The 'Bodega' guy now known as Mr. Amana

Curtain-raiser:

•The John Lloyd Cruz/Bea Alonzo loveteam has once again proven its box-office draw with Miss You Like Crazy, Star Cinema’s post-Valentine offering which grossed more than P18-M nationwide when it opened last Wednesday. The movie is directed by Cathy Garcia-Molina who also directed John Lloyd and Bea’s previous starrers. John Lloyd and Bea play strangers who end up lovers after a chance meeting in a ferry.

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Like Delfin Lee, Enrico Roque is showbiz by association. It’s Delfin who donates houses and lots as prizes for winners in Willie Revillame’s Wowowee and it’s Enrico who provides the appliances from his Bodega ng Bayan.

“When a kiddie contestant tells Willie na wala silang TV sa bahay at nakikipanood lang siya sa kapitbahay, all Willie has to do is say the magic word...Enrico...and the Bodega is ready to give the poor kid a TV set,” said Cristy Fermin, good friend of the three guys. Ganyan nakilala sina Delfin at Enrico ng mga taga-showbiz.”

The Bodega (so called because, according to Enrico, it is pang-masa) has a dramatic story behind it.

One night while stranded by heavy rains with other commuters at a waiting shed on Avenida Rizal, Enrico saw a Chinese pushing his stalled car in the flood and at the same time maneuvering the steering wheel.

“He was alone and nobody was helping him,” recalled Enrico who was then working as a civil engineer (an FEU graduate) in Las Piñas. “I took pity on him. I took off my boots and helped him push his car to a dry place and fix the engine.”

They exchanged phone numbers. The Chinese, Richard Sy, turned out to be a rich businessman (importer of glassware, among other products).

“He could have been held up,” said Cristy, “mayaman kasi, eh.” Or hurt in the flood.

“One day,” said Enrico, “he invited me to his office; birthday daw niya. It turned out that he wanted to thank me.”

It was the Chinese businessman who helped Enrico put up his first Bodega in Sta. Maria, Bulacan, more than 10 years ago. Today, it has 47 outlets all over Luzon.

It was Cristy who introduced Enrico to Willie. Now, Enrico, along with Delfin, has become some kind of a “partner” of Wowowee, practically at Willie’s beck and call.

From being the “Bodega” guy, Enrico is becoming known as Mr. Amana because of Amana Water Park which he put up barely a year ago in Pandi, Bulacan, where he’s running for mayor in the May elections. It’s the same park where the talent competition of this year’s Miss Earth contest was held. The presence of the beauty queens put Pandi as the newest summer destination, no doubt a big boost to local tourism.

“I have a dream for my hometown,” said Enrico who has stopped being a “wage-earning” engineer when he ventured into the appliance business. “I want Pandi to be known not only in the Philippines but in the whole world.”

Why not? If the Miss Earth girls did, anybody can enjoy the thrills that include a 3,5000-square-meter wave pool (the largest of its kind in the Philippines) that can produce 13 different waves that feel as real as those in the ocean; a 40-foot man-made waterfalls; a 500-square-meter kiddie pool with fixed Dragon Ball characters; a picnic grove in a lush mango orchard; and amenities such as food kiosks, breezy cottages made of local materials, a souvenir shop, a Japanese-inspired convention hall, a cave-type restaurant, etc.

Coming soon: A Lazy River Ride, a Tarzan Tree House and a giant slide.

“Pandi is only 45 minutes away from Metro Manila,” said Enrico. “It’s very accessible.”

Enrico’s dream is within reach.

“When I was studying, when people heard that I came from Pandi they would ask me, ‘Saan ‘yon?’ I would say, ‘It’s the town next to Sta. Maria.’ Because it was not so well-known, ang naging apelyido ng Pandi ay ‘saan ‘yon’.”

But thanks to Enrico’s Bodega and now his Amana, Pandi will soon surely be familiar to everybody.

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