I was happily doing the weekly Toddler Storytime sessions at the Children’s Corner of the Cebu City Public Library when an idea crossed my mind.
What if I start out a community of caring mothers happily learning from each other?
This was sparked by the different mothers I met during the Toddler Storytime sessions. There was a nurse, a teacher, a hospitality professional who quit their jobs to become full-time mothers. I was inspired by their self sacrifice. I was also motivated to get then back into play so their expertise can be utilize for more people to learn.
So I approached Mommy Jonnah Codilla Maningo and asked her if she would be willing to give a talk on “First Aid and CPR.” Jonnah is a registered nurse. When I asked her to do this, I did not know that she is also a Red Cross volunteer. She is equipped with the knowledge and skill to share these to more people as first aid and CPR are not discussed that often.
Last June 28, Mommy Jonnah took centerstage and her talk became the launching event of Cebu Nanays for Nanays. I am grateful to the Cebu City Public Library (especially Maam Ruth Chua and Miss Brenda Dalipe) and MyJoy (special shoutout to my friend, Ingrid Espina Gamboa) for the support they extended for the first run.
We were joined by 20 parents from Barangay Capitol Site. I hope they came home with the knowledge and skill to apply during emergency situations.
We will be rolling out more learning sessions in more barangays.
On July 16, the day before the celebration of National Children’s Book Day, we will be going up to the mountain barangay of Taptap, located 40 kilometers from Cebu City for a three-in-one event we called “Food + Stories + Books.
It is unique because we will have the following segments for this visit:
- A Talk + Cooking Demo with Mrs. Louella Alix, whom I fondly call “Tita Loy.” Tita Loy will be cooking healthy dishes with ingredients which can be found in the village. Mrs. Alix is the celebrated author of “Hikay: The Culinary Heritage of Cebu” and heritage consultant of Golden Prince Hotel and Suites. I am looking forward to humbang nangka, sinabawng mais ug kamunggay, and coco burger. The audience with be mothers/parents of Day Care pupils.
- Simultaneously, the Basadours will take charge of the storytelling session with the Day Care pupils. It is an exciting session because we are celebrating National Children’s Book Day (NCBD) on July 17.
NCBD is celebrated every third Tuesday of July to commemorate the anniversary of the publication of Jose Rizal’s rendition of the folk tale ‘The Monkey and the Turtle’ in the July 1889 issue of Trubner’s Oriental Record in London. We are also celebrating Nutrition Month so the Basadours will also read a book under this theme.
- Joining us on July 16 are the wonderful people of the Cebu City Public Library led by chief librarian Rosario “Ruth” Chua. Maam Ruth will help enliven the Barangay Taptap Reading Center as they will turnover books to the barangays.
My gratitude to Golden Prince Hotel and Suites for the support they extended to us. We still need food sponsors for the children’s meals. We also need a supermarket to help us with our grocery shopping for some ingredients we need for the cooking demonstration. Please reach me at readingruffolos@gmail.com if you are interested to be our partner.
An exciting year ahead for Cebu Nanays for Nanays!
