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“iRun started with our family. My son is visually impaired, he's totally blind in both eyes. That's why I decided to form this movement. After that we decided to expand to Kythe Foundation and seek the help of Ateneo Taekwondo as well.

For this whole movement to be successful, we need people to believe. So I hope that more people would believe in our cause and more people would support these kids because they are the ones who need the attention the most."

JV Cruz

JV is a former basketball coach at the Coach E camps and a Sporting Events Organizer. His first organized run was called iRun: I Give Hope to the Young Blind, and benefitted the Parents Advocate for Visually Impaired Children. iRun also supports foundations for children with cancer, and other health issues.

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“What inspires me to swim, right now? The youngsters. Mga youth ngayon. Yung sumusunod na pangalan ngayon is Sacho Ilustre. Sobrang galing niya. Naiinspire ako sa kaniya kasi yung goal niya is to race the time, to catch yung time ko. Parang ako naman, “Okay, habulin mo ako!” Lalangoy pa din ako until sa hanggang saan kaya.

Pag pumupunta kami sa mag meet, makikita mo yung mga bata. Sobrang pursigido sila mag swim. Yun ang nag inspire sa akin.

Just keep swimming. Dadating yung time na maghihit ka na doon sa plateau. Kailangan mo lang ng patience. Stay happy.”

Jessie Lacuna (Pulilan, Bulacan)

Jessie is a swimmer and an Olympian. He has represented the Philippines in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, the Youth Olympics, the SEA Games, and the ASEAN University Games. Jessie is currently the National Record Holder of the 200m freestyle for men’s swimming, and has a total of 51 gold medals (35 National titles, and 16 International titles).

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“I am Moro. We have culture and traditions that we practice even before the coming of Islam. I am a Muslim. A human being who is trying her best to practice the peaceful religion of Islam. I am not perfect, but Islam is. One cannot judge the whole nation of Islam for a human mistake.”

Sheryan G. (Dinaig, Maguindanao)

Sheryan is a Cultural Affairs Officer of the ARMM Bureau on Cultural Heritage. She is also a Board of Trustee member of United Voices for Peace Network, a Bangsamoro youth-led organization. She graduated from Mindanao State University with a degree in Tourism, and is currently completing her MA on Public Administration.

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"I have done my paintings about fighting for democracy and fighting for human rights, and I realized that these things that I have been painting about, like the OFWs, which I did in the '80s… Why are these problems still with us now? Why is it still relevant to paint about them now, and it's been 40 years? I don't want to do my work in the same manner. It should change.

My hope is that it's not just my canvas that's changing. I hope that the situation will improve, for women, for our compatriots. And maybe by being more positive in my approach in painting, there is more hope, more concrete things that we can do about improving our lives in the Philippines."

Imelda Cajipe-Endaya (San Juan)

Imelda is a visual artist whose works show themes of identity, race, gender, and globalization from the perspective of an enlightened Filipina. She is also one of the founders and the first president of KASIBULAN, a collective of Filipino women artists. Among many other accolades, she has been presented with the CCP Centennial Honors for the Arts, the Ani ng Dangal Award by the NCCA, and the Florence Zlowe Award from American Society of Contemporary Artists in New York.

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"The gallery I worked for showcased a photo series about the last tattooed women of the Kalinga. It's different when you see it framed, when it's there and it's huge, and you see the actual detailed everything. I was just very moved by that because in a society driven by men, it was just so beautiful seeing women that carry a tradition of Filipino pride. I love those things, I really appreciate how tradition is.

Of course we want to be part of that whole Filipino tradition. The best part is creating pillows that mean something and are actually in someone's home. And that's why we try to impart the story all the time to someone who buys it, like we make sure that if someone's going to get the pillow, they need to know what it's about or why it was made."

Kyla O. (Marikina City)

Kyla is a photographer and the Creative Director of The Olive Tree Corporation, a full-service linen & digitally crafted prints business. Their latest series, Paraluman, is inspired by the pintados and the tattooed women of the Kalinga tribe.

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“Kythe started 23 years ago. Icar Castro and myself, we were doing our coursework for our Master’s degree in Psychology at the Ateneo de Manila University, and we were interacting with children who had cancer. When we were about to graduate, we said we couldn’t leave the children behind. Because clearly it takes more than medicine to get well. We said we needed to establish a psycho-social support for the children, and so that’s how Kythe was founded.

There are different ways in helping Kythe. Every little help counts. You know always, early detection is the key. There is hope. Together, with everybody helping out, cancer can be cured.”

Girlie Garcia-Lorenzo (Quezon City)

Girlie is the Co-founder and Executive Director of Kythe Foundation Inc. To volunteer or donate, visit www.kythe.org

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"Dapat lagi lang pong magdasal kasi ang Diyos lang ang makakapagpagaling sa atin. Dapat lagi lang maging masaya, kalimutan ang sakit."

"Sa mga gusto pong tumulong, sana po matulungan po natin ang bawat batang may sakit, pinansyal man o oras niyo, basta bukal po sa puso niyo. [Sana din] makapagtapos [ako] sa pag-aaral tapos makagawa ng isang program na tutulong sa mga batang may sakit."

Joemar R. (Pembo, Makati City)

Joemar is a Computer Science student in STI College. At age four, he was diagnosed with Thalassemia. He has been cancer-free since 2012. Joemar now volunteers for Kythe.

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“Experience ko [sa Kythe] is pag bumabalik sa ospital at least nawawala yung stress mo, hindi naiisip na, o pagdating sa ospital, ayan nanaman yung gagawin na procedure ng procedure. Kasi may times na may nagpapa-party, ganun. Imbis na nagbibirthday na sila lang, [kasama yung] mga kids din. So para din dun sa mga bata na may sakit, at least nawawala yung takot nila sa ospital.

Kahit isang oras lang iyon, napakalaking bagay na para sa bata.

Gusto ko makapagtapos ng pag aaral. Gusto ko maraming gumaling sa sakit na cancer. Yung tipong hindi na kakatakutan.

Wag po sila mawalan ng pag-asa, lalo na ang mga parents. Napagdaanan din namin yung napagdaanan nila. Kumbaga, kung gusto kasi may paraan. Basta pera lang po yan eh, pero yung buhay hindi naman napapalitan. Kahit din nagkabaon-baon din po kami that time, mapapalitan yun eh. Eto rin po yun, eto yung result.”

Rudy L. (Novaliches, Quezon City)

Rudy is an HRM student at Our Lady of Fatima University. In 2010, at the age of 13, he was diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia. He was declared cancer-free in 2015. He now volunteers as a motivational speaker and a mentor for the younger kids of Kythe.

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"My hopes for the Abel industry is what everybody was telling me. That it should be developed, and we train more weavers so the tradition will not be lost. We should involve the younger generation because we are getting old and the youth should take over. Sadly, there are only a few young people who are interested because they are always on their cellphones or watching TV.

We have only one youth trainee, Ara, and she is in grade six. That's why the loom beside me is small. We only have one. Ara still goes to school and comes over during the weekends or when there are no classes. She is young and strong so she can work the loom well."

Magdalena G. (Pinili, Ilocos Norte)

Magdalena was granted the Gawad sa Manlilikhang Bayan or the National Living Treasure in 2012 for her work in weaving. Her prized design, "Inubon a Sabog" (String of Flowers) was created after the end of World War II and is still being made today. At 91, she continues to work at the Manlilikha ng Bayan Weaving Center.

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"Ang gusto namin ay yung lumaki yung building namin, kasi maliit itong building namin. Kung may gustong mag-aral, sympre masikip dito, wala silang space. Yun sana ang pangarap namin.

Parang ito ang second na hanap-buhay namin, ng mga ninuno namin. Kasi diba magsasaka, mga [paghabi], yun ang talagang mga hanap-buhay namin dito sa Ilocos. Kaya dapat na hindi mawala yung paghahabi. Dapat na turuan yung mga kabataan, lalo na yung mga hindi nag-aaral. Syempre kung maghabi sila, at least may pangkabuhayan."

Lisa (Paoay, Ilocos Norte)

Lisa is the youngest inabel weaver of the Nagbacalan Loomweavers Multi-Purpose Cooperative, a group organized to transform idle women into weavers and income earners as well as to pass on the craft to future generations. She learned loomweaving at a very young age from her mother Veronica, who is also a member of the cooperative. Lisa has passed on the art of inabel to her sons.

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"What really brought me back here in the Philippines was the lifestyle. It's pretty much how I wanted to live my life. I wanted to be able to play and work at the same time. I wanted to have that balance. I knew I wasn't going to make as much money but then I would have a lot more freedom. Best of all was to raise a family and to have my kids have that Filipino culture in them.

I finally was able to figure out what I wanted to do. I ended up finding Pagudpud here in Ilocos Norte, a beautiful place. I travelled all over the Philippines to find the right surfing spot and Pagudpud was the best place I saw. That's where we built our resort and started our family.

The challenge was cultural differences. I was born in the Philippines but moved to the US when I was young. Everything I knew in life was to be an American. Coming back here, working with people was a little bit different. I had to learn how to be patient. It was good though. What I learned in the US was pretty much a stepping stone for what I can do here in the Philippines.

Ever since then, believe it or not, I have more opportunities here than what I've had in the US. The Philippines is a progressive country, I think it's starting to go. If you have ideas and you're willing to work hard enough for what you want, there are really good opportunities. You've just got to have faith, I think.

I've seen places like Pagudpud and La Union grow and progress. I hope it keeps going, but at the same time I hope we build for the right reasons and make it sustainable. Living in a place as beautiful as Pagudpud, how untouched it was, it's hard to find that kind of place. Most of the time, they get overdeveloped. They try to bring the city to a really beautiful place. That's why we practice sustainable living in our resort. Try not to hurt our environment. People need to realize that they need to take care of what we have now before we lose it all. Of course in the beginning people will come but once it's ruined, it's not always going to [come back].

It's about the happiness of how we live our life, in the long run. The Philippines is that beautiful, still so wide open for new ideas, that people can be successful still. There's a lot more room for growing. That's what will make our country a lot stronger."

Mike O. (Laoag City, Ilocos Norte)

Mike grew up in San Diego but came back to the Philippines to chase after his dream. Mike now runs Kapuluan Vista Resort in Pagudpud and Tacos Del Norte in Laoag.

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"The concept is so everybody can afford to buy a cup of coffee, that's why we don't have fixed price. So we always say that you can pay as much as you want or how much you can afford to buy one, so that everybody can have coffee.

There's someone who wants to drink good coffee but their budget is just P50 or P20. We can still give good quality coffee for them. There's one time na merong isang guy na bumili siya ng coffee pero ang pera niya lang is just P50. So we gave him coffee, same quality, same everything, no catch. Tapos yung next [customer] sabi niya sige, magbibigay na lang ako ng sobra sa ibabayad ko kasi yung binigay nung other guy is P50, siguro wala siyang budget. Yun yung pinaka meaning eh, parang you will fill in kung ano yung kulang. Hindi naman niya kilala yun eh, hindi sila magkakilala. Hindi rin alam nung first guy na ginawa nung other person yun na finill in niya pala yung kulang."

Chino L. (Eastwood, Quezon City)

Chino is the store manager of a local coffee shop with a pay-what-you-want system that allows just about anyone to enjoy a good cup of coffee regardless of their budget.

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"Pilitin ng pilitin. Kaya nila basta't kakayanin nila. Talagang mahirap sa umpisa. Hanggang malakas ka, pilitin mo lang mag trabaho. Hindi yung pagka mahirap na, surrender na kaagad.

Naisip ko nung una, paano ako kukuha ng pang almusal ng pamilya ko? May trade ako sa umpisa. Ginawa ko nagtinda ako sa Divisoria ng gulaman, hinuhuli naman kami. Dadalhin sa prisinto, mumulta ka, lalabas nanaman kami, magbebenta nanaman ako! Mahuhuli ako, pangalawang beses. Pagkita sa akin, sabi ‘Ikaw nanaman?’ Pagsawa ko, nagbenta naman ako ng ballpen. Nakakatakbo na ako nun!

Tapos nag trabaho ako, cooker sa restaurant. Hindi nanaman kasya. Tapos nun, nagtinda ako ng taho. Yun! Nagtitinda ako ng taho hanggang ngayon. Kasya na yun. 1997, natapos bahay naman. Sabi ko sa anak ko, swerte kayo, hindi na kayo magbabayad ng bahay."

Panfilo C. (Pasig City)

Panfilo has been selling taho for 15 years. His two sons and only daughter are working professionals in Saudi Arabia. He enjoys playing chess, cooking in his canteen, and walking to control his diabetes.

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"Gusto ko maging, yung mag pintura. At gusto ko maging doktor. Papagalingin ko yung mga bata, yung may sakit sa puso."

Hermione C. (Loyola Heights, Quezon City)

Hermione underwent open heart surgery when she was 2-years-old in order to correct a defective valve. Now almost six, her family is preparing for her second heart operation. She lives with her mom and her great grandmother, who works as a caretaker and a laundry woman.

To help Hermione and her family in any way, email arawngpagbasa@gmail.com

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"Gustong gusto ko yung mga anak ko bigyan ng mga ganito, bilhan ng ganito, kasi alam ko kailangan nila eh. Pero kulang ang pera. Sinasabi ko na lang sa anak ko na punta na lang tayo ng National, basa ka na lang doon. Kunyari bibili tayo. O kaya yung classmate mo baka meron siya, punta tayo doon.

Pero ako nanliliit ako sa sarili ko. Yung parang, sayang sana kung may pera lang ako, yung anak ko hindi lang yan sana ang nakukuha niya o hindi lang yan ang naaabot niya. Eh, dahil wala naman akong pera sinasabi ko sa sarili ko, di bale kahit ganito lang sa anak ko, by the time na graduate siya, siya na lang ang magpapatuloy ng kaniyang gusto talaga. Sige lang ako trabaho ng trabaho.

Nagsasari-sari store ako. Tapos nung nalaman ko na hindi pa din sapat sa mga anak ko, kahit sa pagkain nila, lahat na pinasok ko.

Sabi ko, 'Anak, kung ano man ang probema sa pagbayad sa school, wag kayo magpa affect, dahil ako ang parent, akong nanay ang haharap niyan. Problema ko yan. Basta mag aral kayo ng mag aral.'

Ikaw parent, yan ka na ngayon. Ito mga anak mo, sila magkakaroon pa sila ng future na mas pa sa ikaw."

Lorna T. (Cubao, Quezon City)

Lorna T. is a mother of four accomplished children (a lawyer, a nurse, a teacher, and an INTRAMED student in UP College of Medicine). She owns a sari-sari store with her sister, where she also sells her famous turon and banana-cue.