Borongan City-based photographer offers talent to help Church, poor children
TACLOBAN CITY-Alren Beronio, 23, started taking photos when he worked as volunteer photographer for the Catholic Church in Borongan City from 2012 to 2017.
When the local diocese set up an online news site ESTE, Beronio’s hobby has turned into a full-time commitment.
“The words ‘Service to God’ inspire me to do this,” said Beronio who became a member of the altar server organization of the Borongan Cathedral since Grade 1 to Grade 6.
“Taking photographs is very fulfilling, especially during church events where I am also present like Holy Week,” he added.
After getting his accreditation as official photographer of the Diocese of Borongan for ESTE news, Beronio childhood’s dream of capturing church images and personalities started to take shape.
He covered the Pope Francis visit in Tacloban City in January 2015; the historic return of Balangiga Bells in December 2019; the Rededication of Guiuan Church; annual Sinulog coverage; Marian congress in Cebu City; and other Church-related festivities.
“My big dream is to be one of Vatican photographers. Since I started photography in high school, I really look forward to take a photo of the pope. And it was fulfilling that it finally happened,” he said.
While he receives a modest honorarium from the diocese church news service, Beronio said his greatest reward was when he discovered his talent through Church photography works.
“The Church discovers my talent. This is now my advocacy, to be of service of the church too,” he said.
When March came, Beronio, along with photographer friends in the city, found another way of extending his service to the poor children who will graduate this year.
Organized by Borongan Digital Photography Forum, with over 1, 000 members and 50 active photo enthusiasts and professionals, Beronio helped launched the “Project Dagway (Image).”
Inspired by the concept and objective of A-frame Project of Fyt Media and Juan Portraits, Beronio and his group started taking photographs of the poor graduating students in some hinterland schools of the province for free.
They also give free photograph sessions and tutorials.
“We want to paint sweet smiles to these children and since we have the equipment and talent, we thought of sharing them for the benefit of remote communities that do not have access to these kinds of services,” said Miguel Voloso, a colleague of Beronio.
In partnership with the Department of Education-Eastern Samar Division and Go Borongan organization, Beronio and his group were able to photograph 500 graduating students, including the teachers, in Eastern Samar.
“We are happy that there are people who helped us in creating good memories for our future,” said graduating student Viena Antoinette Orque after receiving her free portrait from Beronio’s group which she can keep in her lifetime.
“I am overjoyed every time I see the smile of the students in the remote areas. In this way, I can offer my talent in simple way by documenting it,” said Beronio who is also currently working as freelance photojournalists for national and international news organizations.
Region’s inflation rate rises to 2.2% in March of this year
TACLOBAN CITY- The inflation rate of the region rose to 2.2 percent in March 2020, according to the report from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA-8).
Wilma Perante, PSA regional director, told Leyte Samar Daily Express that the regional inflation rate is 0.3 percentage point lower than the 2.5 percent national average inflation rate of the same month.
Perante reported that Eastern Samar, Southern Leyte, Biliran and Leyte registered higher inflation rates in March compared with their figures in February 2020. Eastern Samar recorded the highest increase of 0.8 percentage point, then rose to 3.1 percent in March from 2.3 percent in February.
On the other hand, Samar registered a 0.8 percentage point decrease as it dropped to 2.3 percent in March from 3.1 percent in February.
Northern Samar eased down to 3.5 percent from 3.6 percent in February but still recorded the highest inflation rate among the provinces in the region.
Southern Leyte, meanwhile, posted the lowest inflation rate among the provinces during the month in review at 1.4 percent.
Perante also reported that majority of the commodity groups in the region exhibited higher inflation rates in March compared with their rates in February.
These include housing, water, gas, electricity and other fuels commodity group which registered the biggest increase of 1.0 percentage point, from 0.9 percent deflation in February 2020 to 0.1 percent inflation in March 2020.
“This increase can be attributed to the inflation recorded in the actual rentals for housing index (7.5 percent); maintenance and repair of the dwelling index (2.6 percent); and water supply and miscellaneous services relating to the dwelling index (0.1 percent) in March 2020. The double-digit deflation rate of 11.0 percent in electricity, gas and other fuels, however, eased the impact of those increases to the overall IR of the commodity group,” Perante said.
Meantime, the PSA director said that the purchasing power of peso (PPP) of the region was recorded at P0.79 in March.
This PPP implies that the goods and services worth P79 in 2012 is worth P100 in March 2020.
All provinces in the region sustained their PPP last month.
Biliran, Leyte and Southern Leyte recorded the strongest PPP at P0.81, followed by Eastern Samar at P0.76 and Samar at P0.74. Northern Samar posted the weakest PPP at P0.73, Perante concluded.
(RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)