Sky Team brings entertainment to survivors, shares messages of hope

MANILA, Philippines - With the intention to help bring the lives of Typhoon Yolanda survivors back to normal, Sky Cable Corporation recently set up viewing stations in various affected regions of the Visayas. Following the installation of the viewing stations, the Sky team shared their humbling experience as they reached out to those in need.

Sky was one of the first to initiate such relief efforts in the Visayas region. One of the Sky volunteers, Ruel Hechanova, shared his sense of fulfillment after helping out in Kalibo: “I feel privileged to do my part in Sky’s relief efforts via our viewing station. Somehow, through this, we have eased their pain and helped them cope with this traumatic incident,” he said.

The sacrifice of stepping out of their comfort zone was worth it, as shared by all of the volunteers.

“In Kalibo, we set up a viewing station,” said Ryan Nedruda. “We were there for four days. It was hard because there was no place to sleep so we slept in the public plaza, but that was okay because at least we brought some happiness to the people. Somebody told me, “Wow! I never expected to be able to watch the wedding of Sir Chief and Maya.”



Sky’s head of sales Edgardo Patron, who was in Tacloban, considered one of the badly hit provinces, felt grateful that he was able to witness hope, however fleeting.  “Similar to Pacquiao, we were teaching the survivors how to rise again. One survivor I talked to said it was the first time she saw her husband smile after two weeks while he was watching Pacquiao’s fight,” he shares.

In the same way, Rhoda Legita, another Sky employee who was also in Tacloban, shares, “The survivors I spoke with were so grateful for the chance to be entertained because as they said, “nangangalimtan nira it ira mga problema” (they forget their problems). In fact, on the morning of the Pacquiao fight, several survivors approached me with a worried look on their faces asking if we were going to leave them after the fight, and when I said no, we are not leaving yet, they said, ‘Hay, salamat kay amo la ini it amon kalipayan yana (thank you because this is our only source of happiness right now).”

Viewers who flocked to their viewing stations were able to catch their favorite programs such as Please Be Careful with my Heart and TV Patrol on ABS-CBN, news updates from ANC, as well as the recent Freeview of the much-awaited Pacquiao-Rios bout. Kids were all smiles when they caught their favorite programs on Cartoon Network, in spite of their situation.