Carmina a hands-on mom

Some people might be wondering why Carmina Villarroel has accepted the offer to be a co-host of De Belen sisters Janice and Gelli in the GMA mid-morning show SIS (Monday through Friday, 10:30 to 11:30) barely three weeks after Janice herself quit co-hosting the GMA Sunday show S-Files so she could devote weekends to her children.

"Even with SIS," Carmina told Funfare, "my schedule isn’t really so tight as to take precious time away from my twins. I have only one other show, NUTS Entertainment, and my time is carefully managed, with my twins as top priority."

The twins, Maverick Peter and Maria Cassandra, are three-and-a-half-years old and enrolled at the Bright Sparks Kindergarten School near where Carmina and family (with partner Zoren Legaspi) live.

"Hatid-sundo ko ang mga anak ko," said Carmina. "I make sure of that. They are at a stage when they’re growing up fast at naghahanap na ng attention. Zoren and I spend as much time as we can with our twins." (Zoren is busy with the new GMA tele-fantasya Mulawin which premieres tonight, replacing the just-concluded Hanggang Kailan.)

Carmina, who starts her stint as permanent co-host of SIS today, tapes for SIS and NUTS on Thursdays when SIS is telecast "live" so she’s a plain housewife the rest of the week. But starting tomorrow, she’ll be shooting 13 episodes as the alternate host of All About You (also on GMA) which starts airing second week of August.

Asked when she and Zoren are getting married, Carmina said that their first priority is to build their dream house.

"As of now, we haven’t talked about marriage yet, but it will come in due time."

Incidentally, Carmina just shrugged off her alleged feud with Ara Mina which must have been sparked a year ago when Ara, according to Carmina, got jealous of her over Ara’s boyfriend Jomari Yllana.

"Maybe Ara didn’t know that Jomari and I are close, like brother and sister, ever since our Palibhasa Lalaki days."

Now, would Carmina welcome Ara if she shows up as guest on SIS?

"Kung maggi-guest siya," said Carmina, emphasizing the kung.

Willie’s Wish For The Barrettos

Two days before he appeared on national television yesterday to clarify his involvement in the worsening Barretto family feud – Gretchen on one side and sisters Claudine, Marjorie and Barretto matriarch Inday on the other side – Willie Revillame met with movie writers at the Universal Records office for his first Audio/VCD album, Ikaw Ang #1. It was inevitable for Willie not to touch on the Barretto issue.

Simply put, Willie said that he wasn’t "the root cause" of the Barretto war because, in the first place, it was not Gretchen who got him into ABC 5 as host of the game show Puso o Pera but the show’s producer (iVentures, in cooperation with the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office).

It seemed that Dennis Padilla, the beloved of Marjorie Barretto and Willie’s former co-host on the ABS-CBN noontime show MTB, resented it when Gretchen assured Willie, after he was terminated in December last year as MTB host, not to lose hope because she would help him get into ABC (co-owned by Gretchen’s beloved Tonyboy Cojuangco).

Dennis suspected Willie to be behind his own termination as MTB host, a minor issue which, according to Willie, he had already cleared with Dennis.

"Wala akong kinalaman sa away-away nila," said Willie. "I think malalim ang ugat ng away nila."

Suffice it to say that what started as a molehill turned into a monstrous mountain of controversy that has brutally divided the Barrettos.

"It was a family issue that should have been kept within the family," said Willie. "Maliit na bagay na pinabayaang lumaki, a case of misunderstanding and miscommunication. My only wish is for them to iron things out among themselves for the sake of peace in the family."

Willie himself is at peace with himself and the world, including his three love children – Meryll Soriano who’s doing well in her career, with Becbec Martinez (sister of Maricel Soriano), a second by another woman and a third by still another woman.

"Except for the second daughter," said Willie, "I’m supporting my two other daughters. ’Yung second kasi, may kaya ang mom at ayaw tumanggap ng support."

Besides Puso o Pera and playing golf in his free time, Willie is busy with his recording career which was kicked off by his post-MTB Pito Pito album (also by Universal Records). The Ikaw Ang #1 album is accompanied by a VCD in which Willie co-stars with Juliana Palermo, Rachel Piazza and his Puso o Pera co-host Patricia Javier. (His other co-host, Maui Taylor, might be junked from the show after she guested on the GMA show Extra Challenge aired on the same timeslot.)

Ikaw Ang #1 was specially composed for Willie by Vehnee Saturno. Another song on the album is Sabi Ko (I Luv U, I Luv U 2), a duet with Ethel Booba composed by Lito Camo (of Pito Pito fame).

Novena, Masses For St. Philomena

Here’s a reminder for devotees of St. Philomena (including Jun Banaag, host of the DZMM radio program Dr. Love).

St. Philomena, Virgin and Martyr, will be honored during her feast on Aug. 11 at the Santuario de Santa Philomena, the only one in the Philippines, at the Most Holy Redeemer Parish, Malac-Inaman Sts., Masambong, San Francisco Del Monte, Quezon City, with Novena-Masses from Aug. 2 to 10, 6 p.m. and a procession on Sunday, Aug. 8, at 4 p.m.

Theme for this year’s celebration is: Saint Philomena, Victim of the Love of Christ.

The parish, headed by Rev. Fr. Jojo Zerrudo, and the National Center of the Living Rosary, are combining their efforts to make this year’s festivities another success.

The Parish can be reached at telephone numbers 365-1011 and 412-3560. The phone at The Center, located at 430 Mayon St., Quezon City is 0918-5470605 (text only).

The relic of St. Philomena will be venerated after the Novena-Masses and on her feast day.

Masses will be at 6 a.m., 9 a.m., 12 noon and 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 11.

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