Thursday, May 22, 2008

Former volunteer says “Hi!”


CERV volunteer Jennifer Pielak of Vancouver Canada (teaching, July 2007) dropped us a message recently. Here is part of what she had to say:

Hey Pom, Raymund, Eden and Vincent!

How are you doing?! Things are going pretty well for me over here in Vancouver. I have been very busy teaching English to Korean kids at a private school here. The kids come from wealthy families, so it is very different from teaching the kids in Romblon! To be honest, it has taken a few months for me to readjust to living here after living in Asia for almost 2 years. I think about the Philippines a lot and really miss everyone over there! It was truly a life-changing experience for me, and I have gained a lot more perspective on the world.

One of the moments that had the most impact on me was when Raymund was taking Lucie (Pfaendler, Switzerland, Teaching, July 2007) and I through the slums in Manila and said, "The greatest sin is humans dehumanizing other humans like this." That is something that has really stuck with me and I've thought about it a lot.

“Anyway, I hope all of you are doing well and that things are going well with CERV and that lots of volunteers are coming

Thanks, and say hi to everyone in Romblon for me!!

-Jen

PS: Here is a picture of me in the snow! When you are feeling hot, think of this picture!

Jenn was one of the volunteers who displayed outstanding initiative and creativity during her program with CERV. Undaunted by the local teachers’ embarrassment to give her more teaching time, she managed to convince them to give her more work. And she did it without offending the people’s unique sensibilities. She ended her volunteer program in a very busy fashion, conducting after class tutorial sessions, creating and producing many teaching aids, in addition to increased time teaching

Sunday, May 11, 2008

A friend of CERV's passes away


CERV’s logo designer, Nestor Jacinto, died of lung cancer last May 6 at Manila’s University of Santo Tomas Hospital. He was 63 years old.

Nes, as friends and colleagues fondly called him, designed the simple yet striking CERV logo for free. He was Raymund’s colleague at Kodao Productions, a multi-media group that produces video documentaries and radio programs.

Nes led a very colorful life. Born just after second World War his family suffered untold difficulties, often only eating root crops instead of proper food. He was born with a blind right eye.

Despite his disability, he developed an eye for photography. He qualified to study architecture at the University of the Philippines.

When UP students rebelled against the Marcos dictatorship in the early 70s in what is known as the “Diliman Commune,” Nes captured the historic event on video. Intense persecution of activists forced him to align himself with rebels waging a guerilla war against the dictatorship. Due to failing eyesight, Nes later went “aboveground” and started working as a film editor.

In the last two decades, Nes became a top-notch digital graphics designer and lay-out artist. He produced an impressive number of designs for various advocacies and political movements, as well as commercial works. He also served as creative consultant to all of Kodao Productions' video projects.

Nes was also tapped to produce designs for local and international campaigns. These included “Stop the Killings in the Philippines!”, “Permanent People’s Tribunal Second Session on the Philippines”, “Junk WTO!”, “International Observers’ Mission” (for the 2007 national elections), “White Ribbon Movement”, and “Purple Rose Campaign” (against women and children trafficking), among many others.

All these he accomplished while being legally-blind. He often had to work with the computer monitor barely an inch away from his thick glasses. His condition also did not deter him from being a bookworm, building himself an impressive collection of books on graphic design and photography.

A widower, Nes is survived by his two sons, Mark and Sancho.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

New volunteers indulge in “halo-halo”


Summer is in full swing in the Philippines. A boat dish of “halo-halo” (literally-translated, “mix-mix”) is always in order on a hot Manila afternoon.

Two new Canadian volunteers are now enjoying this Filipino summer icon. They both recently arrived on month-long programs in Romblon.

Sharlyn Briones was born to full-blooded Filipino parents who migrated to Canada after their marriage. Sharlyn is Canadian-born and is now a young staff nurse in a Calgary hospital. She is a health volunteer.

Andrew Hudson is a university student in Vancouver. Unlike Sharlyn who made her own “halo-halo” on her childhood visits to the Philippines, it is his first time to sample this popular local snack. Andrew is a school building maintenance and repair volunteer.
There are many versions of “halo-halo”, depending on the availability of ingredients or one’s own imagination. There could be as many as two dozen elements arranged on top of shaved ice made even flavorful by either milk or cream. Sweetened fruits like bananas, jackfruits, young coconut meat, mangoes, ripe papayas; gelatins of all shapes and sizes; flans; yams; rice crispies; and scoops of cheese and yam-flavored ice-cream make up the “regular” versions. “Special halo-halo” needs extra special effort to describe.

One may be forgiven to think that “halo-halo” is representative of the Filipino. (Not the balut!) The Philippines is an archipelago of 7,107 islands peopled by about 150 ethno-linguistic groups. As separate units, they represent their own unique colors and flavors. Taken together, they are just one color and flavor even more unique and special.

To begin enjoying “halo-halo”, one must futher break up the shaved ice underneath all the sweets and mix everything up (hence the name) until the tall glass or the boat dish becomes a rainbow of colors. After a reasonable consistency is achieved, one is then permitted his or her first spoonful.

A hot tropical afternoon in the Philippines is also required.