Tony Meloto of Gawad Kalinga
Meloto's Endgame
Vancouver BC
We met Tony Meloto, the Gawad Kalinga leader who spearheaded a Philippine movement to help the poorest of the poor in the Philippines in Vancouver about a decade ago. Since then Gawad Kalinga(GK) has sprouted its reach all over the world.
In Vancouver, I have personally attended several years of GK Walk for the poor. A Catholic graduate of the Ateneo De Manila University, Tony(72) blends his Christian values and upbringing to his crusade for the poor. GK is connected to Couples for Christ. GK Volunteers come from the CFC organization. And their friends and relatives cooperate to make GK a worldwide success.
Anita “Cookie” Aytona, a BC resident, a Surrey high school teacher and an alumna of the University of the Philippines got excited by the pitch of Tony that she led her high school students to visit the Philippines and volunteered to help build houses for the poor in the provinces of the Philippines. Her students were ecstatic to help the poor in the Philippines.
Recently, there was an Ancop Walk(somehow related to GK) and Cookie, after all these years is still an advocate for helping the poor.
Tony, during the last seven years has been struggling with his personal health challenges: severe pneumonia, high blood pressure, arrhythmia, diabetes, weakening bones and back pains. Tony declares on FB, “And sadness that the end was near.”
There was a turning point when he discovered a group of men who are in the same boat as he was in in terms of health issues. They live together in a farm called Paraiso(paradise) in Batangas. They pray and socialize together. They have renewed a new purpose in life: to help each other and help other people confronting old age issues, outside of their circle.
Vancouver Consul Analyn Ratonel cuts the ribbon for the start of the Ancop Walk(a descendant of the GK Walk) in Burnaby BC. Assisting her is Ms Canada candidate Christine Banzon. This walk and other simultaneous Ancop walks all over Canada hope to raise funds to finance Ancop projects in the Philippines.
Tony Meloto found that being in Paraiso gave him another shot of rediscovering the meaning of life. When Taal Volcano erupted, they reached out to the victims in the nearby areas and helped build toilets for them while the eruption victims stayed in some public schools. They also brought their farm produce and cooked for the victims.
Tony has retired from the GK or Ancop project but the movement he started is still growing strong. Ancop will be around for a long time even after Tony Meloto reunites with his Creator. Tony knows this and the Ancop leadership as well.