MANILA, Philippines - For many women, competing in and winning the Binibining Pilipinas beauty pageant is the culmination of a lifelong dream and serves as a big step towards a bigger career in the entertainment industry.
But to Laki Sa Gatas advocate Zorayda Ruth Andam, taking part in and being crowned Binibining Pilipinas-Universe in 2001 could be considered a “slight detour” to accomplishing a much different childhood dream: becoming a lawyer.
“I really admired the lawyers there, the way they spoke and carried themselves. From then on I aspired to become a lawyer myself,” she says.
It was also during those early years that Zora learned the value of good nutritional habits, particularly drinking milk. She says this is the reason why she advocates the Laki Sa Gatas nutrition advocacy program initiated by Bear Brand Powdered Milk Drink that encourages children to practice proper nutrition, particularly drinking milk.
It likewise holds an annual nutrition caravan that goes to different elementary schools across the country to educate kids as well as mothers and teachers about the value of good nutritional habits.
Zora says that drinking milk was a habit she formed at a very young age.
“As soon as I started going to school, we always had milk at home. Then before we go to bed we would be drinking another glass. Even when we were already sleeping and we forgot to drink our milk, my grandmother would wake us up to have a glass,” she recalls fondly.
Zora reveals that they “weren’t rich, but our mother instilled in us the importance of drinking milk.”
The Laki sa Gatas Advocate finished her elementary and high school studies in Baguio City as valedictorian and first honorable mention, respectively. She then graduated cum laude as a Bachelor of Science in Business Economics at the University of the Philippines in Diliman.
While studying law at UP, Zora also worked as a technical assistant for a management consultancy firm. Describing her work as like that of a junior economist, she explains that she did project feasibility studies for commercial and industrial development projects. Being output-based meant that she was allowed to attend her night classes, but it was still a very difficult balancing act for the self-supporting law student.
“My first two years were such a struggle, because I had to balance my time between study and work. On one hand, my team and I had a heavy workload at the company, and we were accountable to our clients. We had to give them excellent output. In a few extreme cases, I would head back to our office to beat some deadlines after my 9 pm class,” she says.
The Laki Sa Gatas Advocate adds that they were combing through some 30 cases a day, “so I needed to be very focused to be able to maintain excellent grades.”
Keeping her health in check
Zora credits her foundation of good nutritional habits for helping her get through all the exhausting work, adding that “everyone needs to invest in their health.”
“That’s why people sometimes say I’m like ‘superwoman’ because I don’t get sick very often even when I don’t get enough rest. It was because I was able to take care of my health by eating the proper, nutritious foods — a habit that I acquired as a kid. I like to eat vegetables, take milk, and other foods that would help me stay healthy. And I don’t recall ever being hospitalized—I’ve never been confined my whole life. I have always been a very spirited and lively person,” she reveals.
In the midst of her third year in law school, Zora joined the Binibining Pilipinas beauty pageant. She had to take a year-long leave of absence from school to be able to prepare for the competition. It was hard for Andam to choose between participating in a once in a lifetime opportunity-the pageant-and fulfilling her lifelong dream. Eventually she chose the former, but vowed to return to law school “with a vengeance” when it was over.
Keeping milk in her diet
To this day, Zora says that drinking milk is still an important part of her diet. She never fails to get her daily dose of milk, whether it be as an addition to her breakfast cereal, or drinking it straight from the glass. Considering how nutritious milk is, she encourages children to do the same.
“Drinking milk is also habit-forming, so if you get used to it at a young age you’ll still be looking for it even when you’re an adult, like I do,” she says.
Nowadays, Zora’s typical day as a litigation lawyer in the ACCRA law firm consists of hearings in the morning and in the afternoon, preparing witnesses for the cases, as well as handling tons of paperwork.
Zora admits that “my work now is actually five times harder than during law school. I have to read and study more than ever. And as a lawyer, you would want to raise the bar with every case you work on.”
“But it is very rewarding for me to be able to do what I love. As long as I can stay healthy and keep my body well-nourished, I would have no problems keeping up,” she concludes.