[On September 26, KPMFI bested six other nominees to win the St. Vincent de Paul (SVP) National Awards conferred by the Adamson University to outstanding organizations that promote systemic change in addressing the issue of poverty. Read more about the awards here. Below is the acceptance speech by Sylvia “Ibing” Okinlay-Paraguya.]
Magandang gabi po sa lahat! Maayong Gabii sa Tanan! Assalamu Alaikum! Ang Kalinaw maanaa kaninyo! Peace be with you all.
Wow! Nakakaiyak naman po pero nagagalak ng lubos ang pagbibigay pugay at pagtiwala ninyo sa kakayahan ng isang maliit na NGO na nakabase sa isang hindi kilalang siyudad sa Northern Mindanaw na kung tawagin ay Gingoog City, at ngayon ay nakilala at naparangalan sa ganitong napakaimportanteng okasyon. But before I get so emotional and carried away by this honor, let me express my gratitude to some important people who made KPMFI achieved what we are today.
To our Chairperson Mr. Kaloy Manlupig and the BOT members of KPMFI, thank you so much for your trust and confidence in our capacities and passion as trusted colleagues, like loyal soldiers, in the pursuit of our ideals in Mindanaw, thank you so much, this is award for you…
To the Men and Women in the Field and in the Office, for your steadfast commitment, patience and the energy to dream big, thank you! Let this award be a “fuel” to continue that “eternal fire in the belly” to help transform our society with our dream, core values and passion as our strongest capital.
This award is also for our spouses, children and parents who sometimes cannot understand why do we spend a lot of time in communities, in meetings and not be contented with 8am-5pm schedules. Thank you! You inspired me a lot seeing and feeling our “oneness” in high and low moments of our journey.
Now to our partner communities, the journey towards systemic change and improved quality of life is full of bumpiness as well as its twists and turns, may your faith in our journey continue to grow even with operational challenges along the way. We humbly renew our commitment of professionalism, our core values and our pursuit in building the culture to succeed and the culture to dream to be your proud partner or KASAMA, KAPANALIG, KATUWANG sa PAGBABAGO NG ATING KUMONIDAD.
To Fr. Gregg, President of Adamson, the Board of Trustees and the Screening or Selection Committee of this prestigious Award, and all individuals and institutions here in Manila who believe in our work in Mindanaw, thank you for recognizing and appreciating our work. May this award significantly contribute to our mission of building peace in Mindanaw, a Mindanaw known for vision inspired peoples and communities, a Mindanaw that deserve better attention not because we are a bunch of angry citizens wanting to break away from this republic but because we are talented, passionate and committed to change for the better with or without national government help and attention.
To the fellow nominees, we look forward to know you better and maybe we can explore possible partnership with you as we find better and innovative ways to combine our energies, good intention and never ending quest for success and excellence to contribute to the realization of the dream of making poverty history in our lifetime…
To our potential partners, donors and future business partners, tumatanggap din po kami ng libre. Kidding aside, we are looking for partners who share the same passion, share the same dream and understanding. We do not need mercy or benevolence but rather a partnership with a level playing field characterized by access to market and reasonable interest rates to fund our social enterprises.
This award is our first – for KPMFI … and even though it will be the first of the many awards, it will be nothing if forgotten. It will always be a constant reminder for us in KPMFI and in Balay Mindanaw family to continue to dream, to continue to work hard, to celebrate our success as well as our failures, to continue to innovate and put value addition to our work and to our existing resources AND TO STRIVE OUR BEST.
Mabuhay ang sinimulan ni St. Vincent de Paul! Mabuhay ang Adamson University! Mabuhay po tayong lahat na naghahangad ng totoong pagbabago!
Daghan kaayong salamat kaninyong tanan.