She Voices
A week before Christmas, two dynamic members of the women’s movement in Cebu passed away – Portia D. Dacalos figured in a motorcycle accident while on vacation in Brazil on Dec. 16 and Sr. Maria Belen “Mabe” Alcoseba, ICM passed away on Dec. 22.
She had too much water in her lungs but long before that she had problems with her eyesight. Both worked with the Legal Alternatives for Women Center, Inc. (LAW Inc.).
Portia was a former president of the board of directors while Mabe was a former board member. Both were also trailblazers who were recognized in heritage cards for Sugbuanang Tag-una (Cebuana Trailblazers by the Provincial Women’s in 2005.
Portia was a psychologist and guidance services specialist at the University of the Philippines Cebu from the mid 1970s till her retirement in 2013.
She was recognized as an alternative-consciousness catalyst, “who has dedicated herself to raising the awareness of working women and the community through gender sensitivity seminars and training.”
She was a sought-after facilitator for seminars and trainings that often brought her out of UP Cebu. She also headed the Office of Anti-Sexual Harassment (OASH) of Cebu. She was awarded “Professional of the Year Award 2014” by the Philippine Regulatory Commission.
Portia was the first Cebuana educator to integrate discussions on gender concerns in work settings with various companies in the private sector, sharing insights and teaching, in the world of work, a dedicated trailblazer armed with the commitment to promote gender equality and eliminate discrimination against women and job biases in the workplace.
I knew Sr. Maria Belen Alcoseba, ICM, since childhood. We were neighbors in Carcar and she was a prime mover of the memorable Flores de Mayo celebration in Luanluan, Carcar. When she joined the ICM congregation she was assigned in St. Catherine’s School as elementary teacher and eventually as the principal.
Later she was assigned in Dipolog and was organizing pedicab drivers. When she was back in Cebu, she made a trailblazing move when she referred a case of domestic violence in Carbon market to the late Atty. Arbet Yongco which turned out to be the first case of domestic violence that would trigger the establishment of the Legal Alternatives for Women Center, Inc.
Sr. Mabe was the first religious to organize a women’s group, Pundok sa Higalang Kababayen-an (Organization of Women Friends) to work not only for women’s welfare but also to be the catalyst for community upliftment in Balamban, west Cebu.
The ICM offered Sr. Mabe the challenge of an apostolate with women, and so she organized Pundok Higalang Kababayen-an in 1995. As she worked with them and their concerns in Balamban, she uncovered their talents, inspired and developed them for performances to promote their self-confidence, and inspired them to open these with prayers in indigenous, and female-friendly liturgy.
With Balamban as their base, she worked with the women’s problems and realized that their victimization in domestic violence often resulted from drug abuse. She then linked with Kamatuoran, Inc., an anti-narcopolitics group. The collaboration has reached the level of the municipal government. With these linkages
Sr. Mabe and Pundok sa Higalang Kababayen-an motivated local officials to use both power and resources to actually serve the people.
Portia and Mabe had their own brand of enlivening any gathering of women. Portia was an animator who facilitated seminars and trainings with her unusual icebreakers and energizers. She used humor when discussing anti-sexual harassment issues and situations. She was single and she lived a life of blissfulness. Mabe used performing arts along with her group to enliven a women’s gathering.
Portia and Mabe worked for women empowerment in two arenas. Portia concentrated on schools and workplaces in both private and government sectors, while Mabe worked in the rural community and engaged local government units in the upliftment not just on the quality of life of women but for the whole community.
While Portia had the support of the Philippine Guidance Counselors organization, Mabe had the Pundok sa Higalang Kababayen-an in Balamban. There was always laughter and lots of dancing when women gather for a meeting and one can be sure that Portia and Mabe were in the midst of them.
Thank you, Portia and Mabe, for the hard work, the vibrant company, the legacy! Eternal rest be granted unto you. Portia’s remains will arrive on Monday,
Dec. 28. Further notice about the vigil wake, tribute and burial will be announced later. Sr. Mabe was buried yesterday morning in Quezon City.
* * *
I was able to attend seven out of the nine masses for the Misa de Gallo. Much as I wanted to have complete attendance, two days were my scheduled dialysis days (first shift at 5 in the morning).
During the seven days I was very impressed with the full-packed attendance at the Redemptorist church even during the rainy mornings on Saturday and Sunday.
Everything was perfect, well-prepared – the presider with a prepared and brief homily, the very good choirs (a different group per morning), the distribution of Holy Communion was very organized (with the lay ministers strategically positioned), and the pamainit after the mass which allowed the congregation to interact with each other aside from buying the native goodies sold at the stalls.
On the other hand, a few days before Christmas, I requested Jollibee to deliver some food items for a visitor. I was surprised to learn that Jollibee ran out of Chickenjoy that day. When the delivery boy arrived, he said that there were so many orders from different schools for their Christmas parties that Jollibee ran out of fried chicken. He recalled that when he was a student he just brought bananas to school for the Christmas party. Times have changed, he said.
Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of Cebudailynews. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.
