The Pontipedra Family of Brgy. Cueva in Sta. Maria, Laguna Province wins the Regional Search for Huwarang Pantawid Pamilya 2013 in the CALABARZON Region. The family was awarded by the Department of Social Welfare and Development Field Office IV-A during the Family Day held in San Pablo City, Laguna last September 25, 2013 as part of the celebration of the National Family Week.

The Pontipedra Family, composed of Tatay Arsenio, Nanay Eliza, Gabriel and Ephraim, is one of the more than 250,000 family-beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program in the region. They have been named Huwarang Pantawid Pamilya 2013 after being judged as a family showcasing good Filipino values, active community and environmental involvement, and promotion of healthy living.

The family has shown strong relationship with God, value to the education of the children and the continuous effort to stand on their own despite financial difficulties. From nothing, the Pontipedra couple has worked hard through buying and selling crops to support their children, especially their education.

Moreover, the family has complied with all their co-responsibilities with the program such as 85% monthly school attendance of their two children, monthly attendance to the Family Development Sessions and monthly preventive health care for the children.

DSWD IV-A Regional Director Leticia Diokno congratulated all family-awardees and thanked them for being model families to other beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program. She also encouraged other families in attendance to be like the family-awardees, particularly in being compliant with their co-responsibilities with the program and being responsible parents to their children.

Other winners of the Regional Search for Huwarang Pantawid Pamilya are the Rañola Family from Dasmariñas City, Cavite (2^nd place) and the Madera Family from Lopez, Quezon (3^rd place).

The awarding ceremony is done in conjunction with a Family Day Celebration of around 60 family-beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilya from San Pablo City. The activity, which aimed to strengthen families and encourage increased compliance to program conditions, involves family development sessions that focus on strengthening husband and wife relationships and the role of children in their respective families.

The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program is a core social protection program of the national government that provides conditional cash grants to qualified poor families in support for the health, nutritional and educational needs of zero to 14 years old children. The program also promotes strong family relationships through monthly family development sessions with mother-grantees discussing topics such as home management, husband-wife relationships, rights of children and budget management. (NJMM)***