Yesterday, Pro-friends kicked off its 10th
anniversary of creating communities and transforming lives by sharing ‘10 Great
Stories’ of its homeowners who persevered through life to attain
their goals such as having a home of their own. These inspiring individuals and
their families were given recognition during the kick-off celebration at SM
City Iloilo.
For a decade, Pro-Friends has touched the lives of many
Ilonggos through its projects here, namely Parc Regency Residences and
Monticello Villas. It did not only help them own their dream home, but also
stood witness to their perseverance and hardwork as they survive life’s tough
challenges.
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| Pro-Friends Iloilo General Manager Dina Estocado |
Pro-Friends homeowners have their own stories to tell -
stories of failure and success, sadness and happiness, and rags to riches which
greatly contributed to the good life that they are currently experiencing.
In a way, Pro-Friends have made their stories a tale worthy
to be shared. The success they achieved is the reward. The challenges are the
obstacles and hardships they hurdled, but the lessons they learned along the
way is the best part of their journey.
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| Pro-friends Iloilo Marketing Manager Prince Celo |
Here are the Pro-Friends 10 Great Stories.
Elmer and Mary Joy Billano
“Ang pag-aabroad ay hindi biro. Ito ay isang malaking
responsibilidad na kailangang bigyan ng dedikasyon at pagsisikap. Hindi naman
tayo yayaman in an instant. Kaillangan talaga ng sipag at tiyaga.”
“Sipag at tiyaga” are values common to most Filipinos. It is
this value that Filipino workers are set apart and looked up to by other races
- how they sacrifice so much for their families and loved ones.
Elmer and Mary Joy Billano have been working abroad to
provide the needs of their families and also to achieve their dreams. Elmer is
working in Saudi Arabia while his wife Mary Joy is working in Hong Kong.
They first met on Facebook as chatmates. After several
months of exchanging messages, they finally decided to meet when they both had
their vacation. And on that point, their virtual love story has become a
reality.
Aside from the long distance relationship, they endured a
lot of sacrifices. But now that they have enough savings, they invested in
their dream home which they found at Monticello Villas.
Darlene Vasquez
“At this age and
time, being single is not a status, it’s actually a word that describes a
person who is strong enough to live and enjoy life without having to depend on
others.”
Passion is one strong force that fuels a person to love what
he or she is doing. Darlene Vasquez can testify to this statement as she has
been doing the thing she likes the most and finding love and happiness out of
her passion.
Darlene is one of the Block Representatives of Monticello
Villas. She loves to serve the community by actively participating in various
activities and leading her neighbors.
She became so busy doing her volunteer works and in taking
care of her mother that she forget about making her own love story.
Though she is single, she always finds joy in the people
around her – her neighbors and her family. And she is very thankful that she
found Monticello Villas as the perfect community where she is living happily
and where she continues to pursue her passions in life.
Jerome and Janet Pornan
“When we look at them, we can’t help but smile. We think our
hard work paid off. Lahat ng sakripisyo worth it. Napakasaya ko at napatapos
namin ang aming mga anak.”
Education is the best gift that parents will pass on to
their children, they say. It might be a cliché, but it has been already proven
by many. One of those is couple Jerome and Janet Pornan who were able to send
their six children to school despite the financial trials they have undergone.
Both believers of good education, they worked hard together
to send all their children to school. While Jerome works as a government
employee, Janet sells goods in order to help support the needs of their family.
After those struggles, the couple is now having a happy and contented life at
Parc Regency Residences. Their children became professionals and are giving
back the love and support that their parents gave them.
Gina Gilongos
“Ang pagiging ina ay 24 oras na trabaho. Sa bawat gising ko
tuwing umaga, ang mga anak ko agad ang aking inaalala. Bagong araw, bagong
pag-asa, bagong simula na naman para sa aming pamilya.”
Being a mother is indeed the highest paying job as you are
being rewarded with the best treasure in the world – pure love.
Gina Gilongos is a mother of two. While her husband works as
a seafarer, she is the one taking care of her children. She chose to become a
full-time mom over office work as she considers motherhood a noble job.
Despite her struggles in bringing up her children, she would
not trade it for any career in this world. Good thing she and her children feel
secured all the time at Monticello Villas.
Fernan and Maria Christine Pineda
“Indeed, God loves a cheerful giver. We are happy to share
our blessings to other people. We have proven that with determination and
hardwork paired with prayers and a generous heart, there is no goal too big to
aim. Our God is bigger than our problems.”
Just like many of those who became successful, Fernan and
Maria Christine Pineda have also experienced trials before landing in the spot
that they are enjoying at present.
Ironically, they both started as bank employees, but
struggled financially due to bad decisions they made. Yet, life, indeed, has its
own way of teaching every person a lesson.
From their downfall, they stood up, planned out and worked
hard to achieve their goals. And yes, they were able to survive and regained
success.
They are passing on the success that they are experiencing
by giving back the blessings to other people. In fact, they are sending a
number of college scholars to school.
In all the challenges in their life, Pro-Friends was with
them in their roller coaster ride and was the wind beneath their wings that
uplifted them to stand up and move on with new perspectives in life.
Reina Belluga
“Balancing roles as a
mother and family provider is not an easy job. But seeing your child achieve
great things is the most rewarding part.”
A working mom who juggles work and motherhood, Reina Belluga
always finds time to satisfy the needs of her family, especially of her only
son.
Despite her busy work schedule, she always sees to it to
have quality time with her son. She may be tagged as stage mom to her son who
is fond of joining dance contests, she doesn’t mind as it is her way of showing
support to him.
She has undergone a lot of trials along the way, but those
challenges didn’t hinder her to become successful as a career woman and a
mother.
She is happy with the things that she achieved for her
family especially that they now have a house of their own which she luckily
found at Monticello Villas.
Bob and Grace Llorico
“We have always believed in hardwork. Mahirap ang buhay pero
kayang malampasan.”
“Don’t settle for less. Be the best.” This is what
businesswoman and realtor Grace Llorico carries in which drove her to success.
A strong and empowered woman leader, Grace, together with
her husband Bob, didn’t give up on their dreams for their family despite the
difficulties they faced before reaching the top.
Grace is an epitome of a person who always strives to be the
best in everything that she is doing. With determination paired with faith, Bob
and Grace were able to reach their life goals.
Truly, the best things come to those who are not settling
for less like Bob and Grace who are now living their dreams with their family
in a community where they found love, peace and happiness – Parc Regency
Residences.
Mhernette Margallo
“Now that we have a
place to call our own, we see to it that every moment we share here is
memorable and cherished. Kahit simpleng stroll lang in our lanai early in the
morning, napakasaya na namin.”
Marriage is a serious matter as it is a decision that will
impact a person’s life forever. Mhernette Margallo is one of those who got
married at an early age.
She and her husband experienced failure in their business
ventures several times and ended up renting a room in a boarding house due to
financial constraints.
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| Mhernette Margallo was represented by her father during the program. |
Through thick and thin, together they survived. And now,
they are living a happy and contented life as a married couple with their son.
They now also have their own online business, which is
reaping its success with six branches in the different parts of the country and
a home that they now call their own at Parc Regency Residences.
Zenaida Perucho
“Motherhood is a
choice we mothers have to embrace. God gave us our children to become our
inspiration, our strength to move forward. It was hard raising children on my
own, but I made it out of love and determination.”
A mother of three, Zenaida Perucho was able to raise her
kids well despite the struggles she faced as a single mother when she was
widowed at an early age.
More than taking full responsibility of her children,
motherhood made Zenaida discover the strengths she never thought she had and
dealing with fears she didn’t know existed.
While being employed in a government agency, she sold dried
fish, homemade tocino and chorizo to augment their finances and sustain the
needs of her children.
Now that her children are all professionals and working abroad,
Zenaida is reaping the fruits of her labor and enjoying her long-time dream for
her family at Parc Regency Residences.
Ma. Luz Ortaliz
“I just thought my life should not stop here. Yes, I lost my
house, all my belongings pero I have to stand up again and move on. As long as
there are sunsets and sunrises, there is hope.”
Life can have hundreds of reasons to give you worries and
problems, but in return, God will give you a thousand reasons to be happy. This
is how Ma. Luz Ortaliz looks at the challenges she encountered in life.
Ma. Luz was once a dressmaker living in a small house with
her whole family. But when typhoon Frank hit Iloilo in 2008, her dreams
shattered just like how the said calamity devastated their home.
Despite the tragic experience, she did not lose hope. She
moved on with new hope and pulled through by keeping her faith and working
hard.
Ma. Luz completely moved on from that devastation. She and
her family are now living a safe and secured life in the dream home they found
at Parc Regency Residences.
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