UTAWIT DONATION TURNOVER

Gawad Kalinga Baseco Sibol School Port Area, Tondo, Manila June 17, 2019

Gawad Kalinga (GK) – Sibol Schools has been a recipient of UTAWIT’s fundraising efforts for over a decade now. This year, UTAWIT made a donation to GK Baseco Sibol School in Port Area, Tondo, Manila.

Under its Child and Youth Development platform, Gawad Kalinga Sibol schools aims to develop the skills and talents of the children and youth in the GK communities by inculcating values that bring out their full potential. SIBOL, which means “to grow,” provides value-based education to pre-school children, aged 3 to 6 years old.

Ms. Irene Kaneko, UTAWIT Execom Chairman, and Ms. Ofelia Kaneko, UTAWIT Execom Member, flew all the way from Japan to initiate the donation turnover. The momentous event was witnessed by the Sibol kids and their parents, as well as Tito Dale and Tita Thess Lugue, the power couple handling Gawad Kalinga Child and Youth Development programs in Manila area and Tita Jessica Yu, head of GK Capiz and long time GK advocate, as well as the lovely teachers and teacher aides of Baseco Sibol School; Representing Gawad Kalinga National as the Partnerships Manager was Ms. Gela Bagadiong. Also in attendance were the families of Ms. Irene Kaneko.

During the turnover, the students gathered and listened closely to the remarks made by the UTAWIT representatives. To fully welcome the honored guests, the students also prepared a simple dance number that truly livened up the event. A message from Tito Dale Lugue was also shared: “Mga bata, hinihikayat ko kayo na mag-aral ng mabuti upang magkaroon kayo ng magandang kinabukasan. Para tulad ng UTAWIT, tayo rin ay makakatulong sa kapwa Pilipino at sa ating bansa.”

All students were also given simple snacks and school supplies kits to end the event with a good note. UTAWIT is actually a blending of UTA, a Japanese word and AWIT, a Filipino word, which both means to “sing”. It’s the only national singing competition in Japan for Filipinos.

Domo arigato, UTAWIT!