Iba ‘Yan has continuously featured inspiring stories of people who work hard not only for themselves and their families, but for their communities as well. That’s why the Iba ‘Yan team, led by host Angel Locsin, visited again the people they previously assisted to get updates and see how their aid and support improved their situation.
Last month, Angel spoke to the family of Edwin Rendora and Juditha Pepito. They’re among the residents in their subdivision who lost their livelihood amidst the pandemic. Angel would then talk once more with Atty. Marvin Aceron, who started the project “Bread of Salt” which aimed at distributing pandesal to the needy, for an update since the original airing of the program’s inspiring story. They pushed through with this initiative and shared it to other people through social media, not to brag about it but to influence those who have the capability to help. Angel then shared the good news to Atty. Marvin that Iba ‘Yan would continue their initiative. The Iba ‘Yan team aimed to give 10 pandesals to every family in North Fairview subdivision every day for one whole month, which means that there should be a total of 1,600 pandesals to be made every day. And the family of Edwin and Judith became one of the those who would benefit from the initiative.
After that episode, Atty. Marvin shared that many people messaged him saying that they want to participate in his project. One of them was Irvin Cacho who shared that he and his wife were inspired to replicate the Bread of Salt initiative because they could help families by giving pandesal and at the same time, they could also help the nearby bakeries in their place. Come next Sunday, they started giving out 300 pieces of pandesal. Irvin said they are happy to be able to share their blessings to other people. He added they are planning to do this at least once or twice a month. Atty. Marvin also said that as long as there are people who suffer from hunger, they will continue to pursue this initiative.
Iba ‘Yan team also visited Renz, one of the pandesal heroes who distributed 800 pieces of pandesal for one month in his community. When Iba ‘Yan first visited Renzo, he was longing for his family. But after his family watched the episode, his wife decided to be with him and help him work. Renz was very happy that he’s with his wife again. Aside from that, he was able to open another branch of his bakery, which he’s managing while his wife takes responsibility of the original bakery.
They also saw Mary Jane, another pandesal hero, who also took on the challenge to make 800 pieces of pandesal every day for one month. Mary Jane was also happy because they had more income since she was given the chance to distribute pandesal in their street. She said it really was a big help for their family. She added that what inspires her the most is the moment she sees her neighbors happy because they get free pandesal. And because of the blessings that Mary Jane received, she decided to give additional two packs of pandesal and other bread to Judith and Edwin’s family.
Iba ‘Yan also checked on the family of Michael and Angela Alonzo who are beneficiaries of the “Blessed To Bless” project by couple Romeo and Jessel Sayson, who has helped the jobless blind massage therapists. After having their eye checked by an opthalmologist, Angela and Ralph immediately underwent eye surgery. According to Dr. Amadeo A. Veloso, Jr., Angela’s operation was successful and there’s a high chance she can bring back her sense of sight again. Angela herself shared that two weeks after her operation, she already experienced improvements in her eyesight. Meanwhile, Ralph's operation was also successful as he had much better vision. They were both very grateful for the chance given to them to have a better eyesight.
Angel also chanced upon the devoted and selfless mom Ligaya “Nanay Gay” Piadoche. Nanay Gay has managing the Heaven’s Touch Cuisine, a small carinderia that has served as homey dining place to many students of the University of Santo Tomas, which is located near it. And since the pandemic has started, she and her children initiated a food donation drive for the front liners including the doctors, nurses, police, and the homeless and stranded individuals. They gathered money from the donations they got from her old customers and from the rest of the people who donated.
Nanay Gay and her son were very thankful for the food drive support given by Iba ‘Yan as they were able to give more donations to the frontliners and to the needy individuals. She was also glad to share that she started selling food from Heaven’s Touch Cuisine, and many people have already ordered from her. Ten percent of their earnings go to the donation drive. A lot of people have also offered and given them help since the episode was aired. Even private companies donated products for their food drive. As of writing, they have already donated a total of 7,000 food packs. One of Nanay Gay’s loyal customers, Kay Fausto, was actually inspired by their initiative. That’s why she also helped a needy individual by giving financial help. Even before the episode was aired, popular chef and vlogger Erwan Heussaff was already inspired by Nanay Gay’s initiative. He even went on a video call with her and supported her family’s initiative by giving 300,000 pesos as help.
Lastly, Iba ‘Yan checked on how Wipe Every Tear, a faith-based organization that helps exploited women who were victims of sex trafficking, has been since the airing of the episodes of the girls that the organization has helped.
Rebecca “Mama Becks” Angeles, the founder of the organization, shared that other girls were inspired by Claire and Mirasol’s stories. It made them strong women, and encouraged them to also to do the things they want to do without getting judged by people. After the airing of the episode, many people have inquired and shown interest in the Tayo Collective.
Currently, they are already conducting sewing training with the help of the sewing machines that Iba ‘Yan gave them. But Mama Becks said that the best gift given to Claire and Mirasol was their freedom from the perils of sex trafficking. They were also given the chance to finally share their real stories. Claire mentioned that her family and other relatives got to watch her story on Iba ‘Yan and they were very proud of her. She added that while she was waiting for a call from the companies she applied for, she was teaching other girls how to make Tayo Collection products.
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