“We the people of Basilan will save Basilan,” she says confidently, when I first met her at the Clinica de Lamitan. A true blooded Basileña, Dr. Arlyn Jawad Jumao-as is on a mission of giving hope and help heal the children of war in Basilan, Philippines to be better individuals in the future through the…
How often do we meet a person who stays close in our heart despite the short encounter we’ve had? Very rare, and this is how I feel about Rayda Edding. She had impacted my perspectives on many aspects of life. She is a role model. Many years ago, my daughter and I were in line to get…
Down-to-earth, quiet, cool, jokes in a calm tone, smart, logical, and full of wisdom, this is how I can describe Mogi Mogado based on our interactions through Philippine Press Club of Ontario’s meetings when we were officers of the club. Little did I know, this man is beyond the above description, there is more to…
She enters the room sporting a contagious smile as she pushes a wheelchair with an immobile man sitting on it. She is his caregiver. She’s welcomed and responded positively by the people in the room all the time. She must be somebody, I whisper to myself. True enough, this couple are known personalities in the…
“I don’t want to be remembered, I just want not to be forgotten,” that’s the wish of former Toronto Consul General Minerva Jean Falcon as a public servant. She has been in the foreign service for almost four decades, serving the Filipinos in the Philippines and abroad. With a Bachelor of Arts degree from the…
A down-to-earth man, who has a smile for every person he encounters, that is the Philippine government’s representative in Toronto, Consul General Pedro O. Chan. He has the charisma that welcomes everyone, which is not surprising for a genuine public servant. “I’m a warrior. I don’t recognize ‘friends’ when it comes to service,” says ConGen,…
