Vanessa R. Valdez

 

 

 Essilor Vision Foundation, under the Essilor Group, is focused on the importance of healthy vision in sports and in helping individuals with intellectual disabilities work towards generating acceptance and inclusion in the community. True to this commitment, the Essilor Vision Foundation backs the Philippine co-chairs to the 2015 Special Olympics Social Impact Summit.

Social Impact Summit, formerly known as Global Youth Activation Summit, is a six-day international convention that enjoins 120 youth leaders from 30 countries to generate critical social change around the pressing issues facing people with intellectual disabilities.  It will be held in conjunction with the Special Olympics World Games at Los Angeles, California.

Philippine representatives Brina Maxino and Sashi Montaňa proactively shared their experiences as delegates in the 2013 Global Youth Activation Summit in South Korea. Through the summit, they learned how to educate and motivate people into advocatingacceptance and inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities. Because of their active involvement in this advocacy for years, they have been elected as co-chairs for thisyear’s Social Impact Summit.

“Every person with disability can change the world, and I am very excited to be part of this journey,” said Brina Maxino. “We look forward to meeting other young people whose ideas can help people with intellectual disabilities develop their abilities, nurture their talents, and live with dignity and respect,” added Sashi Montaňa.

Brina and Sashi’s presentation “Eye Can Play: A Healthy Eyeffair” uses an “edutainment” approach to help Special Olympics athletes, their caregivers and their families learn more about the importance of healthy vision. Supported by Essilor Vision Foundation, Eye Can Play has notched the Top 5 spot in the summit, granting $3,000 for the Philippines and earning accolades from the organizers and sponsors of the 2015Special Olympics.

“Essilor Vision Foundation has been a proud sponsor of Special Olympics for more thana decade by providing prescription eyewear, protective eyewear, as well as visual counselling for Special Olympics athletes,” said Essilor marketing manager Jinky Navo.“We are honored to be supporting the 2015 Social Impact Summit particularly with our Filipina co-chairs in the lead.” 

School is a wonderful place to explore and learn new things but parents are well-aware that this place can also be a major source of stress for kids. A school day begins and ends with passing through bumpy roads and enduring slow-moving traffic. Kindergarteners are not excused from pushing trolleys that carry heavy loads. Students have to juggle various seat works, assignments, recitations and quizzes for 8-9 subjects. In a nutshell, going to school is eternally beneficial but it is hard work!

Parents can instil the value of diligence and patience to lessen the hurdles kids face at school. Feed them with knowledge that can widen their understanding and sharpen their minds. Be involved in their school life. Assist in checking if assignments and projects are done correctly and completely and be on guard for any emotional or physical traumas they might be experiencing within and outside school premises. Extracurricular activities can also help build self esteem and develop healthy social life for most school children as they learn to interact with other people.

Being sick or sickly is a big burden to students as they need the strength and energy to keep up with the daily demands of school. Exercise and good diet are essential in maintaining physical well-being. Parents must take time to engage their kids in fun physical activities and prepare delicious and healthy meals.

Responsible parents naturally go for safe and quality ingredients, but to make meals more enjoyable and nourishing for school children, they need to introduce variety of food ingredients and expand cooking methods from only frying to also sautéing, steaming, blanching and boiling. If frying is unavoidable, it is recommended to observe proper frying temperature (365-375F) to decrease oil absorption. Test by dropping a small piece of food ito the oil; temperature is right if the piece of food rises above the oil within 3-5 seconds.
The new “amino Fres-C” Instant Juice Drink Mix is a great addition to kids’ baon. This is the only powdered juice drink that is packed with Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA) with Glutamine and Arginine. These specific amino acids are building blocks of protein that maintain energy levels, support muscle growth and repair, and toughen immune system – making this drink perfect fro sustaining kids demanding schedule at school. “amino Fres-C” is 70% less calories compared to other juice brands, so they get to enjoy the real fruit taste of its orange, pineapple, and mango variants, without the unnecessary calories. The new “amino Fres-C” is available in local supermarkets for only PhP8.00 per 1 liter pack.
Try to complement “amino Fres-C” fruit juice with these tasty and healthy baon recipes from Ajinomot:

Vegetable Siomai http://ajinomoto.com.ph/VegetableSiomai Crunch Cauliflower http://ajinomoto.com.ph/CruchyCauliflower Kiddie Sopas http://ajinomoto.com.ph/KiddieSopas Puso ng Saging Torta http://ajinomoto.com.ph/PusoNgSagingTorta

“It’s about time that men should be in the kitchen”, that will be my motto from now on. Well, because my hubby can’t cook that much. When I am going to ask my kids what can Daddy cook for them, they always say “Hotdog” though in a creative way in fairness to Daddy Marco.
We need to teach more our Dear Daddy of some techniques and tips on how to cook delicious foods especially for our kids. Gladly that there will be a show entitled “Home Foodie” that I can let my hubby watch, for him to learn and be confident enough to cook dishes.
Home Foodie is all about inspiring home cooks to reinvent favourites and recreate dishes from food discoveries using San Miguel Purefoods Products.
Thus, Home Foodie dishes are “masarap, masustansya at kayang kaya”. Yes, I experienced it during the launch of Home Foodie. Here are some of the foods during the Launch.







Home Foodie will not only appeal to women but also to men, like my hubby. It also wants men to cook; to be active in the kitchen; hence, Drew Arellano is the perfect host for the show. He has wide mass appeal, is non-alienating and is a true blue foodie. Drew can inspire and encourage men to enjoy food by spending time in his kitchen.