Gabby Concepcion will return with an ensemble of stars for Gabay Guro’s Grand Gathering 2018, a free tribute event for teachers from all over the country this Sunday, September 23, at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The veteran actor joined the star-studded annual event last year, and will share the stage this weekend with his former loveteam partner Sharon Cuneta, along with Regine Velasquez-Alcasid, Ogie Alcasid, Martin Nievera, Jaya, Randy Santiago and Christian Bautista, among others.
“I feel good when I see the teachers’ happy faces,” Concepion said during the event’s recent press conference, adding that his mom, Lourdes Arellano Concepcion, was a former teacher. “My mom was a teacher and that’s why I feel for them. I also believe in education and the role it plays in nation-building.”
The Grand Gathering is held in time for National Teachers’ Month, which is observed every year from September 5 to October 5, under Presidential Proclamation 242. This year’s tribute event serves as the 11th anniversary celebration of Gabay Guro, the education advocacy and flagship program of PLDT-Smart Foundation that aims to honor and empower teachers nationwide.
According to Chaye Cabal-Revilla, Gabay Guro chairman, the program started in 2007, when the country’s student-to-teacher ratio was 1:90. They began with only 15 scholars who they supported through their own pockets.
Since then, the program has grown to provide over 1,300 scholarship grants through 47 partner schools, including 800 graduates—234 of which finished with honors, while 500 have passed the Licensure Examination for Teachers.
More than 40,000 educators have also benefited from Gabay Guro’s regular training programs that not only hone teaching methodologies but also values formation, personality development, emotional intelligence and spirituality.
“Honestly, I didn’t know that the program will grow as huge as this,” Cabal-Revilla said. “I think all of it happened through God’s grace because sometimes, what we provide are answered prayers for these people and their families.”
As with every year, Gabay Guro will be raffling off prizes during the Grand Gathering, which Cabal-Revilla calls as their “big thank you” to teachers who “dedicate their life to the invaluable role of educating our children.” The prizes include gift certificates, smartphones and gadgets, as well as home appliances, livelihood packages, vehicles and a new house and lot.
Cabal-Revilla shared that one past winner of the house and lot used to camp out in school with her two kids for three weeks, in a makeshift shelter made of tarpaulin, because her home got ravaged by fire.
The same package also served as a huge blessing for a couple of teachers with three kids after being booted out of their rented house. The two attended the Grand Gathering event one year as walk-in audience, and won the house-and-lot package from the general admissions section.
“It almost feels like we are being asked to course these kinds of blessings to others,” Cabal-Revilla said.
The Grand Gathering 2018 is exclusive to teachers, and admission is free.
For a chance to secure tickets, teachers may visit Gabay Guro’s official Facebook account at www.facebook.com/gabayguro, and follow its official accounts on Twitter and Instagram at @PLDTGabayGuro for updates.