The hubby and I were invited last Thursday to a gathering over dinner in connection with the Tulay Program, a partnership of Microsoft and Blas Ople Foundation that provides free computer classes for OFWs and their dependents. As ministers, this venture is an encouragement to both me and Jeff. After all the negativities of our society and the current situation that can really gripe our senses into hopelessness, if we dwell on it, the existence of such program can really be a refreshing one. Apparently, the project dates back to 2003 and now they have launched they it across the country, even overseas to reach out to Filipinos working abroad.
with fellow bloggers, graduates of the program, trainers and a couple of media people from Inquirer.net
The hubby and I were given the opportunity to meet with a few of their pioneers who graduated from the program. The first that told us her story was Elisa Moran, she used to be an OFW based in the Middle East and she is now a queen of her very own business which started last year. It was a blessing to know that at 60 years old she unraveled the path of technology starting from scratch. I went giddy when she went excited over announcing she now has her own Facebook account, which I found really groovy. 😉 These social networking sites aren’t just for the youngsters, you know. The program emphasizes the importance of the knowledge of OFW families to know how to go about communicating via the internet. This will save the families a lot of money instead of going by the traditional overseas calls.
Lilybeth Deronia and Lola Buhay Tan
I was the most fascinated by Lola Buhay Tan’s story. She is also a graduate of the program and she is 80 years old! She is a living proof that the saying “Old dogs can’t learn new tricks” is a total fallacy. What ultimately motivated this sweet lady to acquire the computer skills that she now has is the hope that she will be able to communicate with her nine children. Some of her children are based in the United States, Middle East and Europe. And mind you, she also has her very own Facebook account. What an encouragement.
with Laurie Mae Moreno, PR Manager of Microsoft Phils.
