Thursday, August 28, 2014

BOLINAO 52 TAKES ON A LIFE OF ITS OWN




In December 2013, as I traveled to Toronto, Canada to attend a fundraiser for Filipino victims of typhoon Haiyan, I met a woman at Vietnamese Toronto Association who came from the region of Pagansinan. Her name is Lorna Tabulao.  She was very moved by the documentary, so she decided to raise some money and go back to Bolinao and helped the people there, especially Caloy Caagusan who rescued the Bolinao 52. 

That was then.  Nine months later, I came back to Toronto to show another documentary I directed called STATELESS.  Lorna came to the 1st screening with her husband.  They sat down and watched the film. She also brought a photo album from her trip to Bolinao in April.  She also gave me some digital copies. I thought I would share these with you.
Lorna addressed the audience.
Caloy Caagusan stood in the audience.
Caloy in front of the audience.
Lorna introduced Caloy.
The beach where the Bolinao 52 landed.
Lorna and her husband went to Bolinao in April to show the film to the villagers. They also gave gifts to Caloy and the audience.  For many good reasons, I'm so happy that it was Lorna who took the initiative to revisit Bolinao and reached out to Caloy and not me.  With her action, we now realize the power and potential of Bolinao 52.  I'm truly convinced that powerful story telling can make people do wonderful things.  But it is people's great doing that makes powerful stories.

Now let's see what other magical things can Bolinao 52 bring.