hoodies will be available by January 2010 in Folded and Hung stores in Mall of Asia, Robinson’s Place Galleria, Unimart, SM San Lazaro, Southmall, Market Market, Shangri-La Plaza, Robinson’s Place Ermita, SM Megamall, Trinoma, Glorietta 2, Eastwood Mall, SM North The Block, and Alabang Town Center. You also help underprivileged children as proceeds will be donated to Samsung Hope which sends kids back to school.

Out of the many students who joined the contest, Isabella’s shout-out stood out. Here, we get to know more about the author of this inspiring shout-out:

What are your hobbies?

I like surfing the Internet, taking photographs, graphic designing, listening to music, watching movies and TV series, and playing simulation video games.

What do you enjoy most about school?

I enjoy the fact that I get to take different kinds of classes in school such as drawing subjects, design subjects, and not just the normal subjects like English, math, etc. But I think my friends are what I really enjoy most about school.

What are the things you firmly believe in?

I firmly believe in fate. I believe that if something happened to someone, regardless if it’s good or bad, then it was meant to be, there is a reason it happened, and it happened for the best.

What are you most passionate about?

My passions are advertising, design and photography. Aside from that, I’m passionate about happiness — I like making people around me happy, I like making them smile or laugh.

At this age, what do you think is life’s most important lesson?

At this age of experimentation, of trial and error, I think life’s most important lesson is to never regret. If it’s good, it’s wonderful. If it’s bad, it’s “experience;” hence, learn from it.

What are you most grateful for?

Of all things, I am most grateful for all the blessings that God bestows upon me. These blessings that He sends in the form of my family and friends, in the form of unexpectedly winning things, or in the simplest ways such as letting me wake up to a new morning each day.

Describe yourself in one word?

Positive. I’m a person who always sees the glass half-full. Despite the problems I encounter in life, I always stay optimistic and my optimism never fails me.

What are the things you really enjoy?

I really enjoy being with the people I love most and having fun with them through simple things like seeing a movie, eating out and just talking and laughing about things. I also enjoy taking photographs of my friends, other people and events. I’m really into portraiture and photojournalism. When I spend days in, I really enjoy just sitting in front of my laptop and surfing the Internet and chatting, while listening to my kind of music.

How did you learn about the Samsung I Imagine Shout-out Making contest?

I learned about the Samsung I Imagine Shout-out Making contest when my friend asked me to vote for her entries. The mechanics were quite simple so I decided to join thinking that there’s no harm in trying.

How did you come up with your statement? What was your inspiration?

There was no tedious overnight-thinking process when I came up with my statement. I just wrote what I thought. My inspiration for my statement was my dreams and aspirations in life. I’m the type of person who loves imagining things. At this point in my life, I have many things that I want to achieve and I thought if I can imagine it then I sure can make it happen.

How important is it for the society to hear the voice of the youth?

It’s important for the society to hear the voice of the youth. It is likewise parents who need to know what the concerns of their children are. I think once society listens to the voice of the youth, everyone can be united and work hand-in-hand for change to happen.

Describe the feeling when you learned that out of 10,000 entrants, you won the contest.

When I got the call telling me that I won, I thought I just won the raffle. It was really surprising to know that my shout-out actually won. I never expected to win the contest since there were a lot of entries and others who had really high vote counts. Throughout the time I was processing the thought of the win in my mind, I was even thinking that maybe it was just a wrong call.

How do you feel about the Samsung I Imagine campaign as an avenue for youth expression?

I think the Samsung I Imagine campaign is an effective and creative avenue for youth expression. We are a step closer to change because with it the youth are able to express the things they imagine for the society, for the world, for everything. As Samsung’s tagline says, “Everything begins with Imagination” and I say we can make it happen.

In your own little ways, how can you turn your imagination (your shout-out) into reality?

I can turn my shout-out, “I imagine and I will make it happen,” into reality by inspiring myself and others to actually step up and take the risks we have to take in order to make our dreams come true.

Our generation takes pride in being able to speak out and being heard. Just as we gather more and more information, so do we create our own opinions about the issues that we face. Isabela’s shout-out asks us to do one thing — that is, to make our imaginations happen but the emphasis is on “I,” pointing the arrow back to us. We have to make it happen.