Kristine Labayen Reyes Finds Joy in Sending Kids to School

TF donor, Kristine Labayen Reyes, visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City last September 6 and met her new TF scholars, Pauline and Aina Mae.  Kristine finds joy in supporting Tapulanga Foundation and sponsored a scholar a couple of years ago and decided to sponsor again this school year 2016-2017.  

Kristine Reyes and her scholars, Aina Mae Paciño and Pauline del Sol, 7th graders.

Kristine with her girlfriends (L-R): Alaine Borja, Kristine Reyes, Aina Mae, Pauline,
Leizel Esteban, Joy Araneta and Trixia Aspan.

Kristine conversed with the school principal, JR Abello.

"It was really nice to see the girls and meet them. They seem to be well behaved, respectful, and studious. I hope I can get to know more about them; their interests, their dreams, their challenges. I can feel that they have a lot of potential and I would really like to inspire them to dream big and study hard to achieve bigger things in life." by Kristine Labayen Reyes


Please visit our website, www.tapulanga.org to learn more about the foundation's activities, news and events. 

Mrs. Lolita Jardeleza Visits SFAS Once Again

Last July 26, Mrs. Lolita Ledesma-Jardeleza visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City once again and met five of her six scholars.  Her 6th scholar is in Grade 11 at Riverside College in Bacolod City.  Ms. Inday, as she is fondly called by everyone, was on vacation from the United States of America and brought along her son, Rob, and her five grandchildren.

L-R Back: Darby, Libby, Billy, Maddie, Danny and Eva
Front: Leenen, Aileen, Ms. Inday, Lorebeth, Mariel and Lorie

Ms. Inday has been one of Tapulanga Foundation's most loyal and generous supporter for many, many years.  In 2004, she taught at the school for six months.  She attends the yearly benefit dinner in Maryland.  Some of her children also support their own scholar at St. Francis through the foundation.

Ms. Inday with SFAS Principal JR Abello

Mr. JR Abello, school principal, gave them a tour of the school, including the new building and the mud chapel.

Please visit our website, www.tapulanga.org to learn more about the foundation's activities, news and events. 

Mrs. Jerebeth Abordaje Meets Her Scholar for the First Time!

Last June 30, TF donor Jerebeth Abordaje visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City for the first time and met her 7th grade scholar, Alkin Sellado.  Ms. Jerebeth joined the 60 Scholar in 30 Days Challenge 2016 last summer.

"I was happy and excited to meet Alkin in person. Being able to help someone attain a quality education is a privilege for me because I want to give hope that someone's life or a family for that matter will someday be economically better. I pray that Alkin will persevere to do his best with this opportunity for his sake, his family and his future generation."  by Jerebeth M. Abordaje


Please visit our website, www.tapulanga.org to learn more about the foundation's activities, news and events.

Dine for a Cause 2016 at Fogo

Last July 5, Tapulanga Foundation had its first restaurant-engaging fundraising event at Fogo in Bacolod City.  Fogo donated 20% of their food sales for that day to the foundation. The funds raised will benefit the scholars who are joining after school programs of St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City like sports (Football, Volleyball and Taekwondo) and Boy Scouts. 

To Fogo, thank you so much for partnering with Tapulanga Foundation for this event.  And a bigger THANK YOU to all the family and friends who supported the event by dining at Fogo!

For more photos, click here.

Mrs. Geegee Catral and Dra. Bernardita Gabriel Finally Met Their Scholars!

Last June 9, on the first day of school, TF donors Mrs. Geraldine "Geegee" Catral of Beacon School and her mother, Dra. Bernardita Tolentino-Gabriel, visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City and met their scholars for the first time!  Ms. Geegee has been a sponsor since 2014 through the 75 Scholars in 30 Days Challenge.  She sponsors one child to school and sponsors three lunch meals of scholars.

L-R: Ms. Geegee with her lunch meal scholars, Ashly Santillan, Mark Canicula and Abby Libo-on
and her full scholar, Richelle Bernasol.

Dra. Gabriel sponsored a scholar in 2014 for one school year then sponsored a new scholar during the 60 Scholars in 30 Days Challenge in April of this year.

Dra. Bernardita Gabriel with her new scholar, Cheriemel Piedad.

    

The donors gave new backpacks to their scholars.

L-R: Dra. Bernardita Gabriel, Ms. Geegee Catral, Ashly Santillan, Mark Canicula, Abby Libo-on, Cheriemel Piedad and Richelle Libo-on
Back L-R: Micmic Golez, Mrs. Tet Pison-Regalado and Dra. Giselle Gabriel

Also, see Ms. Geegee's post on her FB account in this link.

A Yearly Visit of TF Donor-Siblings, Mary Ann Deduque and Andy Ledesma

Last May 3, as the enrollment process started at St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City, Mrs. Mary Ann Ledesma-Deduque with children Johann and Kayla met up with their TF scholar, Bryll, with his sibling Glenn and mother, Elna. Together with Mary Ann was his brother, Andy, who is also a TF donor with daughter Francheska. 

(Back L-R) Andy, Francheska, Mary Anne, Elna
(Front L-R) Kayla, Johann, Bryll and Glenn

Mary Ann started sponsoring Bryll last school year when she joined the 60 Scholars Challenge 2015.  They toured the school and the kids had fun on the children's playground.  

Mrs. Deduque expressed her enjoyment during the time she visited the school and meeting Bryll for the second time in this Facebook post.  The Ledesma siblings with their family visit their hometown Silay every summer and they have now added a visit to St. Francis of Assisi School as well.

Tapulanga Foundation's 6th Silay Summer Workshop 2016 Graduation

Tapulanga Foundation held its one month-long summer workshop last April 1-30. Classes offered were Basic/Advanced Drawing and Painting, Basic/Advanced Guitar, Hip Hop Dance, Swimming, Football, Basketball and Volleyball, .

Drawing and Painting Class with Visual Artist Teacher, Ramon de los Santos
and assistant-son, Myron

Above: Basic Class; Below: Advance Class

Swimming Class with Coaches Joelin Patris, Jubal Zayco and Ronald Santander

Football Class with Coaches Roy Alvero, Dennis Soluta and Ceasar Ofamen

Top: Boys 12 Under; Middle: Girls Team; Bottom: Boys 16 Under

Basketball Class with Coach Nikko Sobretodo

Grade School Volleyball Class with Coaches Ronald Premaylon and Gerard Ignacio

Guitar Class with Instructor Junjun Davo

Hip Hop Dance Class with Instructor Champ Tipon, assistants Mark Formanes and Dhenice Armada

During the graduation on April 30, the Drawing and Painting Class exhibited their artwork at SFAS covered court.  Students received their certificate of completion, too!

Tapulanga Foundation's 6th Silay Summer Workshop 2016 Graduation photos.

Watch videos:

Guitar Class

Guitar Class Recital 

Drawing Class

HipHop Dance Class

Basketball Class

Football Class

Volleyball Class

Swimming Camp

Swimming Camp Friendly Game

Guitar and HipHop Dance Class Joint Presentation

Tapulanga Foundation would like to thank the following sponsors and donors who have made possible SSW'16.

Major Sponsor

National Commission for Culture and the Arts

AY Foundation

Aboitiz Foundation

Tinihaban Agricultural Corporation

Minor Sponsor

Norconsult Management Services, Phils.

Anonymous donor

Patrons

Lopue’s East Centre

Roberto G. Abello

Sponsored a Scholar

Jory and Kat Jimenez

Imelda Tongson-Batara

Tony and Danuta Tse

Betty Crader

Helen Burke

Randy and Renee Reyes

Jacob Kaufman

Sherrie Good

Bimsy and Martha Mapa

Jess, Jr. and Mariam Campos

Mel Sanchez-Dumlao & Raquel Sian-Estrella

Carisa Pangilinan

Bob and Amy Strahl

Ed Katalbas

Carlo Lota

Evelyn Cruz-Galvan

Czarina Katalbas

Atty. Dominique Iñigo

Gilda Fernandez-Raum

Jerome and Maria Concepcion

Lala Alvarez

RJ and Marissa Laguda

Atty. Joanne Ramos

Ichi Yabut

Therese Tuvilla-Borromeo

Lance Martinez

John and Fern Schmidt

Reeda Bantug

Dr. Anna Calleja

Prof. Liwayway Engle

Betchai Tamayo

Emma Calanog

Noel Casipit

Ana Gonzaga-Layaoen

Rani Alisan

The Peters Family Meet Their Scholar for the First Time!

Last April 22, TF donors Patrick and Katrina Peters visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City and meet their scholar, Jasmine Joy Eguid. 

The couple brought their 4-month old son, Sawyer and Katrina's sister, Joyce. They have been sponsoring Jasmine for the last 5 years since she started Pre-Kindergarten in 2012.  Jasmine is now in 3rd grade.  They brought Jasmine a gift set of coloring materials.

"Hello! My name is Kat and I live in Montreal with my husband Pat. I first found out about Tapulanga through my friend, JR Abello, whose sister Micmic is Executive Director of the foundation. I started with partial sponsorship of a scholar every year for several years and when I met Pat, we started supporting a scholar together. Would you believe that after all these years, we have never been to St. Francis of Assisi School in Silay City, where our scholars go to school? So Pat and I were both very excited when we had the opportunity to visit the school during our recent vacation.

We met our scholar Jasmine, who came with her mom and sister. It was also nice to finally meet Genalyn and Micmic who both do a very good job with updating us not just on our scholar, but also with the school and the foundation’s activities. They took us on a tour of the campus, which was quite spacious and well maintained. Since it was summer, there was no class, but we saw many students who were participating in the summer classes that the foundation had organized. We were impressed with the summer program as it gave students the chance to participate in a variety of activities outside of coursework, such as sports, music, dance, and art. We also loved seeing how the school has adapted to the realities of its environment. I enjoyed seeing the campus chapel made of mud, while Pat thought it was cool how the chairs were made of steel so they would not float away during the occasional flooding that happens when typhoon season arrives. 

It was a short but eventful visit. We’ve seen with our own eyes the amazing work Tapulanga and St. Francis of Assisi School are doing to provide educational opportunities to young ones who would otherwise not have the resources to go to school. Pat and I are very proud to be part of Tapulanga and will continue to support their endeavors in the future. Thank you Micmic, Gen and Jasmine for hosting us during our trip!"

Summer Visit from the Olorga Family and Mrs. Azucena

Last April 15, TF donors Jackie Lou Velasco-Azucena, and Joe and Joy Olorga visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City and met their scholars for the first time.

The Olorgas were on vacation from the US with their son, Logan.  They have been sponsoring Mariel Sadio, who is in Grade 3, since 2012 when she entered SFAS in Pre-Kindergarten. They chose her as their scholar during the 35 Scholars Challenge in April 2012.

Jackie Lou has been supporting Tapulanga Foundation since 2005. She also helps in sponsoring other school needs of 10th grader Jhane Rose Coja.  

"On April 15, we finally got the chance to meet Mariel, our scholar since pre-kindergarten. It was quite nice to see her in person after several years of exchanging photos and messages via Facebook and email. It was very rewarding to see her doing so well in school and be able to gradually achieve her dreams in life with the help of the Tapulanga Foundation.  We also met our scholar's mother, Malou.

Thank you, for giving us a tour around the school grounds. We feel glad to see the school improving and growing, as well as giving the opportunity to help the students reach their goals in life. We will definitely come back and visit the school whenever we are in the Philippines." by Joe and Joy Olorga


"Last April 15, I went to St. Francis school to meet with my scholar Jhane Rose to see how she is. We had a small talk and told me she's doing well in school and that she'll be in grade 11 next year. Wishing her all the best and hope she keeps up her good grades." by Jackie Lou Velasco-Azucena

The Koutsavdis Share Their Blessings

Last March 18, Mrs. Mary Bayaban-Koutsavdis visited SFAS and brought gifts for her four scholars. She met her two new scholars for the first time, Rico and Christy.  Ms. Mary had previously visited the school several times in the past, and together with her husband, Evangelos, first sponsored a student in 2011 and have added one new scholar every year.

"Whenever I go on vacation in Negros I always look forward to visit St. Francis to meet our scholars. It always gives me joy in my heart to see them. My husband and I are thankful that we can share our blessings with these children." by Mary Koutsavdis

Silay Summer Workshop 2016

The Silay Summer Workshop ‘16 aims to provide continuous learning to the children on their summer break while having fun at the same time. The workshop starts on April 1 and ends on April 30.

This year, we are offering classes/camps in Drawing and Painting, Guitar, Hip Hop Dance, Volleyball, Football, Basketball and Swimming for 200 students.

Our registration fee for the class per student is Php 600 (for sports) and Php 1,000 – Php 1,500 (other classes). The fee covers the professional fee of the instructions/coaches and materials/supplies.  Students will receive a certificate at the end of the workshop. Each class can accommodate from 5-20 students, depending on the course.

We would like to thank the following for supporting Silay Summer Workshop ’16!

Major Sponsor

National Commission for Culture and the Arts

AY Foundation

Aboitiz Foundation

Tinihaban Agricultural Corporation

Minor Sponsor

Norconsult Management Services, Phils.

Anonymous donor

Patrons

Lopue’s East Centre

Roberto G. Abello

Sponsored a Scholar/s

Jory and Kat Jimenez 

Imelda Tongson-Batara 

Tony and Danuta Tse 

Betty Crader 

Helen Burke 

Randy and Renee Reyes 

Jacob Kaufman 

Sherrie Good 

Bimsy and Martha Mapa 

Jess, Jr. and Mariam Campos 

Mel Sanchez-Dumlao & Raquel Sian-Estrella 

Carisa Pangilinan 

Bob and Amy Strahl 

Ed Katalbas 

Carlo Lota 

Evelyn Cruz-Galvan 

Czarina Katalbas 

Atty. Dominique Iñigo 

Gilda Fernandez-Raum 

Jerome and Maria Concepcion 

Lala Alvarez 

RJ and Marissa Laguda 

Atty. Joanne Ramos 

Ichi Yabut 

Therese Tuvilla-Borromeo 

Lance Martinez 

John and Fern Schmidt 

Reeda Bantug 

Dr. Anna Calleja 

Prof. Liwayway Engle

Betchai Tamayo 

Emma Calanog 

Noel Casipit 

Ana Gonzaga-Layaoen 
Rani Alisan

Please click the following links for the Silay Summer Workshop ’16 photos and videos! 

Silay Summer Workshop '16 Orientation and Registration day!

Silay Summer Workshop '16 Week 1
Silay Summer Workshop '16 Week 2
Silay Summer Workshop '16 Week 3

Silay Summer Workshop '16 Week 4

Tapulanga Foundation's Silay Summer Workshop 2016 Graduation

TF Scholars Raymart and Mariel Sadio

Raymart and Mariel Sadio are both in 3rd grade at St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City.  Their father Renante, works as a night-shift security guard at SFAS and their mother Malou weaves "nipa", a material for thatched roofing.

Raymart and Mariel have been TF scholars since they started Pre-Kindergraten at SFAS. This coming school year, their youngest brother, Renante, Jr., is hoping to study in SFAS with his siblings and be a TF scholar as well.

The Sadio siblings are just a few of the many aspiring young students to receive not just quality education at SFAS but also a chance for a better life as TF scholars.  Tapulanga Foundation is about to launch its "60 Scholars in 30 Days Challenge" and we are looking forward for you to be a part of this wonderful cause.

The Katalbas Siblings (Czarina and Ed) meet their Scholars (Laurine and John Rey)

Last February 12, siblings Czarina and Ed Katalbas, with their sister-in-law, Babes and nephew Ricky, visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City and met their scholars Laurine Estardo (Grade 3) and John Rey Capa (Grade 9). They became sponsors of Laurine and John Rey when they joined the 50 Scholars Challenge in April 2013.  Czarina was a member of the Babes of Bacolod group in Los Angeles who helped raised funds and promote the programs of Tapulanga for many years.

L-R Laurine Estardo, scholar of Czarina and John Rey Capa, scholar of Ed

 

To Czarina and Ed, your generosity is greatly appreciated.  Thank you for taking the time to meet your scholars and visit the school. 

L-R Babes, Laurine, Czarina, John Rey, Ed and Ricky.

My sister and I visited our respective scholars as part of our very brief stay in the Philippines. And it was such a humbling experience to meet Micmic and Gen who showed us what Micmic’s family do to honor and continue the legacy of her grandma who founded the St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay. One can really sense the nobility and kindness of their undertaking in providing priceless life experience to kids who would otherwise be set in a different path.  The balmy weather, simplicity, charm and the welcoming spirit that pervaded the atmosphere of the school, where kids greeted us “Good morning visitors” at every turn, made me yearn to go back in time to be a kid again even if for just a moment and relive it like our scholars.  Such innocent, sweet and very lucky kids to be under the wings of the Tapulanga Foundation.  My utmost thanks to all of the wonderful people of the St. Francis of Assisi School and the Tapulanga Foundation. by Ed Katalbas

A Memorable Visit for the Lerma Family

The Lerma family visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City last February 8 and met their scholars for the first time.  Benjie and wife, Aileen, with kids, Nate and Mandy, got to know their scholars, Trisha Villanueva (Grade 3) and Kier Vincent Barnueveo (Grade 5).  Benjie and Aileen have been dedicated sponsors since 2011. 

The Lerma family with their scholars (from front L-R: Kier Barnuevo, Trisha Villanueva,
Aaron Manjero, Renato Sadio, Jr. and Aleah Hechanova)

They also met their additional scholars for the next school year, Aleah Hechanova and Renato Sadio, Jr., both incoming Pre-Kindergarten students.  They also met Aron Manjero who is the scholar of Mrs. Ditas Lerma (mother of Benjie) who will also start Pre-Kindgarten in June 2016.  Each of the scholars happily received a gift from the Lerma family!  

To the Lerma family, thank you so much for your continued support and giving these children the chance to have a better life!

Our visit was very memorable.  My wife, children and I were really looking forward to meeting our scholars face to face for the first time.  It provided us the perfect opportunity to congratulate Kier Vincent and Trisha on a job well done.  We are really proud of how well they are doing in school and we hope that they continue to work hard until they graduate.  The visit also gave us a chance to meet our new scholars, Inday and Axel, as well as my mom's scholar, Ron Ron. We hope they will do well in school too.

The campus tour and the introductions to school personnel and students gave us an in depth look into the operations of the school.  Needless to say, we were very impressed.  

Our visit only strengthened our resolve to keep supporting our scholars and the school.

We look forward to visiting the campus and our scholars again in the future.   by Benjie Lerma

A New Year Visit!

On the first day of school after the holiday vacation, TF donors Ben Prince, Eric Yulo and Raffy Garcia visited St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City and met their scholars for the first time. They got to know their scholars and toured the school campus.

Ben Prince with scholar, Jazzy Eguid (Grade 1) and
Eric Yulo with scholar, Claire Marie Deriada (Grade 7)

Raffy Garcia with scholar, Angelika Garcia (Grade 8)

With Eric's mother, Mrs. Ana Yulo

Ben and Eric have been sponsoring a child to school since 2009 while Raffy started in 2013 and chose his scholar during the 60 Scholars in 30 Days Challenge.

"Eric and I sponsor a couple of scholars there via this great organization called Tapulanga Foundation, and we got to meet our scholars, so that was cool. Mine's in first grade and very shy, but adorably photogenic!" by Ben Prince

"We had a great time visiting St. Francis of Assisi School of Silay City. I was very impressed with everything— from the well behaved students to the expansion programs currently underway. It was also a pleasure to meet my scholar Claire and Principal JR. Thank you for a delightful tour." by Eric Yulo

"I feel glad to have met Angelika in person. She seems like a sweet and level headed kid. Just exactly like the optimism I sense in her when I see her pictures and read her Christmas cards. I guess she's obviously enjoying being in school. Just shows how a good education could do so much for someone who really wants it too. It's really admirable what Tapulanga Foundation has been doing for these kids; to continually do this earnest and industrious effort from the heart so as to have an effect on someone's future. And I'm very happy to be a part of this endeavor, in whatever way that I can." by Raffy Garcia

Medical Mission 2015

The annual Medical Mission of Tapulanga Foundation was held at Our Lady of the Nativity Chapel in Hacienda Tinihaban I, Silay City last December 23.   

124 children from Hacienda Tinihaban and neighboring communities received health checkups, basic medicines, and got donated toys and clothes. Deworming was also given to children from 2 to 10 years old.

A big thanks to our volunteer physicians, Dra. Jo-an Ledesma-Millonado (president of Tapulanga Foundation), Dra. Kate Abello and Dr. Julius de la Cruz, school nurse Ms. Marissa Guadalupe and volunteer nurses Ms. Aerial Guadalupe and Ms. Jelaine Estardo who are both SFAS alumni.

And big thanks to Westmont Pharmaceutical, Inc. who supported our mission once again thru their donation of medicines for cough, colds, fever, antibiotics and multivitamins. And to all who generously donated to the health care program during the Sharing Hope fundraiser in Maryland last November ... THANK YOU!

For more photos, please click here.