Samaiya Lundy, 11, a student of Sunland Baptist Academy in Grand Bahama, was awarded the 2015 Bahamas Primary School Student of the Year award on Saturday. The 19th annual awards ceremony was held by the Bahamas Primary School Student of the Year Foundation in conjunction with the Nassau, Bahamas Pan-Hellenic Council at Golden Gates Assemblies World Outreach Ministries.

Samaiya was the top student nominated from her school, and was selected from among 121 nominees from different schools throughout The Bahamas. She received a $6,000 scholarship to go towards tuition and fees for her secondary education. The nominees were judged on their contribution to school life, academic achievement, extracurricular achievement, community involvement and the overall presentation of a portfolio they submitted.

The qualifications for submission included a 500 word essay on the topic: "If you can change The Bahamas, what would you do and why?"; a 200-250 word statement on "Why I should be selected as the 2015 Bahamas Primary School Student of the Year?"; and three letters of recommendation from the students' school principal/vice principal, classroom teacher/civic or community leader, and religious leader/extracurricular coach.

Samaiya is the second child of Mark and Shantell Lundy. The couple has two other children, a 21-year-old son, and a two-year-old daughter. In an interview with The Nassau Guardian yesterday Samaiya's mother said, "There really aren't enough words to express just how proud and grateful I am at this accomplishment."

She added, "For our family it's a major accomplishment. We celebrate it and I feel more excited for Samaiya and what it means for her, what it does for her as a child and what an amazing once in a lifetime experience she has been fortunate enough to have had happened to her. I am happy and I'm a million times happy for her."

Samaiya's mother said that as parents they have always tried to give her the richest, most memorable childhood that any child can have.

"Everything that Samaiya does, we support her in the littlest thing to the biggest thing. We celebrate the smallest thing because we want to create memories for her," said Shantell. "We try to provide her with the best education and we encourage her in activities.

"Everything she does, she does it purely out of a love and passion for it. She has a choice, most of the time, in what she wants to do and it's organic, it's what she loves. Whatever she loves we try to guide her and we just absolutely support her."

Samaiya maintains a 3.90 accumulative grade point average.

"I really study hard and I try to do the best I can," Samaiya said. "I love school and I want to get a good education and go off to college to be a better person."

She said her favorite subject in school is science because it's a mixture of different things and they all connect with each other.

Samaiya's mother said she is an average child that likes to do so many different things and as parents they allow her to be that child. However, unlike other children her age, Samaiya is not computer savvy and has just recently been gifted with her first computer.

When asked what she wants to be when she gets older, Samaiya said it's hard for her to choose because she is very talented and there are so many different things that she wants to do. Her ultimate goal is to become a veterinarian.

Samaiya said she loves singing, playing piano, working at the veterinarian hospital, running track, playing soccer, riding her bike, climbing trees and so much more.

She is active in Junior Junkanoo and is a member of her school's junior track and field team, junior girl's softball team, school choir, Grand Bahama Youth Choir, and children's ministry, children's choir and jubilation station at St. John's Jubilee Cathedral. She was also a former brownie, house captain, and head prefect.

The active 11-year-old said that she would advise every student to work hard, be involved, stay focused, be organized and just love everything that they do. When asked who are her role models Samaiya quickly and proudly said her parents.

She added, "They love me and support me. They know the right things to say, the right things to do and they teach me right from wrong."

Samaiya's mother explained that they have a great support system made up of their family and friends, Samaiya's school, their church, and their community.

"We don't take full credit," she added. "We know and recognize that it does take a village to raise a child."

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