RP Embassy in Singapore gets award for charity drive

The Philippine Embassy in Singapore was one of 11 groups feted in Singapore for organizing events there to raise funds for charity last year. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the embassy and 10 other recipients were awarded the Special Events Gold Award at the 25th Community Chest Awards Ceremony. Singapore President S.R. Nathan and Mrs. Nathan attended the awarding held at the Mandarin Orchard in Singapore last September 20, the DFA said on its website Wednesday. The Special Events Award was handed out to individuals and organizations that organized events in 2009 to raise funds for charity. The Philippine Embassy was cited for helping raise over S$150,000 through its successful organization of The Bayanihan Experience last year. "It was a fund-raising performance featuring the world-famous Philippine dance group Bayanihan," the DFA said. Co-organized by the Embassy, the Department of Tourism, and Community Chest Singapore, The Bayanihan Experience gave the Singapore community glimpses of Filipino culture interpreted through dance. From the Sayaw sa Banga (Dance with Pots), a dance from the north that requires the performer to balance a towering stack of clay pots on her head as she moves, to the Kappa Malong, a dance from the south that showcases the ethnic wear of Filipino Muslim tribes, the performances brought to light the spirit and traditions of the Philippines' diverse ethnic population. A percentage of the funds raised by The Bayanihan Experience were turned over to the Philippine Bayanihan Society in Singapore (PBSS), which runs the Bayanihan Center. The center is currently used as a venue for skills development and training courses for Filipino workers. Philippine Ambassador Minda Calaguian-Cruz noted that the performance symbolized the friendship and goodwill that had existed between the Philippines and Singapore in their forty years of their diplomatic relations. "I am confident that the relationship between the Philippines and Singapore—and Filipinos and Singaporeans—will continue to mature and deepen. I look forward to more events of this type, which will contribute to the multi-ethnic, multicultural milieu that is Singapore," she said. Community Chest said the awards serve "to acknowledge the passion and generosity of organizations and individuals who had helped the disadvantaged in our society." "Their support has enabled Community Chest to fund social service programs dedicated to helping our beneficiaries maintain lives filled with hope and dignity," it added.—JMA/JV, GMANews.TV