180 Houses In Balili, La Trinidad Painted To Produce A Giant Artwork

The town of La Trinidad in Benguet is living up to its new moniker as the Valley of Colors with the scheduled unveiling of the StoBoSa Hillside Homes Artwork tomorrow (June 23). Inspired by the favela paintings in Brazil, the art project aims to transform three sitios of barangay Balili - Stone Hill, Botiwtiw, Sadjap - into a giant work of art. Initiated by the Department of Tourism: Cordillera Administrative Region under the leadership of Regional Director Marie Venus Q. Tan, the project started to roll in January of this year. As of this writing, about 180 houses have already been painted. Although the project will be unveiled tomorrow, the organizers and volunteers still need around two months to complete it.

Several agencies, groups, and organizations collaborated for the realization of the ambitious project. Davies Paints Philippines, Inc. provided all of the paints for free. A thousand gallons of primer paints and five-hundred gallons of colored paints were already used. This is not to mention the 1,300 gallons that are yet to be used. That's a total of 2,800 gallons of paint. Valred Olsim, Tourism Officer of La Trinidad, estimates that Davies Paints donated about two million pesos worth of paint for the project.

The concept for the final look of the artwork was designed and provided by the Tam-awan Village Artists Group headed by Jordan Mang-osan. The group also assisted in making sure that the design is followed and implemented. For its part, the town of La Trinidad provided the scaffolding, paint brushes, paint rollers, thinners, and other materials used in the implementation of the project. Officers of the Department of Tourism served as the lead coordinators in moving the project forward.

Residents of Balili and volunteers from various groups did the dirty work of painting the houses. There's Gloria Agasen who led the Balili community and there's Chris Alangdeo, the chief painter. Volunteer organizations that lend a hand in the project include the Boy Scouts of the Philippines (Benguet Chapter), NSTP students from the Benguet State University, NSTP students from the King's College of the Philippines, the Botiwtiw Women's Brigade and Organization, the Baguio-Benguet Photographers Hikers and Artists Club, and police trainees from the Philippine National Police: Cordillera Administrative Region. Free meals and snacks were provided for the painters and volunteers by Cara Cosalan.

Image credit: Department of Tourism - Cordillera Administrative Region

Cordilleran MMA Fighter Eric Kelly To Headline "Dynasty Of Champions" In China

Eric Kelly, a mixed martial arts fighter who hails from the town of Kapangan in Benguet, will fly to China before this month ends, to acclimate in preparation for his July 2 fight against Jadamba Narantungalag (a solidly-built warrior from Mongolia) at the Hefei Olympic Sports Centre. The two combatants will be the main event of a stacked fight card dubbed Dynasty of Champions. A win in the highly-anticipated bout will propel the victor a step closer towards the jackpot - a chance to wrest the ONE Championship featherweight belt currently wrapped around the waist of a scary Russian submission specialist named Marat Gafurov.

This contest is a must-win for Kelly and he has to win convincingly if he wants to be considered for that elusive title shot. This is even more highlighted by the fact that Kelly lost his last fight. He was submitted via a guillotine choke by Ev Ting last January. Prior to the loss against Ting, Kelly gathered three straight wins over Jianbo Lu, Rob Lisita, and Hiroshige Tanaka. Had he won the bout against Ting, it would have been very difficult for the ONE Championship to deny him a title shot. It's worth mentioning here that Kelly was once considered to fight Narantungalag for the title but things didn't go as planned.

Narantungalag ended up losing his belt in his first defense against Marat Gafurov. The tough Mongolian quickly rebounded with a good win over Kotetsu Boku. Gafurov is currently not penciled for an upcoming fight so there's a chance that the winner between Kelly and Narantungalag could get another go at the title. The ONE Championship featherweight division is a thin one. There are only a few names on the division who could be named as contenders. They include Ting and Rob Lisita.

ONE Championship

The other bouts in the card are as follows: Li Kai Wen vs Keanu Subba, Aleksei Butorin vs Aung La N Sang, Ze Wu vs Xiaoliang Zheng, Roger Huerta vs Ariel Sexton, Ann Osman vs Haiat Farag Youssef, Zhang You Liang vs Tang Ren Xing, Wan Jian Ping vs Bu Huo You Ga, and Li Hao Jie vs Maimai Tituo Heti.

BENECO Notice Of Scheduled Power Interruptions From June 20 To 24

June 20, Monday, 9 am to 5 pm: Near Dontogan Barangay Hall and Purok 7, Dontogan, Baguio City

June 21, Tuesday, 9 am to 5 pm: Daisy Lane - Central Fairview, Sunflower Street - Interior Quezon Hill, Near Philippine Science High School and parts of Purok 12 - Irisan, Baguio City; Parts of Midas, Aleb, Gold Creek, Maligaya - Itogon

June 22, Wednesday, 9 am to 5 pm: Campo Sioco - Ferdinand Barangay, parts of Km. 4 - Asin Road, Springhills Loakan - Apugan, Tangerine Lane, Avelino Extension - Fairview, Baguio City

June 23, Thursday, 9 am to 5 pm: parts of San Vicente, Sto. Nino, Bengao - Bakakeng Central, Baguio City

June 24, Friday, 9 am to 5 pm: parts of Tebteb, Balili and parts of Pines Park, Lubas, La Trinidad; parts of Pucsusan, Baguio City; parts of Botiwtiw, Km. 3, La Trinidad

BENECO Notice Of Scheduled Power Interruptions From June 13 To 17

June 13, Monday, 9 am to 5 pm - Purok 7, San Luis Extension, Baguio City; Purok 7, Pinsao Pilot Project, Baguio City; Pleasantville, Guisad Surong, near INC, Baguio City; Upper Ambiong, La Trinidad

June 14, Tuesday, 9 am to 5 pm - Dampingan, Loacan, Itogon; Purok 7, Sunnyside, Fairview, Baguio City; Terry Court, Suello Village, Baguio City

June 15, Wednesday, 9 am to 5 pm - Campo Sioco, Ferdinand Barangay, Baguio City; Acop, Tublay; Delos Reyes Street, Outlook Drive, Baguio City; Corner Military Cut-off, DepEd, SPED, Baguio City

June 16, Thursday, 9 am to 5 pm - Lasong, Nangalisan, Batuan, Penged, Apni, Lumes, San Pascual, Tarong, Tuba, Coplo, Mangi, Sablan

June 17, Friday, 9 am to 5 pm - Parts of Riverside, Central Guisad, Baguio City; Parts of Purok 3, Km. 4 Asin Road, Baguio City

Bauko Women Get Support From SLU LAW, U.S. Embassy

By Kurt Paul G. Bagayao

Five associations of Women Farmers from Bauko, Mt. Province attended a three-day seminar on Business start-ups as their alternative source of livelihood and were briefed about their rights as Women on key gender sensitivity issues thru the initiative of the Saint Louis University’s School of Law-Chief Justice Manuel V. Moran Community Legal Assistance Office and the United States Embassy last June 3-5, 2016 at Garden Breeze Hotel at Buguias, Benguet.

Dubbed as “Business Start-up and Maintenance Workshop with Gender and Development Training”, some 42 representatives of the associations came to join the seminar-workshop. The said Legal Aid Clinic, tapped the services of Lorraine Ngaosi- Entrepreneurship Educators’ Association of the Philippines member and an Entrepreneurship professor of Saint Louis University, to provide the lecture-workshop which centered on starting alternative sources of income related to gardening and maintaining cash in-flow for their respective associations.

Atty. Jennifer Asuncion spoke on “Gender and Development in the Context of Cordilleran Indigenous Peoples” and the Violence Against Women and their Children Act (RA 9262), focusing on the crucial role of women on community-building.

The three-day event culminated with the receiving of Php 80,000.00 grant for each association provided by the United States Embassy, Manila which will be used for alternative business start-ups that include Arabica Coffee production, Mushroom production, and the children’s wear making. The representatives Women’s Associations include: Mount Data Kataguan Womens Association (MDKWA), Sadsadan Advocate on Social Development Organization Inc. (SASDO), Ampasit Women’s Organization (AWO), Aweng Di Ampasit, and St. Bede. Mushroom and Vegetable Growers Association (SBMVGA). Arsenia Addon, Secretary to Bauko Mayor Abraham Akilit, said that this seminar was “timely and crucial as the fourth-class municipality has a 63.5% poverty incidence which the Local Government seeks to address.

The CJ Moran Community Legal Assistance Office, the Saint Louis University School of Law’s Legal Aid Clinic, is the only school-based Legal Aid Clinic in Northern Luzon that provides free legal services to indigents as well as support to various community needs in Cordillera and the rest of Luzon.

BENECO Notice Of Scheduled Power Interruptions From June 6 To 10

June 6, Monday, 9 am to 5 pm - Sitio Cruz, Ampucao, Itogon; Tangerine Lane, Avelino Extension, Fairview, Baguio City

June 7, Tuesday, 9 am to 5 pm - Lower Dagsian, Baguio City; Purok 7, San Luis Extension, Baguio City; Saklit Village, San Luis, Baguio City; Relay Stations, Sto. Tomas, Cabuyao, Tuba; Parts of Legarda Road near Himaya Spa and Pines View Hotel, Baguio City

June 8, Wednesday, 9 am to 5 pm - Inside Teachers Camp, Baguio City; Parts of AZCKO Barangay, near Rizal Monument, Baguio City

June 9, Thursday, 9 am to 5 pm - Saint Joseph Village, Navy Base, Baguio City; Purok 7, Malaya, Dominican, Baguio City; Kaligayahan Road, Km 3, Asin Road, Baguio City

June 10, Friday, 9 am to 5 pm - Near Dontogan Barangay Hall, Dontogan, Baguio City; Betwag Acop, Caponga, Tublay

Here's The Updated Calendar Of Events For The Gotad Ad Ifugao 2016 Festival

The province of Ifugao will be celebrating its annual Gotad ad Ifugao Festival in commemoration of its 50th founding anniversary this coming June 12th until the 18th. The festival has the theme Haggiyo Ifugao. Below is the schedule and calendar events as released by the festival's organizers.

Date	Time	Event	Venue
June 11	6:00 am	Biking Event Contest	Starts and ends at Capitol Plaza
June 12	8:30 am	Gotad Thanksgiving Mass	St. Mary Magdalene Church
June 12	6:00 pm	Inter-Faith Program	LCS Gymnasium
June 13	8:00 am	Civic Parade	Capitol Plaza
June 13	9:00 am	Opening Program	Capitol Plaza
June 13	10:00 am	Opening of Indigenous Culinary Arts Competition	DBHS Upper Grounds
June 13	2:00 pm	OFW Forum	SP Hall, 3rd Floor, Capitol
June 13	7:00 pm	Grand Gotad Ball	St. Mary Magdalene Parish Ground
June 14	8:00 am	Opening of Agri-Industrial Trade Fair	Lagawe Central School Ground
June 14	8:00 am	Opening of Statistical Extravaganza and Photo Exhibit	Capitol Atrium
June 14	1:00 pm	Performing Arts Winners Exhibition, Demonstration of Ethnic Skills Winners and Judging of Baya Entries	Ifugao Native Village
June 14	7:00 pm	Search for Bugan ya Wigan di Gotad 2016: Pre-pageant Night	Capitol Plaza
June 15	8:00 am	School of Living Traditions Dakdakan di Daulon and Muntuknul Contest	Ifugao Native Village
June 15	10:00 am	Film Showing of Ifugao History	DBHS Auditorium
June 15	1:00 pm	Ifugao Development Symposium	SP Hall, 3rd Floor, Capitol Building
June 15	7:00 pm	Musical Cultural Theatre Festival	LCS Open Gymnasium
June 16	8:00 am	Cultural Sports Competition	Capitol Plaza
June 16	8:00 am	Arrival of Marathon in G-Strings	Capitol Lobby
June 16	7:00 pm	Coronation Night of Bugan ya Wigan di Gotad 2016	Capitol Plaza
June 17	8:00 am	Float Contest: MLGU and Open Category	Assembly at National Highway in Front of Cawal-o’s Store, Dullagan
June 17	8:00 am	Opening of Public Services: Job Fair, PRC Licensing, Free Legal Services	Don Bosco High School Grounds and Parish Hall
June 17	10:00 am	Quiz Bee on Ifugao Culture and History	Capitol Plaza
June 17	1:00 pm	Cultural Extravaganza Contest	Capitol Plaza
June 18	8:00 am	Grand Cultural Parade	Assembly at the national highway in front of Camp Dunuan going towards DPWH
June 18	10:30 am	Grand Gotad Program	Capitol Plaza
June 18	12 noon	Community Lunch/Punhidaan	Capitol Plaza
June 18	2:00 pm	Closing Program	Capitol Plaza

Image credit: Beyond Neon via Flickr

Benguet State University Declared As A National Historical Site By The NHCP

Benguet State University (BSU), one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the Cordillera region, has been declared as a historical site by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP). The university announced this recent development on their official Facebook page.

In order for a place to be considered a historic site, it must possess demonstrable historical significance and that it should be at least 50 years old and 70% authentic. This is according to the NHCP as put forth in the document entitled "Guidelines on the Identification, Classification, and Recognition of Historic Sites and Structures in the Philippines" which you can read in its entirety here.

Sites and structures identified as historic by the commission will receive support, protection, and assistance from the NHCP. These would include the following:

1) The NHCP shall prioritize technical assistance projects in the order of historical significance and the urgency of the need for conservation or restoration.

2) Requests that provide counterpart support shall also be given priority as such support demonstrates the commitment of the local partner to maintain the historic site/structure.

3) Technical assistance shall consist of feasibility studies, architectural, structural, and other technical plans and drawings.

4) The NHCP shall provide such assistance after a mutually acceptable memorandum of agreement is reached by and between it and the requesting party/proponent.

5) Subject to the availability of funds, the NHCP may, in addition, finance the restoration, protection, improvement or development of declared historic sites and structures. [Source: NHCP]

BSU was established as a primary school in 1916 and was called the Trinidad Farm School. It had several name-changes since then. It was converted into a chartered state university in 1986. Now, it boasts of eight colleges, a graduate school, two institutes, and an open university. Aside from its main campus in La Trinidad, the university also has two satellite campuses located in the towns of Buguias and Bokod.