Verde Creatives and Munting Hiling Partner for "Verde Gives Back for Feb-Ibig" – Bringing Love, Joy, and Support to Barangay Payatas

March 9, 2026



Verde Creatives, a leading public relations
and creative agency renowned for blending cultural vision with social advocacy, proudly
announces its annual community engagement initiative, "Verde Gives Back for Feb-Ibig,"
in partnership with the Munting Hiling. The event is scheduled for Friday, February 13, 2026,
in Payatas B Elementary school, Barangay Payatas, Quezon City—one of Metro Manila's
most resilient yet economically challenged communities.

Under the heartfelt theme "Ang Feb-Ibig para sa lahat ng uri ng pagmamahal" (Love in
February for all kinds of love), the initiative aims to distribute refreshing ice cream treats and thoughtfully curated gift bags to community members. More than a simple act of charity, the event serves as a powerful celebration of universal love, inclusivity, and human dignity, extending the spirit of Valentine's Day to embrace every form of pag-ibig—romantic, familial, communal, and self-love—while spotlighting the rights and worth of all individuals, including marginalized groups.

The "Verde Gives Back" series traces its roots to the student days of Ms. Bemz Benedito,
Founding Managing Director of Verde Creatives and a globally recognized LGBTQIA+
advocate. During her time at Ateneo de Manila University, Benedito participated in fieldwork
immersions in Barangay Payatas, forging a lasting partnership with Munting Hiling. What
began as an academic commitment has evolved into an annualized professional CSR
program, demonstrating sustained solidarity rather than one-time relief.












"Love should reach everyone, especially those who are often overlooked," said Ms. Bemz
Benedito, a former chair of Ladlad Partylist and recipient of the "Global Transgender Hero"
award from the True Colors Fund (co-founded by Cyndi Lauper). "Through 'Verde Gives Back
for Feb-Ibig,' we honor our long-standing ties to Payatas while reaffirming that true advocacy
includes service, visibility, and joy for the 'poor of the poorest.' This is about showing that
every person matters in our shared story of love and equality."

Barangay Payatas, long emblematic of both hardship and remarkable community strength—
marked by its history with informal recycling and past environmental challenges—continues
to face issues of food security, health access, and socio-economic barriers. The partnership
leverages:

• Verde Creatives' expertise in event management, branding, and high-impact
storytelling (as seen in successes like the Manila International Dance Festival 2023).
• Munting Hiling's deep on-the-ground experience in sustainable development, youth
livelihood programs, women’s empowerment, health awareness (including HIV/AIDS
and teen pregnancy prevention), and community nutrition efforts in partnership with organizations like San Miguel Corporation.

The event will feature careful coordination with local government units (LGUs), volunteer
mobilization through platforms like iVolunteer Philippines, and adherence to health and
safety standards to ensure safe, orderly, and meaningful distribution.

This initiative stands out in the Philippine CSR landscape by combining professional public
relations acumen with grassroots NGO knowledge, creating ripple effects of psychological uplift, social cohesion, and inspiration—particularly for the youth who see in leaders like Benedito a path from student immersion to global impact.

Looking ahead, Verde Creatives and Munting Hiling plan to build on this foundation through
long-term impact tracking, expanded partnerships, digital storytelling to amplify resident voices, and linkages to broader advocacy goals such as the SOGIE Equality Bill.


Verde Gives Back for Feb-Ibig is more than an event—it's a continuing commitment to
bridging beauty and brutality in urban Manila, proving that consistent, compassionate action
can foster a more inclusive society where love truly reaches everyone.


About Verde Creatives
Verde Creatives is a dynamic public relations, event management, and creative agency
dedicated to cultural visioning and LGBTQIA+ advocacy. Led by Ms. Bemz Benedito, the
agency bridges professional excellence with mission-driven social impact.


About Munting Hiling
Munting Hiling focuses on sustainable community development, youth livelihood, poverty alleviation, and health initiatives in underserved areas, partnering with corporations and networks to deliver lasting change.




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A Season of Giving: edamama’s Gift to Give Offered Happiness and Assistance to Underprivileged Pregnant Women and Orphaned Children

February 16, 2024


MANILA, PHILIPPINES–Leading online-to-offline parenting platform edamama launched a donation drive to give support and bring joy to underprivileged pregnant women, youth, and orphans in the Philippines.


As part of their “edamamasko po!” holiday campaign, edamama reintroduced its annual “Gift to Give” initiative to gain support from its customers through the first-of-its-kind online gift registry service in their app. edamama,
with its employees and merchants, also came together to deliver more pamasko to the chosen charities.

edamama partnered with Tahanan ng Pagmamahal and Generations-Home, which has a network of 69 beneficiaries combined.
Generations-Home provides children in need with care and a home of their own. Their efforts and interventions with Pregnant Women in Crisis (PWIC) are vital to bringing positive change in a nation where 6 million children
struggle with the difficulties of being vulnerable or orphaned.

“The donations [from edamama] will impact mothers in crisis, potentially keeping families together,” Jasmin Buma, Generations Home’s Director of Partnership and Advocacies, said. “Alongside the medical care and counseling our team provides, these donations meet our mothers' needs, easing their worries about survival.

Ultimately, the goal is to provide PWIC with a safe space, empowering them to make the best decisions for themselves and their children.”
Meanwhile, Tahanan ng Pagmamahal Children's Home aims to provide children with a caring and encouraging environment that attends to every aspect of their well-being, with services on health and medicine, psycho-social care, education, reunification, and spiritual enhancement.


To facilitate gift-giving, each organization created a Gift Registry on the edamama app. This feature allowed customers to easily select items for donation, with each order securely and lovingly gift-wrapped and hand-delivered by the edamama team last January 11 and 13


"Supporting those in need during the holidays was what we wanted Gift to Give to achieve and we’re glad that we can do so,” Bren Esguerra, edamama’s Business Development Director, said during the turnover ceremony.
“Having witnessed first-hand the positive impact of our donations to the women and children supported byTahanan ng Pagmamahal and Generations-Home, we are even more determined to continue the program with
the support of the edamama community."

edamama extends their gratitude to everyone who joined Gift to Give, for imbibing the true essence of the holiday season in spreading kindness and joy.

With another exciting campaign in the works, edamama continues to align with its mission to make parenting easy for mamas and papas in the Philippines with the upcoming New Mama Expo. Dubbed as the biggest shopping and learning event for new mamas, the event is expected to bring together 20,000 parents to
discover and experience over 250 trusted and loved brands at the Megatrade Hall 2-3 in SM Megamall on March 1-3. Interested attendees may pre-register for free to unlock big discounts and treats by using this link.

Stay connected with edamama on social media and download their app:
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@edamama.ph
App: Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and Huawei AppGallery



About edamama:
edamama is the Philippines' premier parenting platform, dedicated to providing essential resources, products, and community support to parents. edamama’s mission is to empower parents by offering a wide range of
curated products and services that cater to the unique needs of families. With a commitment to quality,

innovation, and customer satisfaction, edamama seeks to be parents' trusted partner by helping them simplify decision-making and find everyday joy in raising their family. Since its launch in 2020, the platform has delivered about 4 million products to Filipino families nationwide.

For press queries about the article, you may email questions to press@edamama.ph
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Defensil's Donation Drive to Vaccine Sites Helps Filipinos to Live Safe Now

September 2, 2021


Defensil Products for donation in Vaccination Sites 



In line with their commitment to help Filipinos live safe now, Defensil Isopropyl Alcohol donated reusable personal protective equipment (PPE) and Defensil 70% Isopropyl Alcohol to several vaccination sites in Muntinlupa, San Juan and Pasig.

As more and more Filipinos get their vaccines, Defensil Isopropyl Alcohol is here to help ensure that frontliners and priority groups remain protected through proper sanitation.

Defensil Isopropyl Alcohol donated 600 PPE’s and 264 1-liter bottles of isopropyl alcohol to vaccination sites such as the Pasig Sports Center, Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan as well as at the Festival Mall and Ayala South Park in Muntinlupa, creating a safer environment as more and more Filipinos get their jabs. 

Defensil Vaccination Site Donation: Pasig Turnover 


Defensil Vaccination Site Donation: San Juan Turnover 



Defensil Vaccination Site Donation of PPE to Frontliners 


Defensil Products Vaccination Site Donation in Pasig


Defensil Vaccination Site Donation of PPE to Frontliners 



Defensil Vaccination Site Donation: Muntinlupa Turnover 



“We are committed to supporting the government’s vaccination efforts to help more Filipinos to live safer. We hope that the PPEs and isopropyl alcohol we donated to the different vaccine sites can give fellow Filipinos a higher level of protection as they get vaccinated and will serve as a reminder of the importance of always disinfecting when they go out and start to go back to their regular activities,” said Nikko Cruz, Brand Manager of Defensil Isopropyl Alcohol.

With Filipinos returning to the workplace and slowly resuming outdoor activities like shopping, dining, and working out, regular disinfection of hands and high touch surfaces using rubbing alcohol remains a key solution to help prevent the spread of germs. Recommended by the Philippine Society for Microbiology, Defensil’s 70% Solution Isopropyl Alcohol allows Filipinos to live safe now as it kills 99.9% of germs. It also helps Filipinos to quickly and effectively sanitize as it starts to kill germs on contact and provides up to 12 hours of protection upon constant use.

On top of this, Defensil is hypo-allergenic and contains moisturizer, so Filipinos can sanitize as often as they need to, as they go back to their regular activities.

With vaccination sites given a higher level of protection, Filipinos can live safe now and have greater peace of mind as they get vaccinated.

For more information on how to live safe now, visit the Defensil Isopropyl Alcohol’s Facebook page at facebook.com/defensil.philippines. 





*Defensil 70% Isopropyl Alcohol was tested against Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli or E. coli and Candida albicans

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Pay it forward to our modern-day heroes with PayMaya

May 20, 2021



Medical frontliners are the modern-day heroes in our ongoing battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. As they continue to save lives of our kababayans, we can stand behind them by practicing health safety measures and utilizing technology.  
  
Utilizing digital apps like PayMaya are making it easier for Filipinos to participate in bayanihan movements for the community – this includes making donations to organizations whose beneficiaries are healthcare workers. Here are some of the ways you can show support to our medical frontliners, with the help of PayMaya: 
  
1. Practice safety health standards in your day-to-day activities  
  
The easiest and sure way to curb the spread of the virus is by keeping ourselves within the safety of our homes and staying healthy. We must always ensure that we follow safety health standards in our daily activities.   
  
One way to keep ourselves safe is by going cashless. With apps like PayMaya, you can easily pay your utility and government bills, send money to your loved ones, purchase essentials at the PayMaya Mall, and even buy prepaid load with just your mobile phone--no need to go out to do these transactions. 
  
2. Donate to initiatives supporting medical frontliners  
  
Many of PayMaya's partner organizations, including the Philippine Red Cross, PGH Medical Foundation, PLDT-Smart Foundation, and Alagang Kapatid Foundation, have initiated programs supporting our healthcare workers. Their initiatives provided care packages, food, supplies, and medical kits to frontliners. 
  
Today, you can easily support the Philippine Red Cross, PGH Medical Foundation, PLDT-Smart Foundation, Alagang Kapatid Foundation, and other similar orgnanizations using your PayMaya account. All you have to do is go to the Bills feature of your PayMaya app, choose Donations, and select the organization you’d like to donate to. Simply key in '00000' as the account number and enter your donation amount, then proceed to complete your donation.   
  
If you are abroad or would prefer to use your card to donate, you can go to PayMaya's donation website, https://donate.paymaya.com/ . In the site, you can choose from PayMaya's 50 Donation Partners with COVID-19 relief and response efforts and donate to their cause using any Visa, Mastercard, and JCB credit, debit, and prepaid cards, or other e-wallets. 
  
3. Purchase digital products at PayMaya’s in-app shop to provide meals to medical frontliners  
  
From May 18-20, 2021, PayMaya is doing a flash donation for our frontliners. Each time you purchase digital products such as telco load, gaming pins, on-demand content credits, and transportation credits from the in-app PayMaya Shop, the digital payments company will donate Php1 on your behalf to build a pool of fund to distribute packed meals to a total of 10,000 medical frontliners of 26 public hospitals for five days. This initiative, in partnership with PLDT-Smart Foundation, Alagang Kapatid Foundation, and Cignal, is a way to pay tribute to our modern-day heroes who work tirelessly to save lives of COVID-19 patients. 
 
4. Make an emergency donation to the Philippine General Hospital through the PGH Medical Foundation  
 
One of the PGH’s pay ward was recently struck with fire that damaged a portion of its facilities and displaced patients. It has called for food, non-food, and cash donations. You can extend your help to the PGH through the PayMaya donation channels of PGH Medical Foundation. You can simply visit pymy.co/pghmedicalfoundation to donate using any credit, debit, or prepaid card or go to the Bills page in the PayMaya app to make a donation (Go to Bills > Tap Donations > Choose PGH Medical Foundation > Enter ‘00000’ in the Account Number field and put the amount you wish to donate).  
  
Let's show our support to our medical frontliners by doing safer cashless and contactless transactions. Together, let's stand as #OneAgainstCOVID19.  



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Paying it forward with ‘green energy’ points




They say when you do good, the favor comes right back. What if I told you the reward could return not just a million-fold, but two? 

Leading mobile wallet GCash is not only making payments and other transactions convenient for its users but also makes a way for anyone to be a philanthropist. 

Through its pioneering feature GCash Forest, app users could help increase the country’s forest cover, with “green energy” points equivalent to a tree to be planted at the Ipo watershed in Norzagaray, Bulacan. More app transactions, more green points, more trees to the user’s name. 

Science has proven that giving is a reward in itself. Chicago’s Rush University, a prestigious medical learning institution, says the gesture of helping improves quality of life. It contributes to better physical and mental health, aiding longevity. It decreases stress, lowers the risk of depression, and raises self-esteem. 

There is even a term for it: the “helper’s high.” Giving releases feel-good chemicals in the brain, contributing to greater happiness, according to the Cleveland Clinic. 


And with GCash’s latest promo, add a cash prize to the list. 

GCash is paying it forward with a P2-million prize giveaway for GCash Forest donors.



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Showing posts with label pay it forward. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pay it forward. Show all posts