LG Announces the Winners of the LG Ambassador Challenge

Over the past few months, LG Electronics Philippines (LGEPH) has been collecting entries for the first ever local iteration of the LG Ambassador Challenge. The initiative, which was started with Korea Friends of Hope International (KFHI), is a first in the Philippines and affirms LG’s commitment to help deliver sustainable growth to local communities in the country. After reviewing all the entries, LG selected ‘Ride for Hope’ by Bahay Aruga and ‘Roof for Siargao’ by Red Charity Gala.

MAIN PHOTO OPTION 1. (L-R) Taeho Lee, KFHI Country Manager, Josefino B. Bonilla,  Bahay Aruga Director, Viana Joan B. Mata, Bahay Aruga Corporate Secretary, Sungjae Kim,  LGEPH Managing Director, Kerry Tinga with Kaye Tinga, Red Charity Gala Co-Founder, Young Park, LGEPH Product Director for Air Solutions 

MAIN PHOTO OPTION 2. (L-R) Taeho Lee, KFHI Country Manager, Josefino B. Bonilla,  Bahay Aruga Director, Viana Joan B. Mata, Bahay Aruga Corporate Secretary, Sungjae Kim, LGEPH Managing Director, Kerry Tinga with Kaye Tinga, Red Charity Gala Co-Founder, Young Park, LGEPH Product Director for Air Solutions 

Bahay Aruga (BA), which was founded in 2014, is a free halfway house for Pediatric Cancer patients of Philippine General Hospital (PGH). Most of the children need to be in PGH every week because of their long-term treatment, but the predicament they are facing is that they don’t have a place to stay here in Manila. Hence, the halfway house was born. There are many cases where patients and parents sleep on the sidewalk of the hospital to wait for the patients’ next check-up and treatment. Sadly, many of them abandoned their treatment because of financial hardship. This is how the Bahay Aruga came into life. As endorsed by the Oncology department of PGH, patients with their parents or carer are fully accommodated at BA for free. These patients are given utmost consideration to make their stay comfortable, as cancer treatments can often be difficult and at times mind-boggling in terms of mentally, emotionally, financially, and otherwise. Recently, the matriarch of BA and who conceptualized the halfway house, Marietta Bonilla, passed away due to COVID-19. During these uncertainties, a family member made an assurance to its residents that BA will remain operating. The distance to PGH however, is still quite far  and with Manila traffic and medical emergencies, every minute counts. The Ride for Hope project’s aim is to procure a new ambulance for the kids who need immediate medical response. Receiving the grant is Josefino B. Bonilla, one of Bahay Aruga’s directors ‘The daily battle of patients and carers are endless, but with the Ride For Hope project, and the new ambulance that we will be able to use, life will be more convenient and better for the pediatric cancer patients. Thank you, LG and KFHI for this program’. 

‘RIDE FOR HOPE’ by BAHAY ARUGA. (L-R) Taeho Lee – KFHI Country Manager, Josefino B. Bonilla – Bahay Aruga Director, Viana Joan B. Mata – Corp.  Secretary of Bahay Aruga, Sungjae Kim – LGEPH Managing Director, Young Park – LGEPH Product Director for Air Solutions 

Red Charity Gala (RCG) was started in 2009 by chairpersons Tessa Valdes and Kaye Tinga whose objectives have been to raise funds for numerous beneficiaries through the celebration of Philippine fashion. In the last 11 years, they were able to raise over 30 million that have been distributed to Philippine Red Cross, Gifts & Graces, and Assumption HS 81 Foundation, among others. These funds have been used for relief efforts and community building in several provinces across the country. With the onset of the covid pandemic in 2020, their mission was put on hold. Jordan Valdes has also been a fixture in RCG events and witnessed the generosity of its organizers, guests, and donors, making RCG the most awaited fashion charity event over the last decade. She was living in Siargao for six months when Typhoon Odette hit the province in December 2021. Having seen first-hand the destruction to her second home, it became apparent that her kind-heartedness, generosity, and her exposure with RCG equipped her to launch her own fundraising for those whose lives were affected by the typhoon. She initially asked for donations from her family and friends from Manila and all over the world to provide food & supplies for the typhoon victims. Two months after the storm, Jordan saw that there is still a lot to do for Siargao. In February, she went back to Manila in the hopes that she can raise more funds to help the communities in Siargao. Thus, the RCG Roof for Siargao project was born. As RCG evolves, they go back to the core of bringing people together: it is about giving hope, sharing our blessings, and empowering people to rebuild their lives. Ms Kaye Tinga, RCG co-founder was grateful to LG when she attended the awarding, ‘The opportunity for Jordan Valdes to be chosen as an LG Ambassador can inspire young people to take the initiative to help improve other people’s lives. We thank LG for giving us, Red Charity Gala, a unique opportunity to make a difference’. 

‘ROOF FOR SIARGAO’ by RED CHARITY GALA (L-R) Taeho Lee – KFHI Country Manager,  Kerry Tinga with Kaye Tinga, Co-Founder of Red Charity Gala, Sungjae Kim – LGEPH Managing Director, Young Park – LGEPH Product Director for Air Solutions

LG Philippines Managing Director Sungjae Kim shares his excitement about the two winners of the pioneer program “The LG Ambassador Program is the first in the Philippines and a part of LG’s commitment to help Filipinos through social contribution activities that deliver sustainable growth to local communities. We, together with Korea Friends of Hope International, want to become arbiters of change and to help communities blossom. These two programs, Ride for Hope and Roof for Siargao, are both in line with our brand values under an overarching vision that seeks to achieve a better life for all. We stand behind their vision and we want to see more of what they can accomplish with this win.”.