Unshaken by adversity: BingoPlus Foundation’s ₱6M earthquake relief efforts uplift Cebuano communities

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Cebu, Philippines – The memory of the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck Northern Cebu on September 30 still haunts the region, but for BingoPlus Foundation, it was a call to action defined by dedication and grit.

BingoPlus Cebu employee volunteers distributed water, food, medicine and other essentials enough for 56,000 Filipinos across earthquake-affected communities in Bogo, San Remigio, Medellin, Daanbantayan, Borbon, and Tabogon. The ₱6-million relief effort, led by the BingoPlus Foundation, was carried out in coordination with local government units and mobilization partners.

Armed with a commitment to multiply the good and spread hope, the BingoPlus Foundation immediately mobilized the relief operations to deliver the Php6 million support from DigiPlus Interactive and BingoPlus to thousands of Cebuanos affected by the earthquake.

Little did the team know that their dedication and perseverance would be tested as the mission, implemented under the Foundation’s BayanihanPlus program, became one of its most arduous operations to date.

Serving Beyond the Quake

While BingoPlus Foundation, social development arm of DigiPlus Interactive Corp., is no stranger to difficult relief operations, the recent leg was the most challenging to date. For the Manila-based Foundation team and the local Cebu BingoPlus employee volunteers, the journey was a test of commitment.

The distribution was fraught with challenges, ranging from aftershocks, heavy rains, impassable roads, and infrastructural damage. This difficult environment peaked on October 13 when volunteers experienced a 5.8 magnitude aftershock, which intensified the already complex relief operations.

Despite the hazards, the team’s resolve was unwavering. Everyone was committed to fulfilling public service—to deliver not just the relief goods but multiply the good and provide hope to thousands of affected Cebuanos.

As Jem Tumbaga, BingoPlus Foundation Communications Officer, shared, “I learned that serving others is not about how easy the journey is, but how willing your heart is to keep going for those who need you the most.”

Tumbaga added, “Despite the bad weather, rough roads, and the scary aftershocks we experienced in Cebu, my commitment to serve others remains unshaken because I know our service will bring hope to our kababayans severely affected by the earthquake.”

BingoPlus Store Manager, Mark Gibson Dingal, surveyed the devastation in Medellin and Bogo, Cebu, after a 6.9 magnitude earthquake and its aftershocks destroyed numerous establishments on September 30, 2025.

Distribution activities proceeded from October 5 to 23 despite aftershocks, heavy rains, impassable roads, and infrastructural damage.

Collaboration to Multiply the Good

In the spirit of multiplying the good through collaboration, the Foundation coordinated with BingoPlus branches, local government units, the Philippine Army 53rd Engineering Brigade, the Philippine Accessible Disability Services (PADS) and supply chain networks, to carry out one of its most complex relief operations, delivering aid barangay to barangay across six municipalities within days. The combined effort in logistics and communications ensured efficient distribution of relief goods to thousands of residents in far-flung areas across Northern Cebu.

“Wala man lisod kaayo ang access diri samot na sa agianan samot na ang kaning sa Tagnucan kay mubalik pa sa mainland (Access here is very difficult, especially the roads, especially for Tagnucan, because the road goes back to the mainland),” said Nino Mangubat, the focal person of PADS in Borbon, shared on a Facebook post.

He added “Karon, kaning gihatag sa BingoPlus Foundation ayuda dako jud kaayo ni ug kwan sa persons with disabilities diri sa Borbon kay nakita jud nato ba bisan og lisod kaayo ang pwd karon amo saning gipaningkamutan sa mga chapter president nga ang tanang ayuda nga gihatag sa BingoPlus amo ning i-house to house na sa mga members. (Now, this aid given by the BingoPlus Foundation is really a huge help for the persons with disabilities here in Borbon, because we truly see that even though it is very difficult for PWDs right now, we—the chapter presidents—are making every effort to ensure that all the aid given by BingoPlus is delivered house-to-house to the members.)”

The PADS representative said “Thank you kaayo BingoPlus sa inyong hatag na suporta sa moa o sa PADS. Thank you kayo (Thank you very much, BingoPlus, for the support you gave us, or to PADS. Thank you very much)."

“Ang mga ayudang ito ay aming ipinamamahagi house-to-house sa aming mga miyembro dahil mahirap ang access ng daanan dito... kaya umaabot ng 17 kilometro ang biyahe,” shared PADS Focal Person Nino Mangubat to Jem Tumbaga of BingoPlus Foundation, describing the challenges of delivering relief to PWDs. The collaboration helped bridge access to essential goods directly to remote homes, sparing vulnerable sectors the long and difficult travel to distribution sites.

Php6 million Aid of BayanihanPlus

Through the Foundation’s program BayanihanPlus, volunteers successfully delivered thousands of relief packs to an estimated 56,000 residents across six municipalities in Northern Cebu. This extensive distribution, valued at Php6 million, spanned a phased approach from October 5 to October 23.

"Our commitment to the people of Cebu is unwavering," said Angela Camins-Wieneke, BingoPlus Foundation Executive Director. "This Php6 million support from DigiPlus and BingoPlus represents an immediate lifeline for tens of thousands of individuals who lost their homes, livelihoods, and some even their loved ones. We've prioritized swift, targeted action to ensure the relief gets into the hands of those who need it most. Sama-sama sa pagtulong. Sabay-sabay sa pagbangon. (We help together. We recover together.)"

Understanding that earthquake recovery is a long-term process, the BingoPlus Foundation will continue working with partners to assess the changing needs of the affected communities as the complex recovery progresses.

Sama-sama sa tulong. Sabay-sabay sa pagbangon – through its BayanihanPlus program, BingoPlus Foundation’s Php6 million support from DigiPlus and BingoPlus represents an immediate lifeline and a step towards recovery for thousands of individuals who lost their homes, livelihoods and loved ones.

For the latest updates on the BingoPlus Foundation, as well as inquiries regarding coordination, assistance, or partnership opportunities, please contact the Foundation via its official Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/BingoPlusFoundation/.

Award-winning Broadway play STEEL MAGNOLIAS is all set this April 1 and 2 in Cebu

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Are you ready to paint the town blush and bashful?

The award-winning Broadway play by Robert Harling “STEEL MAGNOLIAS” is coming to Cebu City this coming April 1 to 2, 2023.

The play is a comedy-drama about the bond among a group of Southern women in northwest Louisiana. The title suggests the "female characters are as delicate as magnolias but as tough as steel".

Featuring Charlene Virlouvet, Liana San Diego, Clariza Mae Sevilla, Dahlia Alegre-Borres, Yvette Yntig, and Marlinda Angbetic Tan. Directed by Allan Nazareno and Vincent Paul D. Gaton.

CHARLENE VIRLOUVET plays Truvy Jones, the 40-year old beauty parlor owner, who’s always generous in sharing the latest rumors with anyone who’s willing to listen. Her motto, “there is no such thing as natural beauty,” is what makes Truvy’s Beauty Spot the most sought-after in Chinquapin, Louisiana.

LIANA SAN DIEGO steps into the shoes of the shy Annelle Dupuy-Despoto, and walks us through her sad and ambiguous marital affair. She wears glasses out of necessity, hair spray to hold her crown up nice and strong, and her young and troubled heart on her sleeve.

MARLINDA ANGBETIC ANG plays the role of Claire Belcher, the cheerful, gossip-hound, 66-ish widow of the former Mayor. Funny, fiery, witty,

CLARIZA MAE SEVILLA plays the role of Shelby Eatenton-Latcherie, a young blush bashful bride with type 1 diabetes, who’s dealing with family stresses alongside complications. She wants to have children, but has to face the many possible struggles of a diabetic pregnancy.

The character, Shelby, was modelled after Susan Harlin Robinson, the sister of Steel Magnolias playwright, Robert Harling. Sadly, Susan went tragically from complications related to her type 1 diabetes. Her life became the inspiration of this beautiful and heart-warming play.

DAHLIA ALEGRE BORRES plays the role of Ouiser (pronounced as Weezer) Boudreaux. She’s both mature and childish; lovely, but miserable. A wealthy old bitty, whose sense of humor will shred you to bits.

YVETTE YNTIG plays the overprotective mother hen, M’Lynn Eatenton, whose time is preoccupied between being the administrator of the Mental Guidance Center and worrying about her daughter’s health.

Get your tickets at https://2tincans-philippines.yapsody.com

#SteelMagnoliasCebu

#2tincansphilippines

#EntertainEducateEmpower

#theatretalk

#CURTAINSUP

#steelmagnolias2023

#CebuTheatre

#artlinkph

DOT puts a spotlight on the Pampanga-Clark-Cebu City Interregional Tour

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With the easing of restrictions on leisure travel, the Department of Tourism (DOT) has started to promote the various tourism circuits that it had been developing throughout the year. One of these is the Pampanga-Clark-Cebu City interregional tour that involves a diverse set of tourism attractions and experiences and their respective award-winning international airports.

The newly built Clark International Airport Terminal 2. Photo courtesy of Department of Tourism Region 3

“We have been ramping up our efforts to vaccinate our tourism workers so that we restore confidence in people to travel again. Now, with the resumption of leisure travel, we are encouraging tourists to visit destinations that have a high number of fully vaccinated tourism workers,” said Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat.

For Pampanga, including Clark Freeport Zone, 92.08% of its tourism workers have already been vaccinated. Tourists can now safely visit the restaurants of Pampanga, the country’s culinary capital, and explore the province’s sites, such as the Bacolor Church, Mt. Arayat National Park, Diaspora Farm Resort, Lubao Bamboo Hub, and the various attractions at the Clark Freeport Zone, like Clark Natural Park, Dinosaur Island, Clark Museum, to name a few.

Some of the colorful displays found at the Clark Museum in Pampanga. Photo courtesy of the Department of Tourism

For Metro Cebu, which includes Cebu City, 93.74% of tourism workers have been inoculated. Travelers can now visit these sites in Cebu City: Adlawon Farm, Sirao Flower Garden, Magellan's Cross, Sto. Nino Church, Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, Plaza Hamabar, Cebu Heritage Monument, Colon Obelisk, and Museo Sugbo, among others.

This particular interregional tour showcases not only the best of Pampanga, Clark, and Cebu City, but also encourages safe travel by air and highlights alternative gateways that tourists can utilize, such as the Clark International Airport and the Mactan-Cebu International Airport. Current available Cebu-Clark-Cebu flights are serviced by Philippine Airlines every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday, and by Cebu Pacific every Tuesday and Thursday.

The historical Magellan’s Cross in Cebu City. Photo courtesy of the Department of Tourism

The DOT chief said that with the reopening of domestic tourism in the country, they aim to provide more meaningful experience for travelers while also supporting the restart of the tourism industry and its allied sectors, such as the aviation industry.

For more updates about open destinations in the Philippines and the safety protocols and requirements needed for each location, you may visit www.philippines.travel or download the Travel Philippines app at the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

Amaia Steps Mandaue to fulfill homebuyers’ aspirations for a sustainable community

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Amaia Steps Mandaue, Amaia Land’s first mid-rise condominium to rise in the highly urbanized city of Mandaue, casts a wide net as it calls out to homebuyers seeking a sustainable community in Metropolitan Cebu. Located on the corner of Plaridel Street and UN Avenue in Mandaue City, Cebu province, Amaia Steps Mandaue is composed of the Tower 1 and Tower 2, nine-storey developments that collectively house 576 sleek Studio, Deluxe, and Premier units.

Amaia Land’s first mid-rise condominium in the city of Mandaue, calls out to homebuyers seeking a sustainable community in Metropolitan Cebu.

Individuals and families that would settle for nothing less than a dynamic lifestyle will gravitate towards Amaia Steps Mandaue’s Tower 2, the second and final building in Amaia's project portfolio. Tower 2 offers 288 units that range in size from 24.01 sqms to 48.08 sqms. With their flexible and functional floor layouts, these may be converted into One-Bedroom or Two-Bedroom well-designed and efficient residential units for growing families who need more living space.

 Residents can have refreshing dips in the pool or recharge in the landscaped garden.

Amaia Steps Mandaue is composed of the Tower 1 and Tower 2, nine-storey developments that collectively house 576 sleek Studio, Deluxe, and Premier units.

As they thrive in these cozy and modern living spaces, residents will find that Amaia Steps Mandaue’s aspiration for a sustainable community resonates with their own. Young married couples, upwardly mobile professionals and entrepreneurs, and starter families will appreciate the airy, well-ventilated units, some of which have balconies for looking out on Mandaue’s cityscape and breezy open spaces. Large windows let natural light in, reducing the household’s energy use.

Individuals and families that would settle for nothing less than a dynamic lifestyle will gravitate towards Amaia Steps Mandaue.

Amaia Steps Mandaue features a cozy lobby from which residents can take a quick elevator ride to their floor—or walk briskly up a few flights of stairs to boost heart health. To de-stress, they can have refreshing dips in the pool or recharge in the landscaped garden.

Homemakers will appreciate Amaia Steps Mandaue’s ‘walkable’ neighborhood. For quick supply runs, there will be stores and service shops in the retail area of the development. Delivery riders and couriers will also find the condo’s locale easy to pin.

Finally, while Maayo Hotel is within strolling distance, the University of Cebu is just a bit farther down the road. With public utility vehicles in nearby transport hubs and shuttle stations, however, residents will find it easy to commute to work or indulge in their favorite pastime—shopping at the Pacific Mall, Gaisano Grand Mall, and Ayala Center Cebu.

Amaia Steps Mandaue is also close to S&R and the Mandaue Public Market, one of Cebu’s hubs for fresh produce. Best of all, Mactan-Cebu International Airport is just five kilometers away.

All these make Amaia Steps Mandaue an idyllic home and a sustainably healthy community for Filipino individuals and families. To them, Amaia Land offers flexible payment schemes: cash, deferred cash and bank financing.

For inquiries about Amaia, visit https://www.amaialand.com or contact our Amaia real estate sales person.

Smile Train Expands Comprehensive Cleft Care Services Across Philippines

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Smile Train, the world's largest cleft organization, announced today the establishment of four Comprehensive Cleft Care (CCC) centers across the Philippines to increase accessibility of treatment to cleft-affected individuals and their families.

ARC Hospital in Lapu-Lapu City serving as the first Comprehensive Cleft Care (CCC) in Cebu)

Every day, more than 540 babies are born with a cleft around the world, an ongoing reality that calls for comprehensive solutions to help them overcome challenges and live a happy, healthy life.

For the past two decades, Smile Train has supported more than 64,000 cleft surgeries through its 50+ partner hospitals and organizations throughout Philippines. As the organization marks its 20th anniversary in the country, it is further expanding its services to include nutrition support, orthodontic and dental treatment, and speech therapy in more locations across Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

“Smile Train’s goal is to provide those born with a cleft the necessary holistic care beyond their initial surgeries. We will continue to build a network that will bring comprehensive cleft care to Filipinos, so they have the support and the tools they need to overcome any challenge. Through this network and these comprehensive cleft centers, we aim to ultimately provide them the ability to work, play, and live happy, healthy and productive lives,” said Kimmy Coseteng-Flaviano, Smile Train’s Vice-President for South East Asia.

Smile Train’s geographical and programmatic expansion comes as the organization celebrates National Cleft and Craniofacial awareness month this July. Smile Train has launched comprehensive cleft centers at partner hospitals including the Philippine Band of Mercy and Marikina St. Vincent General Hospital in Metro Manila, San Fernandino Hospital in Pampanga, and Mabuhay Deseret Foundation in ARC Hospital in Cebu. At these centers, in addition to surgeries, parents and patients in need can access nutrition counselling and nutrition services, orthodontic treatment, and speech therapy sessions at no cost.

These institutions have served as Smile Train’s partners for years, helping patients from across different provinces and performing thousands of cleft surgeries with the assistance of Smile Train, and will be continuing to do so in an increased capacity as CCC centers. Philippine Band of Mercy has performed 25,300 Smile Train-funded cleft surgeries since 2002; Marikina St. Vincent has performed 1,900+ cleft surgeries since 2011; San Fernando Hospital has done over 1,000 cleft surgeries since 2011; and Mabuhay Deseret Foundation has performed 1,500+ cleft surgeries since 2008. Additional partner hospitals will be able to provide CCC in the coming months.

More on Comprehensive Cleft Care (CCC)

Comprehensive cleft care complements cleft surgery, which Smile Train has been providing at no cost to families in need for over 20 years in the Philippines. Cleft treatment is not a one-off process or even just a series of surgeries, but often requires a holistic approach including nutritional support, dental and orthodontic care, psychosocial support, and speech therapy. CCC is provided by an interdisciplinary, supportive team of highly trained professionals that typically includes geneticists, nutritionists, surgeons, nurses, speech therapists, ENTs, audiologists, mental health counselors, dentists, and orthodontists, among others. For Smile Train and its medical partners, CCC means that each person with cleft has access to all the care they need in order to thrive.

The expansion of Smile Train’s CCC footprint also supports its efforts to promote a working telehealth network, which will allow patients to access CCC despite the challenges posed by the pandemic and geography.

In the Philippines, the pandemic has not gotten in the way of Smile Train’s efforts to help cleft patients, providing over 1,800+ surgeries (pandemic-related) done in 2020, and 1,120 in the first 6 months of 2021 with 26 partners actively doing surgeries.

Since the start of the pandemic, Smile Train’s speech telehealth program in the Philippines has treated over 200 patients, providing them with more than 1,000 cleft care-related sessions. Recently, the organization launched the country’s first Filipino speech therapy mobile application which serves as a platform for more patients and families born with cleft to continue to receive comprehensive cleft care with minimal disruptions.

For more information about Smile Train’s global efforts and to donate, please visit smiletrain.org. 

To learn more about Smile Train’s local programs in the Philippines, please visit smiletrain.ph, follow Smile Train Philippines on Twitter and Instagram @SmileTrainPh, and like us on Facebook at @SmileTrainPhilippines. The Smile Train Philippines mobile application can be downloaded via Google Play and App Store.

About Smile Train

Smile Train empowers local medical professionals with training, funding, and resources to provide free cleft surgery and comprehensive cleft care to children globally. We advance a sustainable solution and scalable global health model for cleft treatment, drastically improving children’s lives, including their ability to eat, breathe, speak, and ultimately thrive. To learn more about how Smile Train's sustainable approach means donations have both an immediate and long-term impact, please visit smiletrain.ph. For more information about Smile Train’s work in the Philippines, please contact philippines@smiletrain.org.