by Nick Delgado

Guam - The Guam Preservation Trust has requested the assistance and support from the village mayors to preserve and protect the historic Pagat village. The Trust asked all mayors to stage a petition drive in their villages to help save Pagat.

Joe Quinata, who is with the Trust, says they also plan to teach middle and high school students about the importance of the historic land, telling KUAM News, "Our message is not that we don't want the buildup, we are focusing to preserve and protect the Pagat village and that's the message that we want to tell the Navy."

A press conference will be held tomorrow at Adelup to announce if Pagat was selected as one of America's eleven most-endangered historic places. Quinata says the petition will also be submitted to President Barack Obama.

In the meantime, the Trust also sent a letter to the NAVFAC Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii questioning the programmatic agreement that includes plans for the Pagat site. "It's actually not only helping Guam, but also the Navy to streamline the process in which the projects are going to be taken forward," said Quinata.

A celebration of the Pagat village will be held on May 29 at 6pm at Skinner Plaza in Hagatna.