Dr. Florangel Rosario Braid       By Florangel Rosario Braid Gina Lopez is not only one in a million; there can never be anyone like her. This appears to be the opinion of many of our admirers who have sent hundreds of posts on Facebook and letters to the media. Three days before she passed on, I wrote on Sylvia Munoz Ordonez’s Facebook post, asking for prayers for Gina, and saying that her friends and the country need her. Sylvia wrote back, “Only miracles can save her.” A day later, she wrote that Gina had awakened. A miracle indeed! God answers in mysterious ways. A day later, He must have decided that by being an angel, Gina could be of greater help to the people and country -- through her intervention during some of our most difficult times. Gina and I met some three decades ago, after her return as missionary of Ananda Marga, a religious sect where she spent six years of service in Portugal, India, and Kenya. This was when we were both trying to explore ways of navigating the new world of Internet through educational TV and children’s programs. We again connected two years ago when she was environment secretary. I had been writing a series on climate change and mining issues, so she asked me if I could join her in a visit to Mindanao municipalities that had shown the destructive impact of large-scale and irresponsible mining. I could not join the first scheduled trip but promised to join the next one. However, this didn’t materialize as a few days later, she was rejected by the Commission on Appointments. After Gina’s article for “Rogue,” where she described how a hard life can be a “good one,” and how she taught children in pre-primary schools in marginalized communities under some of the most deprived conditions. she received hundreds of responses from people who could not find enough words to describe their admiration for her “courage, caring heart, selfless love, compassion, commitment, spirituality, as well as what they describe as an amazing journey.” Gina would say that “as long as one is committed to integrity and service, there are divine forces that help.” Meditation also helps, she said, when people ask how this woman from a privileged family was able to endure what she had to go through. Some say her advocacies are similar to that of Angela Jolie. Others see in her some of Mother Teresa’s qualities. She attributed her courage and determination to her life in the ashram which she said had prepared her to become a creator of a better world. One would remember how she ordered the shutting down of 23 mines and cancelled 75 lucrative contracts for mines that threatened environmental laws. “I’m doing the right thing, and let the dice fall where they may…. Who suffers if you kill the environment? It’s the poor. And it’s the government’s duty to protect our people. But if a decision is based on business interests, it loses its moral ascendancy.” Thus was her response to owners and supporters of mining industries who had violated our laws. Congress denied her confirmation 10 months after her appointment by President Duterte. Before she became the government’s environment chief, Gina was already a household word in environment and children’s rights concerns. At the ABS-CBN Foundation which she founded, she had organized a 24-hour hotline, Bantay Bata 163 which responds to all sorts of violations against children’s rights, and a recipient of the UN Grand Awardee for Excellence. “Sineskuela,” an educational TV program, won the UNESCO award. Over the years, the ABS-CBN Foundation provided scholarships and disaster relief during calamities. Gina founded “Bantay Kalikasan” which rehabilitated the 2,700 hectares of La Mesa Dam Watershed, which led to the establishment of La Mesa Eco-Park. She later cleaned up Pasig River when she was appointed to head the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission. Gina indeed led an incredible and meaningful life. “Could she be president someday?”, someone asked about Gina whose primary vision for herself was always to be aligned with the highest truth. She has left us, but there will be others that she had mentored and nurtured with the same ideals, the same timeless creativity and energy, the same passion and love of country and fellowmen, who would eventually take her place. I can picture her now, perhaps having conversations with God, telling Him what she always tells others – that “the greatest thing is the possibility of making a difference.” And we can all agree that indeed, Gina had made more than a difference in our lives. Farewell Gina, till we meet again. My email, [email protected]