THREE Outstanding Women Leaders (OWLS) in Baguio City will be awarded during the International Women’s Day on March 8 at the Baguio Convention Center.
Patricia Ann Gallardo, committee chair of the awarding body comprising of different government and private sectors said the awardees have passed the different stages from nomination, clarification and validation of documents and personal interview before a board of judges who were also awarded outstanding leaders the previous years.
Gallardo said those who will be receiving awards are April Rose Ayangwa, Maria Victoria Bugasto, and Mary Lou Galiste.
Ayangwa was chosen as outstanding women leader because of her dedication in advocating for the improvement of the lives of women who were deprived of liberty (PDL). She is a former fire officer before moving to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) in 2005.
The jail officer rose from the ranks to senior inspector and held vital positions such as Gender and Development (GAD) focal point and deputy warden and was also appointed as the female dorm warden in 2016 where she helped to improve the lives PDLs through partnering with different service providers and continue to initiate different skill and development programs.
Bugasto, a stage four breast cancer survivor who has made her life mission to inform, educate and raise public awareness on cancer preventive measures, the benefits of early detection, and access to cancer related treatment.
She also the president of Minda’s Buddies, which is a support group that serves as a refuge for cancer patients and was instrumental in staging successful campaign in Baguio City and many Filipinos.
Galiste on the other hand has helped in promoting the tourism industry in Baguio City where she served as the executive director of the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Baguio (HRAB) since 2004 and helped improve the hotel and restaurant industry in the city.
Galiste is among the prime movers during the Baguio Blooms and the Session Road in Bloom of the annual Panagbenga Festival.
Other women who have contributed by bringing fame in the city in the different fields who will be receiving special awards are Erlinda Lavianda, Christine Joy Picardial, Roxanne Joy Omilda, Ingrid Payaket, Sheevani Brylle Sibayan, Charmaine Sayo, Kylie Verzosa.
