“ONE IS never too ordinary to be a hero.”
These were the words of 2009 CNN Hero of the Year Efren Peñaflorida at the Loyola Schools (LS) Awards for Leadership and Service on March 8 at the Ricardo Leong Hall Roof Deck.
Keynote speaker Peñaflorida stressed that inside each person is a hero waiting to be unleashed. “One is never too young or too old to serve the world. One is never too strong to do things on his own. And who’s that one? That one is you … Everybody is a winner,” he said.
University President Fr. Bienvenido Nebres, SJ said that Peñaflorida made him and Ateneans realize that what they are doing is still not enough. “The challenge is to be more and more… There is more that [we] can do,” he said.
The LS Awards for Leadership and Service acknowledges the efforts of Ateneo students in leadership and service to others.
Proving Peñaflorida right
For Peñaflorida, the LS Awards for Leadership and Service is important because being recognized feels good.
Event organizer Michael Jacinto Mallilin agreed, saying, “There is a need to recognize the core aspects of the Atenean. It should be servant leadership.”
The following are this year’s awardees:
Most Outstanding Individual: Outgoing Sanggunian President Gio Tingson
Most Outstanding Student Group: Ateneo Task Force (ATF) 2010
Most Outstanding Project: I Am Hope Campaign by KYTHE Ateneo
Special Recognition: Ateneo Corps of Cadet Officers (ACCO)
Special Citation: Ateneo Management Economics Organization (MECO)
Special Citation: ATF Ondoy
Winners
The winners this year are different, said Mallilin, because most of them would not have been awarded had it not been for certain national events like Typhoon Ondoy and the upcoming elections.
He was especially referring to ATF 2010, which helped students become more involved with registration and election awareness. ATF Ondoy was also developed to help Ondoy victims.
Other winners were awarded for their various contributions and services to the community—Tingson for his leadership in Sanggu, ACCO for its interventions in adversities, MECO for its investment projects, and the ‘I am Hope Campaign’ for its empowerment of cancer patients.
The LS Awards for Leadership and Service were given alongside the Ateneo Socio-Civic Engagement for National Development Awards, Ambrosio Padilla Award for Sports, the GUIDON-Moro Lorenzo Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year, and the Council of Organizations of the Ateneo (COA) Awards.
Few nominations
Mallillin said that one of the problems they’ve encountered in the awards were the few nominations.
He attributed the dismal turnout to academics. But after the nominees were shortlisted, he found it easy to choose the winners.
One of the judges, Filipino Chair Jerry Respeto, agreed. “It was easy [judging] because the decision was unanimous. We only talked about who is worthy to receive special citations,” he said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Representatives from all the four schools were chosen as judges. The other judges include School of Management Junior Assistant Professor Sedfrey Santiago, Physics Instructor Joel Maquiling, and Psychology and Mathematics professor Queena Lee-Chua.
Overwhelmed
“It’s an honor and to be honest [there’s also] guilt that I don’t deserve this because I think there are a lot of people who fulfilled [the role better],” said Tingson.
“I personally think that we are one of the hardest working student groups,” ATF 2010 Head Anton Lorenzo Avanceña said. Avanceña was also shortlisted for Most Outstanding Individual.
COA President Jemika Soledad was also proud of the COA organizations and projects that were chosen. “Of course we take pride in them because their vision is in line with [that of] the greater Ateneo community,” she said.
The other projects shortlisted for Most Outstanding Project were the National Center for Mental Health Visits of Ateneo Psyche and the Apostolate Area of Musmos.
