A heart to serve

A heart to serve

As Sunstar Davao celebrates its 27th anniversary today, seven of its employees also celebrate their important milestones with the company they have known to be their second home.

Some of them have even come, gone, but returned and they have stayed loyally through these years. Thus, Sunstar Davao provided fitting recognition for their contribution in the success the company has been reaping all these years as they have remained loyal and faithful to their call of duties.

The longtime service awardees for this year are Sunstar Davao's editor in chief Reuel John F. Lumawag, photojournalist Mark Anthony Perandos, cashier Rossel Espejo, production staff Dax Remetiera, Superbalita senior reporter Jeepy Compio, CTP operator Edwin Gipulao, and Sunstar Davao's Business Manager Donna Cuyos.

Few people know that our EIC started working with Sunstar Davao as a Sports reporter in the year 2013 before he was transferred to Business beat. He left the company in 2015 to work for a national government agency and in 2016, he was working with a large power firm. During this period, he continued to write for SunStar Davao as a columnist.

By 2017, he returned to SunStar Davao as an editor.

"After working in two other communication-related jobs after being a reporter, I realised that I want to take the career path of being a journalist. I want to continue to write the story of the communities we serve," Lumawag said.

In 2018, he was named as the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, succeeding former editor-in-chief and now associate publisher Stella A. Estremera.

So is Espejo, who left her same position back in 2016 as she wanted to explore and experience working in a big company. But she returned the year after.

"Kay tungod akong heart nabilin sa Sunstar, nibalik ko tungod mas na feel nako na belong (My heart was left in Sunstar, I returned because I feel I belong) and they treated me well as a family member sa (of) Sunstar. Kung magka problema man sa office or personal Dali ra nimu maduolan ang mga boss (If there is any problem, whether official or personal, I can easily approach my bosses)," she said.

Remetiera, on the other hand, has been with several other companies but he chose to stay with Sunstar even as his skills are sought-after.

"Akong nakita diri sa Sunstar ang maayong benipisyo nga wala didto sa uban nga mga kompanya nga akong gigikanan (Sunstar Davao has given me benefits that were absent in all the companies I've been working in the past with)," he said.

For Perandos, only Sunstar Davao has given him the opportunity to make his dream come true: to become a photojournalist.

But working as a photojournalist with a story to tell is a notch higher than his dream.

"Working in a community newspaper kay mas nasabtan nako ang klase-klaseng batasan sa mga tao (I understand more the different characters of different individuals) towards a certain issue kung nganong ingon ana sila mo-react (why they react the way they reacted). Mas nakaconnect ko sa life sa ubang mga tao tungod sa adlaw-adlaw nako sa field. Mas nakaila nako sila pinaagi sa pakig-istorya nako sa ilaha (My daily field job has made me connected with people even more. I knew them better now through my conversations with them), Perandos, who is also a five-year service awardee, said.

Compio, who is a decade-old with Sunstar Davao, says his job has provided him with "connections" that he knew he would have not gotten if not for his job as a senior reporter.

"Garbo kaayo sa kaugalingon nga dunay mga connection nga mga officials sa mga agency and mga government offices. Because of SunStar mas nailhan pa nako ang akong kaugalingon, ug maoy hinungdan nga mas mailhan ko sa mga universities and colleges diin asa ko nag part-time as instructor (It is my pride to have connections with officials from different agencies and goverment offices. I learned more about myself, and many universities and colleges where I am currently working as part-time instructor have known me through Sunstar), Compio said."

He added that through the 10 years he has working with the company, he felt the love of his workmates even more, thus he plans to "continue to stay with Sunstar forever".

Meanwhile, for some, being treated well is what matters most, thus they stay and serve the company faithfully. This is the reason why Gipulao has stayed with Sunstar Davao for 15 years now.

"I feel respected, recognized and valued, as well as being paid well," he said.

Having stayed this long, Gipulao's only wish for the company is "to become the most successful newspaper publisher in Davao City and hopefully in the whole Philippines."

Cuyos tops all the long-time service awardees for this year working for the company for two decades already. Cuyos, who rose from the ranks, has been a witness to the company's struggles and successes.

“I enjoy the culture in this company. We are just like a family. We can open up and talk our problems through. That's why I really want to give my best and weigh things properly on issues. We may be just a small company but I am proud of it," she said.

As she is now leading the company towards its business progress, Cuyos dreams of nothing but for Sunstar Davao to grow to new heights, sustain the successes it has achieved, and surpass its achievements through the years. CEA

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