BAGUIO CITY – A mountain resort – The Manor at Camp John Hay – here unveiled its Christmas theme “Enchanted Holidays” on Saturday, Nov. 12, in a benefit dinner for the Fashion Arts Autism Benefit (FAAB), a project of Autism Hearts Foundation (AHF) in partnership with the Camp John Hay Development Corp. (CJHDevCo).
The project aims to use arts as a therapy to improve behavior, general functioning, and socialization skills and also serve as springboard for self-sufficiency of individuals in the autism spectrum.
Highlight of the launching was the presentation of an 8’ x 8’ painting on canvass, a diptych titled ‘’Ëlkat: An Enchanted Forest,’’ by nine individuals in the autism spectrum here who are beneficiaries of the project.
Under the guidance of SPED teacher and artist-mentor Yvone Almazan-Malaga, the artists worked six weekends to complete their masterpiece, their first major collaboration.
The nine artists – Ian Jones Almazan, 19; Talek Jose Ilagan, 21; Andrei Nisperos, 17; Emarnel Pasana, 22; Leila Michelle Reyes, 20; Paulo Brent Ricardo, 22; Keefe-Everett Sebio, 21; Jhomir Shontogan, 21; and Justin Raymond Zambrano, 19 – are products of art therapy sessions that began in 2018 in a building that used to house the former Lonestar Steakhouse inside Camp John Hay with the help of volunteer artists, including Robert Joaquin, Gladys Ann Labsan, and Ged Alangui, and the sustained support of Lisa Sobrepena, chairperson of the FAAB project and an active member of the AHF Board of Directors.
Erlinda Borromeo, AHF founder, is a Filipina grandmother of a child with autism based in the US. Since the diagnosis of his grandson, it has been her commitment to spread awareness on autism and help others in the spectrum to be able to live in a more inclusive community, especially in the Philippines.