Down memory lane with Pilita Corrales

MANILA, Philippines - It was a trip down memory lane for the residents of the Little Sisters of the Abandoned Elderly in San Juan, when Pilita Corrales arrived for the outreach activity of Pharex HealthCorp.

Pharex turned over maintenance medicines for hypertension and diabetes, among others,  to Mother Superior Ma. Celia Fociños for the shelter’s residents, as part of its 25th anniversary celebration. Pharex president-CEO Tomas Marcelo Agana III, along with sales and marketing VP Timmie Guillermo and corporate equity manager Abe Sia presented the donation.

Pilita indulged the residents, many of whom were her self-confessed fans, in a live performance of Kapantay ay Langit, Dahil Sa ‘Yo and Ang Tangi kong Pag-ibig, among her other hits. Still vivacious and blooming in a blue ensemble, she sang with her signature half-body bend, to cheers and applause from the audience. She also led fun games where the audience guessed the names of Filipino showbiz celebrities, or sang the next line of old songs.

But members of the audience were in for a much sweeter surprise, when Pilita was able to coax Sisters Celia and Fatima Benito to sing and dance next to her to the tune of Besame Mucho, still clad in their habit.

Pilita speaks fluent Spanish, as she was born in Cebu to a Spanish mother and Filipino-Spanish father, and had studied music in Spain. Now dubbed as a national treasure in music, she has a legendary career that spans over five decades, and is marked by multiple awards as a performer.