Marian spearheads Adopt-A-Bangka project

MANILA, Philippines - The old Chinese proverb, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime,” aptly puts how Marian Rivera plans to help Yolanda survivors to get back on their feet.

Marian, in a pocket interview held last Tuesday for her latest GMA soap Carmela, shared about her spearheading the Adopt-A-Bangka project which aims to provide a source of livelihood for fellow Filipinos who were left homeless and jobless after the supertyphoon wreaked havoc in Central Philippines.

“Dong (short for Dingdong Dantes, her boyfriend) and I are focused on Yes Pinoy and Yolanda victims. In fact, we just came back from Iloilo for relief operations. Dong’s Yes Pinoy centers on the youth like yung pag-aaral nila and building classrooms. Ako lumihis ako,” Marian said. “My concern is more on the livelihood for the people, because after the relief operations, let’s say two or five months from now, we can never tell how long donations will last. So we thought of giving something that would sustain them for life and we decided to give bancas.”

GMA RTV AVP for Integrated Marketing Services Oliver Amoroso and GMA Cebu station manager Ann Marie Tan are the Kapuso actress’ partners in this endeavor. These days, the three have started campaigning for the project to raise funds. One banca, according to Marian, costs around P30,000 to P35,000. “That’s why we also need your help to make this possible.”

Yesterday, Marian did a campaign shoot to sound off the objective of the project. In her estimate, the Kapuso actress said they need to raise P30M in one area alone that has 1,000 families. They intend to make Cebu as the “first recipient” of the project.

“But I don’t want to put a pressure on myself to produce the amount so I can give bancas in an instant. Ayoko naman na ay kailangan ko agad ganito mabigay ko. We will do it gradually like let’s say we will start in 200 or 400 people first then after, ikot uli, ipon ulit and ask for donation para pag meron uli bigay ulit sa kabilang isla.”

To better identify which areas in Cebu need fishing boats the most, Marian and her team initially conducted a survey. They made a list to identify which areas should be prioritized. “Ito yung di masyado naabot ng tulong at pati kabuhayan wala talaga kasi nasira ang sagwan at bangkang gamit nila sa pangingisda kaya doon kami mag-uumpisang mamigay.”

Each banca, Marian pointed out, could last for about 20 to 30 years. “Pati mga anak pa nila magagamit pa ito na pangkabuhayan.”

What’s more, the project could also generate jobs for the other residents in the area. How? Marian said the bancas will be built by the people in the chosen area.  

And for those who will take part in the project, they will receive an update or report about the family who benefited from their donation.

Marian is hoping to launch the project in January. As of now, Marian shared that her friends have already committed to finance for 10 bancas “at sana dumami pa para mas marami ang mabigyan namin.”

On the personal front, Marian looks forward to spending Christmastime with her family. “Just like before, we go to church together.”

Asked about her and Dingdong’s Christmas celebration, Marian said she is leaving everything to her beau. “Since tapings for his show (Genesis, now on its last two weeks of airing) are over bahala na s’ya magplano. Minsan kahit walang plano alis na lang kami bigla.”

Career-wise, Marian is seeing her 2014 filled with blessings. It excites her to go back to TV acting via Carmela which will air starting Jan. 27, 2014. It also stars Alden Richards.

“It’s been nine months since I last appeared in a soap and I will also do a sitcom, masaya maraming blessings,” Marian enthused.