Women took center stage during the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration Regional Welfare Office-Cordillera 2022 “Marilag Award” held recently.
Leading the awardees is bookshop proprietor Maricar Docyogen who won the 2022 Marilag Award Outstanding Women Leader. She will be Cordillera’s nominee for the national award.
A former overseas Filipino worker in Saudi Arabia, Docyogen owns the “Bookends Bookshop” in Baguio City, which advocates developing the habit of reading among Filipinos, especially the younger generation.
She also founded the Pasakalye Group of Artists to help members promote their works and help popularize Cordilleran arts.
Docyogen is also a member of the Baguio-Benguet OFW Association and an Outstanding Women Leader of Baguio City awardee in 2020.
For the Marilag Women Entrepreneur category, the awardee is Geralda Santoile of Hungduan, Ifugao.
A former OFW in Kuwait, she put up a lodging business named Pedracta Hotel from her earnings as migrant worker.
The Women Frontliner Category awardee is Galiza Rose Agwilang from La Trinidad, Benguet, a former English teacher in Thailand.
For the OWWAnian Frontliner Category, the awardee is Liezl Felix who exemplifies hard work and passion in delivering OWWA programs and services for 24 years and counting.
An institutionalized event of OWWA, the Marilag Award aims to recognize the changes introduced or contributions of women OFWs and OWWA employees as leaders, entrepreneurs, and frontliners.
OWWA-Cordillera Supervising Administrative Officer Edgar Melchor Laigo and Program and Services Division Chief Lourdes Estocapio; Department of Labor and Employment Assistant Regional Director Anthony Wooden, Jr.; Commission on Population Regional Director Magdalena Abellera; and Baguio Councilor Lilia Fariñas led in recognizing the awardees.
The nominees for the Marilag Award categories were screened by the Regional Screening and Selection Committee chaired by Marlene de Castro of Baguio Center for Young Adults, Fe Dumaguen of Episcopal Diocese of North-Central Philippines, and Benguet Public Employment Service Officer Julie Tabcao. – Carlito C. Dar
July 27, 2024
