Long before President Barrack Obama chanted his slogan ‘Change We Can Believe In,’ Efren Penaflorida, also known as Kuya Ef, has been building lives of children in dump sites and squatter areas with his group, the Dynamic Teen Company (DTC), with their motto, “We are the Change.”
Kuya Ef is a finalist among the Top Ten CNN Heroes of 2009, under the category, “Championing Children.” The yearly competition extols extraordinary deeds of ordinary citizens from all over the world.
The top CNN Hero who will get the most online votes will be named “CNN Hero of the Year”, and shall be awarded S100,000 and will be recognized during the “CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute,” to be hosted by Anderson Cooper, airing on November 26, at 9PM Eastern Time at CNN.
“Efren Peñaflorida is a shining example of how we can all touch the lives of others with our sense of selflessness. What his group has accomplished with their meager resources drives us to reflect how we – who are blessed with better opportunities – can do so much more,” said Ace Durano, Secretary of Tourism.
“Truly, Kuya Ef puts a bright spot on the Philippines, as a Filipino who brings volunteerism to an all new meaning to people all over the world,” added Eduardo Jarque, Jr., Tourism Undersecretary for Planning and Promotions.
For the past 12 years, Peñaflorida led the DTC with its aim to bring education closer to the impoverished children, though the Kariton Klasrum, (pushcart classroom), a mobile classroom stocked with books, pens, tables and chairs, holding lectures in unconventional places such as public cemeteries and municipal dumpsites. Read the rest of this entry »