Jollibee continues to champion the unparalleled kinship and generosity of the Filipino family as it celebrated the achievements of this year’s Jollibee Family Values Awards (JFVA).
This year’s JFVA received a record 1,732 entries worldwide, the highest since the campaign started in 2011. From this pool of entries, the top 15 families were shortlisted and deliberated upon by the 2014 JFVA Board of Judges.
Eight families coming from different parts of Luzon, and other countries such as Singapore and the United States, were recognized by Jollibee for their advocacies that have made a positive impact in their communities.
Read on for their inspiring stories of heroism.
The Gonzales Family
Cubao, Quezon City
Special Citation for Persons with Disability (PWDs)
• Octavio, 70 – Father
• Felicite Jean, 67 – Mother
• Dakila, 41 – Son
• Magiting, 36 – Son
• Marangal, 35 – Son
• Mayumi, 33 – Daughter
For many Filipinos, love for family goes beyond one’s kin, extending to their fellowmen who are in need. Among these kind-hearted souls is the Gonzales family, who has made it their advocacy to raise awareness about autism and offer support to other families who has a loved one with this same condition.
After their second son Magiting was diagnosed with autism in 1982, Octavio and Jean became active in various organizations that provide support to people with autism. Realizing that there was a lack of knowledge and understanding on how to handle this condition in the Philippines, they used their own savings and sought help from their relatives so that Jean can undergo training in the US and share what she had learned with others back home.
In 1999, the Gonzales couple established the Philippine Association for Citizens with Developmental and Learning Disabilities, Inc. (PACDLD), which provides counseling and livelihood programs for parents of children with autism, as well as art workshops for kids. In partnership with the Department of Health, the organization also holds seminars on helping identify children with disabilities, providing training to daycare teachers, rural health units, and barangay health workers.
The PACDLD also put up Parent Resource Centers in different areas across the country, where parents from poor communities can bring their children to get checked up and diagnosed for free. At present, they have helped construct four Parent Resource Centers nationwide: National Children’s Hospital and Marikina City Health Office (both in 2008), Baguio General Hospital (2009), and Zamboanga General Hospital (2010).
The family’s efforts through the years have benefited about 10,000 families nationwide, from Metro Manila, Baguio, and even as far as Zamboanga. Dakila, the eldest who is based in Europe, helps fund the family’s projects and seeks assistance from like-minded donors abroad, while Mayumi, a teacher who specializes in autism, acts as a consultant for regular schools with special kids. Octavio and his son Marangal also provide sports trainings for persons with special needs, including boccia, a ball sport for those with cerebral palsy, and bocce, a game for people with intellectual disabilities.
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The Manalaysay Family
Cavite City, Cavite
Special Citation for Children
• Harnin “Tatz” Manalaysay, 47 – Father
• Martha Manalaysay, 70 – Grandmother
• Cris “Kesz” Valdez, 15 – Adopted Son
• Kerux Bonifacio Manalaysay, 2 – Adopted Son
The Manalaysay family is proof that family is about connection and commitment, and is not limited to blood ties. Harnin, or Tatz, has been involved in various projects and activities for the benefit of children in need. In 1985, he established Club 8586, a Bible study group for young boys and girls. Over the years, the organization grew to offer literacy and values formation programs, sports festivals, and talent enhancement activities, using education to dissuade poor kids from joining gangs.
Since 1992, Harnin has also been holding weekly tutoring sessions for street children, teaching them basic spelling and math, and proper hygiene. His work with homeless kids led him to cross paths with Cris “Kesz” Valdez. The young boy started scavenging at two years old to earn money for his family and would often run away from home, sleeping on the streets and open tombs to avoid beatings from his father.
When he was five, while playing at the dumpsite with his fellow scavengers, Kesz fell into a pile of burning tires and sustained severe burns. It was Harnin who rescued him and had him treated. The young boy’s mother told Harnin to keep the young boy, saying that they did not want him back. Harnin adopted Kesz and became his legal guardian, raising him and other kids as his own.
Inspired by the generosity of his father figure and mentor, Kesz established his own foundation—the Championing Community Children (C3)—when he was seven years old. With the guidance of Harnan, the young boy and his friends raised funds to provide toys, hygiene kits and slippers to poor children. He also took his program a step further, regularly going to impoverished communities to teach kids basic hygiene habits and children’s rights.
Because of his efforts, Kesz has helped more than 10,000 kids in Cavite and was awarded the International Children’s Peace Prize. He was also hailed by Nobel Laureate Desmond Tutu and the philanthropic community as a symbol of hope and a ‘new voice for voiceless’ children around the world.
Harnin is also known as the mentor of 2009 CNN Hero of the Year EfrenPeñaflorida, the man behind the Dynamic Teen Company and KaritonKlasrum, which uses pushcarts as mobile classrooms to provide quality education to street children and out-of-school youth.
The Palacio Family
Pandacan, Manila
• Emilio, 48 – Father, deceased
• Rachel, 48 – Mother
• Michel Anne, 21
• Chemil, 18
• Merielle, 16
• John Emil, 12
• Rachel Ann, 10
• Micah, 7
Amid their daily struggles to make ends meet, the Palacio family generously shares their time and effort to help other families in need. They are active volunteers of the Families and Children for Empowerment and Development (FCED), a non-profit organization that promotes social and economic development in depressed areas in Manila.
After her husband passed away six years ago, Rachel was left to care for their six young children. Despite having been relocated to Cabuyao, Laguna, Rachel decided to stay in the slums in Manila so that her children, many of whom are scholars of various institutions, could go to school. She provides for the family by working as a laundrywoman, earning P500 per week.
As an FCED volunteer, Rachel goes to different areas to teach values and basic reading and writing to street children under five years old. She visits these communities on foot, opting to save the P80 transportation allowance she gets every session for her family’s needs. She is also involved in parenting sessions in various barangays and is in charge of monitoring the community savings of the foundation’s beneficiaries, visiting each of the 10 communities weekly without any compensation.
Michel, Chemil and Merielle also participate in the child development sessions and youth trainings of FCED, facilitating peer-to-peer activities tackling topics such as bullying.
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The Solidum Family
Pandacan, Manila
• Gilmore, 45 – Father
• Judilyn, 45 – Mother
• Jea Giezl, 20
• Geoffrey Jules, 15
The Solidum family uses their expertise and talents to educate the public about dengue prevention. The parents are active with the Dengue ReMove Program, a commissioned research of the Department of Science and Technology – National Research Council of the Philippines (DOST-NRCP), with Dr. Judilyn heading the eco-socioeconomic arm of the project and Dr. Gilmore serving as research specialist.
To further raise awareness about dengue, the couple created the storybooks Moskee Ang BampirangLamok, Dinudugosi Dino, andHuwag MOKONG Kagatin: Ang Kwento ng Batang Na-dengue.
Published by the DOST-NRCP, these books shed light on how people can prevent mosquito infestation, symptoms of dengue, and the actions one should take in case he gets dengue fever.The family brings these books to life during storytelling sessions in different schools in Metro Manila that are known as dengue hotspots, as well as at the Philippine General Hospital and Manila Zoo. The daughter, Jea, serves as the main storyteller.
Dr. Judy also created workbooks and a coloring book on dengue, which parents and their preschoolers can work on together. The son, Geoff, did the illustration of these books and composed two songs about dengue called Dengue Slayer akoand AedesAegypti.
The Solidum family also holds the annualKwentoConcierto, a benefit storytelling concert. The proceeds of this endeavor go to the dialysis fund of the pediatric kidney patients of the PGH.
The Serrano Family
Taguig City
• Nestor, 57 – Father
• Maryann, 57 – Mother
• Pinky Serrano Mainar, 33
• Nassam Nestor Samuel Serrano, 32
• Dannes Nestor Daniel Serrano, 29
• Neavid Nestor David Serrano, 27
The Serrano family is a staunch advocate of children’s education. Pastor Nestor and his wife Maryann, a professor, founded the Champions Alive Foundation, with the goal of providing free education to out of school youth and adults (OSYA). The organization gives free review classes for underprivileged Filipinos from 15 to 66 years old, and is committed to helping keep children off the streets and away from drugs, petty crime and other bad habits.
Each of the Serrano children also heads the various projects of the Champions Alive Foundation. The eldest daughter, Pinky, serves as the supervisor of their free daycare program, which benefits 40 students. Nessam leads their Alternative Learning System, an educational program for those who want to attend classes, but are unable to do so because of work. Daniel heads the family’s music and youth ministry, which offers voice lessons and classes on how to play the violin, guitar, organ, and piano. The youngest, David, is in charge of the free weekly taekwondo classes, teaching martial arts to 30 to 50 students.
The Serranos also have outreach and feeding programs, sharing their blessings to impoverished communities in Ilocos, Baguio and Antipolo.
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The Villa-Wilcox Family
San Jose, California
Jollibee-Coca-Cola Global Pinoy Family of the Year
Special Citation for Education
• Clif Wilcox, 65 – Father
• Melissa Villa-Wilcox, 50 – Mother
• Francesca Villa – Mateo, 22 – Daughter
• Juan Villa, 49 – Brother of Melissa
The Villa-Wilcox family proves that love and generosity know no boundaries. In 2008, they founded Project PEARLS (Peace, Education, Aspiration, Respect, Love, Smiles), that provides educational, scholarship and feeding programs to underprivileged childrenin Bulacan, Manila, and Zamboanga, as well as Dagupan, Caloocan, Guimaras, and Masbate.
The family embarked on their advocacy when mom Melissa started helping send the daughters of her childhood friend to school. She realized that their extra savings in dollars can go a long way back home in the Philippines and began sending school supplies to kids living in different slum communities.
In the summer of 2010, Melissa was also introduced to the children of Ulingan, a slum area in Tondo that earns a living by making charcoal (uling). Since then, Project PEARLS centered their outreach efforts for the community. They have a weekly feeding program, offer scholarship grants, and hold quarterly medical mission for the families there, even after they were relocated to Bocaue, Bulacan.
All the members of the Villa-Wilcox family play an active role in the various outreach activities of their organization. Melissa serves as the Executive Director, leading the group in developing outreach programs and getting the help of volunteers to extend help to more and more children, while dad Clif and daughter Francesca help in fundraising events and developing educational programs. Melissa’s brother Juan acts as the Team Leader in the Philippines, overseeing the programs and outreach events in the different areas.
Other Recipients of Special Citations:
The Hagad Family
Singapore
Special Citation for the Environment
• Eduardo Tadeo, 42 – Father
• Stela Marie, 41 – Mother
• Samantha Mae, 11
In 2011, the Hagad family bought a property in Daliaon, Davao City. They found out that the area did not have a stable water supply and residents had to walk one kilometer to get water from a communal deep well. They decided to fund and lead the construction of a waterworks system, working with the barangay and other experts so that the community would have access to water. Eduardo’s brother also helped manage and oversee the project while the family was in Singapore.
The Hagad family and their relatives also give back to the community through gift-giving programs. They prepare school bags and other school supplies for underprivileged children from five to 12 years old. In addition, the family donated medical devices such as blood pressure monitors with stethoscopes, nebulizers and wheelchairs to the barangay health center.
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The Macalintal Family
Victoria, Oriental Mindoro
Special Citation for Minority Groups
• Alvin, 45 – Father
• Rina, 43 – Mother
• Hanna Angelica, 17
• Lorenzo Luis, 15
• Josh Pypers, 14
• Hanna Vianney, 11
A teacher at the Aurelio Arago National High School, Alvin observed that many Mangyan students drop out of classes because of various struggles. Some of them have to walk 30 kilometers for five hours or go by boat, paying a P250 monthly fee, just to get to school. This motivated him to establish BalayLakoy, a home center for Mangyan students who live far from the campus.
While Alvin is in charge of screening the students who want to stay at BalakLakoy, his wife Rina acts as a second mother to the pupils who live there, teaching them about good values and proper hygiene.
The family is also involved in other projects such as the Hapag ng Pamilyang Mindoreño, helping facilitate pre-cana seminars for couples who are getting married. Alvin and his brothers also send 14 scholars to Aurelio Arago National High School.
“The Jollibee Family Values Awards is part of our continued commitment to celebrate and champion the values that unite the Filipino family," said Jollibee Philippines President Joseph Tanbuntiong. "It is very rewarding to meet more and more families who serve as beacons of light, and share their extraordinary stories to other Filipinos."
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