About GK

Below is the text of the little speech I gave at the two screenings of the GK Movie "Paraiso" in Cary, NC.

Good afternoon. Magandang hapon po sa inyong lahat.

Once in your life, you become part of something that is bigger than anything you’ve ever experienced. Two years ago, my wife Bembe literally stumbled onto this organization called Gawad Kalinga. On her highschool batch email list, a former classmate mentioned GK. When she first mentioned it to me, I was skeptical. We probably all have experiences with charities and non-profits that have good intentions but are not effective and do not make a difference. Because of these experiences, we are sometimes skeptical, even suspicious.

But we soon found out that GK is different. The language was different. This is not a charity, this is a movement. The vision is not addressing only one issue- it is grand – transforming our motherland, the Philippines, from a third world country with slums to a country with pride, dignity- one home, one community, at a time. And the manner in which this is being done is different. This is not a charity concerned only with raising funds to give to the poor, this is work guided by love for others, where the poor are involved in helping themselves and their neighbor, where the process of transformation is as important as the results. And because of this approach, the results are phenomenal- more than 20,000 new homes in more than 1,000 communities in almost all provinces in the Philippines, from the northern tip of Luzon to the southern provinces in Muslim Mindanao. What is different with GK? Why is it that this movement started by CFC in the late 1990s has become such a sweeping movement with hundreds of thousands of volunteers, all dedicated and giving their time, talents, and treasures? Anong kakaiba sa Gawad Kalinga?

The answer is simple: GK is an expression of the greatest force in the world- LOVE. The work of GK is the expression of our love for neighbor, as we are called, as Christians, as Filipinos, to do. It is the expression of our core beliefs as humans: human dignity, respect, the belief that we are on this earth not only for ourselves but for each other. This was very powerful stuff. Most of us will probably say- that’s all well and good, but show me the proof. Show me that this is not just a flash in the pan, ningas cogon, some front for someone with other intentions. We have over the years, as Filipinos, become used to this.

But GK is different, because the message is true, and witnessed by many heroes who have dedicated their time, efforts, their lives for the cause of the poor. There is Dylan Wilk, with not a drop of Filipino blood, who turned away from a life of leisure and riches, and found his life’s work in GK. There are heroes like Rose Cabrera, who walked away from 6-figure salaries in the US, to dedicate her life to GK. There are three stories of love and hope that we will see today.