Many women and young girls face numerous fears daily — there’s the fear of not being enough, of being limited by their gender, or losing their basic human rights, the right to education, and the chance to experience a carefree life.
But as the experiences of news reporter Mav Gonzales, social media personality Janina Vela, and Table Tennis athlete Zachi Chua prove, girls can overcome their fears and achieve anything if they receive the right support and guidance to reach their full potential.
During the recent school tour for World Vision’s #GirlsCan campaign held at iACADEMY Campus in Makati which was attended by young female students, Mav shared: “When I became an i-Witness reporter, I felt like I didn’t know a thing, I felt insecure. Parang minsan iniisip ko na deserve ko ba na mabigyan ng chance ng i-Witness?” she added, referring to the popular news documentary show where she is one of the reporters.
What helped her get through those difficult moments were the words of encouragement from her peers: “The veterans in the industry were generous in sharing tips and words of encouragement with me,” she shared, adding that young professionals should not hesitate to ask for help. “If there are things that you don’t understand, always ask for help because a lot of the time people would be very willing to help.”
For Janina who shared personal stories of her fear of auditioning when she once aspired to become a theater actress but didn’t get the lead, she recalled, “I was hiding behind a lens of ‘I wasn’t good enough.”
She reminded the young attendees, “Think about taking off the lenses. Think about what would life be like if I didn’t view the world through the lens of my fears?” She also added, “bravery is not the absence of fear, it’s doing what you need to do in spite of it.”
Lastly, Zachi showed her support to young girls by encouraging the students to join various programs of World Vision such as the Student Ambassadorship Program (SAP), a five-month program that aims to train bright young minds on becoming the voice of Filipino children.
“Who else would be a better person to be the voice of the youth than us? We can be the voice for the other kids,” she exclaimed.
As long-time ambassadors of World Vision, Mav, Janina and Zachi continue to support the organization’s programs, including the annual #GirlsCan campaign, which aims to secure sponsorships for 1,000 girls in celebration of the International Day of the Girl.
Also expressing the support of iACADEMY for the #GirlsCan campaign is Joanna Caneo, iACADEMY assistant vice president, “iACADEMY is proud to support World Vision and provide a platform for such an important cause. We strive to create an environment where young people can thrive and their voices can be heard.”
