The artists with their on-the-spot paintings auctioned at the gala
Regine Velasquez, Martin Nievera and Jenine Desiderio serenade Gabay Guro’s patrons
YEAR after year since its inception in 2006, Gabay Guro—one of the major advocacies of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co.—embarks on a series of activities intentionally aimed at paying tribute to Filipino teachers and their outstanding contribution in the molding of the minds of the nation’s youth.
Gabay Guro chairman and 2013 Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardee Chaye Cabal Revilla leaves no stone unturned in organizing this year’s celebration.
The kick-off event was held on September 16 through a charity auction gala at an exclusive club in Makati City, where The Manila Times saw the valuable pieces up for bidding. Among them were the works of noted sculptors Ramon Orlina and Michael Cacnio, and Mother and Child canvases painted on the spot.
Over dinner, guests were serenaded by world-class Filipino performers—Asia’s Songbird Regine Velasquez, Concert King Martin Nievera and Miss Saigon’s Jenine Desiderio, with the Dacapo Strings ensemble—who wowed the crowd with medleys from classic Broadway shows. As a highlight Velasquez sang the official Gabay Guro tribute song “Believing In Me” penned by the talented tandem of husband and wife Raul and Cacai Mitra.
The occasion gathered the entire Gabay Guro family and the foundation’s staunchest supporters whose generosity that evening are sure to benefit millions of Filipino teachers.
The event’s success is typical of Gabay Guro’s continuing activities under the helm of Cabal-Revilla. Under her tireless leadership, the foundation is able to immediately respond to the needs of both teachers and students across the country with resources pooled for meaningful and credible fund raising activities such as this.
Ever humble, the foundation chairman credits the help of volunteers from PLDT in pulling off Gabay Guro’s slew of projects and outreach programs, as well as company chairman Manny Pangilinan’s full support in the noble cause.
Gabay Guro has traveled extensively around the country to hold empowerment activities for Filipino teachers. This month alone, teachers’ training activities are ongoing in the province of Aklan (Teachers’ Treasure Chest) and Capiz, Leyte (English Proficiency). In November, teachers in Cavite will be the recipients of these free training seminars geared at helping them improve their skills, as well as their personal development.
Moreover, 2014 marks a milestone for the organization as it successfully stepped into the international arena with a well-attended Gabay Guro tribute in Hong Kong held in June. Come December, the teachers’ training for Filipino educators will travel to Sabah, while a tribute event will be mounted in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
On the home front, Gabay Guro will mount its biggest tribute for teachers to date at a grand gathering on October 5 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. Expected to attend are 20,000 teachers from all around the country who will undergo free training seminars, receive computer donations, participate in different tribute activities, as well as a witness a star-studded concert from top performers.
Explained Cabal-Revilla, “Gabay Guro is in the business of ‘changing the lives of those who changed ours’ by focusing on the core program of the foundation benefiting the Filipino teachers. The core program is defined by the pillars by which Gabay Guro is anchored on—these are scholarships, trainings, housing and educational facilities, livelihood programs, broadbanding and computerization, and teachers’ tribute.”
For more information on how to help the foundation, log on to www.gabayguro.com and www.facebook.com/gabayguro, or follow @PLDTGabayGuro on Twitter and Instagram.
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