The gift giving event proper was held last December 23,2010 ,Tuesday at the Armed Forces of the Philippines V.LUNA Hospital.  It was attended by the 24 children afflicted with Hydrocephalus with their families who are beneficiaries of the Foundation, Executive Directors of HFP, Executive officials of PAGCOR and The Armed Forces of the Philippines, and his Excellency President of The Republic of the Philippines Honorable  Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III.

The PAGCOR Chorale also graced the event with their Christmas Jingles.  There were also Celebrities who came and gave messages of hope, Ms. PAGCOR Sandra Ms. Valerie Concepcion and Mr. Dingdong Dantes who is an active advocate of HFP who pledged to help save children with Hydrocephalus.

The President Honorable Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III thru PAGCOR awarded the 24 beneficiaries with a total amount of Eight Hundred thirty four thousand pesos (Php 834,000) for the whole treatment. It was received by the Foundations’ Executive Director Mr. Bernardo J.B Mitra Sr.

Truly an inspiring means of sharing and giving back this Christmas season.

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From December 9 to 20, 2010, PAGCOR will conduct the Christmas gift-giving mission in 24 charitable institutions in Metro Manila and nearby provinces, and in various communities where its provincial casino branches operate like Angeles, Bacolod, Cebu, Davao, Laoag, Olongapo, and Tagaytay.

The Pamaskong Handog Project is the state-gaming firm’s way of sharing its blessings to the less privileged and often neglected sectors of society, a part of PAGCOR’s advocacy as a compassionate, caring institution.

Maricar Bautista, PAGCOR’s Assistant Vice President for Corporate Communications, said the gift-giving event will cover numerous marginalized sectors of society. “It will benefit orphans or abandoned children, the elderly, cancer patients in charity wards, deaf and mute, the disabled, mentally ill adult patients, inmates, special children, babies afflicted with medical illness like hydrocephalus, retired and wounded soldiers” she added.

The project’s concept “12 days of Christmas” is a take-off from the popular Christmas song that celebrates the Season for 12 straight days through the giving of gifts each day. “Two charitable institutions will be visited everyday in Metro Manila and other nearby provinces like Bulacan and Antipolo, Rizal. Each beneficiary will be getting practical gifts like clothing, toiletries, packs of rice, canned goods and other basic commodities that will be useful for them,” said Bautista.

PAGCOR is giving priority to institutions that are not receiving much help. “Many centers are already blessed with generous benefactors, but there are many more lacking or needing help. Our goal is to reach out to these less known charitable institutions in the hope that we can also help generate awareness and support or backing for their advocacies,” Bautista said.

According to Bautista, the charitable centers will get a donation in kind from PAGCOR worth P50,000 to P100,000 which will be for the long-term use of the center. “The institutions were asked about their wish list and PAGCOR will grant them, depending on the needs of the center and the individuals under their care,” she said.

Some charity wards will be given nebulizers, oxygen tanks, and syringe for extraction of bone marrow of cancer patients. PAGCOR will also donate a considerable amount to 24 children suffering from hydrocephalus to help defray cost for their treatment.

Surprise celebrity artists are expected to join the “Pamaskong Handog ng PAGCOR 2010” to provide a little entertainment for the beneficiaries. PAGCOR officials will also be there to spend time with the recipients.

The provincial Casino Filipino branches of PAGCOR will likewise hold their own gift-giving activities to charitable institutions and poor, indigent communities in their localities. Some branches even had their own fund-raising activities to support their outreach programs.

“PAGCOR employees have always been concerned, responsive citizens. They are always happy to be of service to their immediate communities, especially the needy,” said Bautista.

This is the first time in its 24-year history that PAGCOR is conducting such a massive gift-giving mission for the less fortunate. The state-gaming firm plans to make the activity a yearly tradition.

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Day 12, December 20, 2010

HYDROCEPHALUS FOUNDATION OF THE PHILIPPINES

2401 Atlanta Centre, #31 Annapolis Street, San Juan MM | 571-5065

ADVOCACY

• > Address the need of hydrocephalus patients and their families
• > Raise public awareness about the plight of indigent children affected with the disease

BENEFICIARIES

• > Indigent children with hydrocephalus

BACKGROUND

When Dr. Manny Cacdac, a Filipino neurosurgeon practicing in the United States came to the Philippines in 2007 to perform an operation on children with hydrocephalus, he found out that there were more than 20 children waiting to be shunted through public service program “Kapwa Ko Mahal Ko”. But the patients had to wait awhile. Unfortunately, time is of the essence in treating hydrocephalus. The chance of recovering from this illness is high if detected early.

From then on, Dr. Cacdac met with some Filipino friends after a surgical mission in Palawan. It was when the Hydrocephalus Foundation of the Philippines was formed. Although barely a year old, the organization has already touched the lives of children from poor families afflicted with the disease.

The organization is being managed by the following members of the Board of Trustees:  Dr. Manuel A. Cacdac, Chairman, Eduardo R. Puno, Virgilio M. Raymundo, Juan V. David, Jr. and Bernardo J.B. Mitra, Sr.

NUMBER OF PAMASKONG HANDOG BENEFICIARIES

• > 24 Children

TRIVIA

• > Dr. Manny Cacdac, Chairman of the Hydrocephalus Foundation of the Philippines, was unanimously chosen as one of the recipients of 2010 BPInoy Awards. Now on its fifth year, the prestigious award giving body recognizes outstanding Filipinos who excel in their chosen fields of discipline locally or internationally.
• > The parents of an indigent child discovered the Hydrocephalus Foundation via the social networking site, Facebook. The couple, who have been jobless for some time, could not afford the treatment and operation expenses. But their baby, barely a year old, can now live a normal life after undergoing a shunting surgery for free.
• > Approximately one of every 1,000 babies is born with hydrocephalus. It is nearly always detected at or soon after birth. Since acquired hydrocephalus develops from the primary conditions such as traumatic brain injury, brain tumor and infection, its incidence is not known.

Download PAGCOR’s 12th day of Christmas article in PDF format.

Video Link:

PAGCOR’s 12th Day of Christmas

PAGCOR’s 12 Days of Christmas

Other Links:

• PAGCOR’s “Pamaskong Handog 2010 Project”
• PAGCOR’s 12 Days of Christmas

Maricar Bautista, PAGCOR’s Assistant Vice President for Corporate Communications, said the gift-giving event will cover numerous marginalized sectors of society. “It will benefit orphans or abandoned children, the elderly, cancer patients in charity wards, deaf and mute, the disabled, mentally ill adult patients, inmates, special children, babies afflicted with medical illness like hydrocephalus, retired and wounded soldiers” she added.

PAGCOR is giving priority to institutions that are not receiving much help. “Many centers are already blessed with generous benefactors, but there are many more lacking or needing help. Our goal is to reach out to these less known charitable institutions in the hope that we can also help generate awareness and support or backing for their advocacies,” Bautista said.

According to Bautista, the charitable centers will get a donation in kind from PAGCOR worth P50,000 to P100,000 which will be for the long-term use of the center. “The institutions were asked about their wish list and PAGCOR will grant them, depending on the needs of the center and the individuals under their care,” she said.

On the 12th day of Christmas, December 20, PAGCOR will pledge via the Foundation to assist the 24 children suffering from hydrocephalus – to help defray cost for their treatment.

Video Link:

• PAGCOR’s 12 Days of Christmas
• PAGCOR’s 12th Day of Christmas

Other Links:

• PAGCOR’s “Pamaskong Handog 2010 Project”
• PAGCOR’s 12th Day of Christmas
• PAGCOR’s 12 Days of Christmas

Chairman Dr. Manny Cacdac & Exec. Director Bernardo J.B. Mitra, Sr. of HFP
The Movers and Shakers of HFP

Last year’s awardees include Ms. Cristeta Pasia-Comerford, the first female and the first Asian Executive Chef for the White House, Dr. Eli Remolona of the Bank for International Settlement (BIS) and famous painter, Mrs. Anita Magsaysay-Ho.

Dr. Manuel A. Cacdac graduated from the University of Sto. Tomas and finished his residency in Neurological Surgery at the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. After finishing a fellowship in Microsurgery at the same institution, he joined the United States Navy as Asst. Chief of Neurosurgery at the Naval Hospital Boston during the height of the Vietnam conflict. He provided neurosurgical care to casualties of the war, all military personnel and their dependents in the Northeast, encompassing six States. After his stint in the military, he joined a multi-specialty clinic in Western Kentucky for 2 years then relocated his practice in Terre Haute, lndiana in 1975 up to the present.

He has served as Chief of Surgery and Chief of Staff at The Terre Haute Regional Hospital. He was a member of the IUMED Faculty of Medicine, lndiana State Campus, as Associate Clinical Professor from the mid 70′s to the mid 90′s. He is a member of the lndiana Neurosurgical Society and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. He is also a fellow of the International College of Surgeons. He served as Past President of the Phil. Medical Association of New York, and New Jersey. Past President of the lndiana Phil. Medical Association, Past President of the Society of Philippine Neurosurgeons in America, Past President and present Convention Chairman, and one of the Surgical, Mission Team Leaders of the Society of Philippine Surgeons in America (SPSA).

For all his outstanding achievements in the field of medicine, he is most recognized for his humanitarian endeavors in the Philippines.  He has been involved with the SPSA surgical missions to the Philippines since the early 90′s organizing, procuring supplies and asking for donations. The surgical team usually performs 300 to 500 surgeries each trip. Dr. Cacdac’s special project is the shunting of hydrocephalic children in the Philippines. Besides operating on these children during the SPSA surgical mission, he procures donation of VP shunts and goes back to the country once or twice a year to conduct the said procedures. He later formed the Hydrocephalus Foundation of the Philippines with a group of close friends who have the same interest in trying to save the lives of helpless children.

News Video link:

• GMA 7 News
• Inquirer.net News

Other links:

• Charice, brain surgeon hailed as BPInoys, Philippine Online Chronicles
• Charice & Dr Manny. Big Bank, Big Head, Big Voice, Big C, American Chronicle

• Charice & Dr Manny. Big Bank, Big Head, Big Voice, Big C, Pinoy Cinderella
  

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