A VERY INSPIRING Q & A WITH ACTRESS LOVELY RIVERO ABOUT HER ANGELIC WORKS TO FEED THE FRONTLINERS: "IN THE MIDST OF UNCERTAINTY, I CAN MAKE A LITTLE DIFFERENCE!"

Ms. Lovely Rivero: An angel in times of great crisis.

Lovely: Her great beauty lies more from within.

summary of Lovely's good acts

Lovely (right) with fellow actress Glenda Garcia: Celebrity Advocates

Ms. Lovely in the kitchen as she prepares food for the Frontliners

Ms. Lovely (left) with other angels of good deeds that includes fellow actress Ms. Alma Concepcion (extreme left).

When celebrities and actresses become perfect role-models and Public Servants in times of great crisis, somehow, the Light of LIFE seems to glow a lot much brighter and splendid. Sabi nga nila, lumilitaw ang mga ANGHEL sa mga sitwasyong mahihirap o delikado. Doon sila nagpapakita, sa mga pagkakataong kailangan na kailangan mo ang mga tulong nila. Mapa-ordinaryong tao ka man o mapa-Artista, kusang lalabas ang tinatagong magandang aspeto ng pagkatao sa mga oras ng pangangailngan. Pero mas lalong kahanga-hanga ang mga artistang laging naririyan sa tabi mo in times of great need, dahil doon nila mas naipakikitang they are worthy, we mean, much worthier to be IDOLIZED. Tulad ni Miss LOVELY RIVERO.

Si Lovely Rivero ay isa sa mga aktres nating may magandang imahen sa publiko. Mukha talaga siyang mabait. And she has proven more this thought: "BEAUTY INSIDE AND OUT".

Nag-viral online ang mga pagtulong na ginagawa niya ngayon sa panahon ng Covid-19 Pandemic. Hindi lang kasi isa o dalawang beses niyang ginawa ang mga pagpapakain sa mga frontliners at ang mga relief operations niya sa tulong din at suporta ng ibang mga tao at mga organisasyon. Pero 'yung great efforts and hardships ni Lovely, hindi mapapantayan 'yun! Dahil naging consistent ang mga pagtulong na ginawa iya. Palagi at madalas, in many numerous charity acts. Oh, my! SALUDO.

Salamat naman at pinaunlakan kami ni Lovely sa isang Q & A na interbyuhan sa FB Messenger. This is our tribute to a soul whose acts will never get unnoticed in the times of a Pandemic.

Read and enjoy this beautiful and very inspiring Question and Answer with Miss Lovely. It will surely brighten up your day!

ROBERT: A lot of people have seen your countless works for the Frontliners, cooking and distributing their food in many different places and hospitals. Your angelic acts of love had become VIRAL. And my question is: What kind of fulfillment and happiness do you get in helping the Frontliners?

LOVELY: My friends & people ask me that question all the time. They say “di ka ba napapagod?” My usual answer is this - Yes, napapagod pero masarap na klase ng pagod. When I see how appreciative people are and when they lovingly react to whatever I am doing para tumulong sa maliit na paraan na kaya ko at pag nakikita ko na sa sandaling iyon ay naka tulong ako ng konti na mas mapawi yung hirap na dinadala nila, it restores my faith in humanity, it gives me hope na kahit lahat tayo ay hirap at may kanya kanyang dinadala dulot ng pandemya, buhay pa rin ang pakikipag kapwa tao at bayanihan and that inspires me to go on and help one person at a time. At sa pamamagitan ng mga ginagawa ko, natutulungan din nila ako at natutulungan ko rin ang sarili ko. Dahil may pwede pala ako gawin, may silbi pa pala ako at sa gitna ng takot at pangamba, in the midst of uncertainty, I can make a little difference and I can be productive and be part of the solution and not part of the problem. This helps me keep my sanity.

ROBERT: How did it start, Ms. Lovely? I mean, helping and cooking food for the Frontliners? What motivated you!

LOVELY: Hindi agad “feeding the frontliners” ang umpisa nito eh. Nag evolve nalang. Nag umpisa ito dahil may negosyo ako na Booking & Events company. My company, named Fabuloso Artists & Events Management & PR services Inc, books and sometimes manages Filipino performers & bands for overseas and local bookings. Dahil dito, nung nag umpisa ang pandemya sila ang isang industriya na naapektuhan talaga at mukhang huling makaka recover dahil sarado ang mga restos/bars/clubs na pwede nila pag tanghalan abroad at dito satin, so I was having sleepless nights kasi naging negosyo ko yun at di ko maatim na walang gawin para tulungan yung mga displaced bands & musicians natin. So together with my co-managers & agents, we formed Kaagay ng Bandang Pilipino, where we tried to reach out to people for help to aid our musicians and nagkaroon ito ng ripple effect sa band industry coz now, yung mga medyo mas naka aangat sa buhay na band managers & band members are coming together to help other band members na mas nag hihirap. So dumami na yung nag tutulungan. Nakakatuwa yung bayanihan spirit that ensued. Dito ko rin inumpisahan yung Food “care packages” namin. Namili ako ng mga pagkain (de lata, noodles and fresh gulay) at rice. One food care package aims to feed a small family for atleast 3 days man lang. Pero syempre, my personal resources are limited but dahil talagang God provides, all of a sudden, nag padala yung friend ko na si Elliz Cochanco, may- ari ng Fly Ace food products, ng boxes and boxes of their food products at may mga friends rin na nag donate ng bigas. Yung One Marikina group under Asec Janneth Ong na pinakilala sakin ng isang malapit na showbiz friend, si Alma Concepcion, ay nag bigay ng mga vitamins at supplements para ipamigay. Lahat yun ay pinag sama-sama ko sa mga Food care packages kaya naituloy ko ito. Lahat sila hindi ko hiningian, basta nalang nag te-text at tumatawag kaya talagang si God yun eh. So, yun na nga, nag tuloy tuloy na yung pamimigay ng Food Care Packages until now. Pati yung mga kapatid natin sa industry na mga displaced production crew na tinutulungan din nila Direk Rado at Direk L.A., nakapag padala din tayo ng mga Food Care packages doon. Then, yung daughter ko na si Nadine, very active sya na nag fee-feed ng mga frontliners natin together with our fb group na “Let’s Eat Pare”. So naisip ko, mahilig ako mag cook at may culinary background din ako and my partner was a chef, so our small team of 3 (me, my partner and our staff na na quarantine with us), started cooking na for the frontliners, in and out of the hospitals. Nag eenjoy na ako, na prapractice ko pa ang cooking skills ko and in my own small way, through the food that I prepare, napaparamdam ko ang pagmamahal, pag saludo, suporta at pag hanga ko sa ating mga modern day heroes. Tapos, grabe na yung dating ng suporta mula sa mga kaibigan atkahit sa mga di ko gaano kakilala, mostly from the States at pati dito sa atin. They started contacting me to sponsor meal services for our frontliners so I started matching their donations to a hospital or a group na nag rerequest ng help through a meal service. Nag tuloy tuloy na ito and if I may mention, sobrang laking tulong sakin ng friend ko from the States na si Malou Soyangco coz through her effort, ang daming mga friends nya ang sumoporta. Tapos another friend, Jenny Umali, who is a life coach and self help guru in the States and a former model/part time actress when she was still in Manila, contacted me. She wanted to help me further but she wanted to take it to the next level. So her “Expose & Express” team created a fundraising project to be able to continuously feed the frontliners and give out Food care packages. Nang hingi na sya ng donations kasi gusto nya tulungan ako na mag tuloy tuloy itong ginagawa ko. So until now, ang schedule ng aming meal services at care package distribution ay until June pa at hanggang may sumusuporta ay di kami titigil dahil hindi pa tapos ang laban sa Covid19 at sa kahirapan kahit mag G-GCQ na. To date, sa pinag sama-samang tulong ng mga mabubuting puso na sponsors at donors, we have prepared almost 1,000 meal packs for our frontliners in more than 25 hospitals and given out more or less 300 Food “Care Packages” and we’re still going! I am humbled to be a just a channel, a vessel of their generosity. At kaya nga sa lahat ng mga posts ko, I have a tag line, which is some sort of my promise too: “Posting for the purposes of #transparency, #accountability and most of all, #gratitude.

ROBERT: Like Miss Glenda Garcia, another fellow actress of yours who does things silently, and help people without much publicity and media hypes, do you feel that celebrities must now go out of their 'comfort zones' to be more connected to the people?

LOVELY: I really admire and am inspired by celebrities or even by ordinary people who go out of their comfort zones to make a difference in the world, no matter how little. I see it as a show of respect and empathy, some sort of saying, not with words but through actions, that “I feel your pain, I may not be able to take it away but I want you to know that I acknowledge it, I am here at di ka nag iisa sa pinag dadaanan mo at ito ang kakarampot na tulong ko pero binibigay ko yan ng buong puso.” Nung una, when I started doing this on my own lang, I never posted it or used social media but nung may nag do-donate na, I felt the need for transparency kaya ako nag post and because of that siguro na inspire yung mga nakakita, ang dami ng nag reach out to help at doon ko na realize na di naman pala dapat husgahan negatively ang pag post ng kawanggawa sa social media kung maganda naman ang kinalalabasan. Thats why, whether we post or not, ang mahalaga is the intention kung bakit mo yun ginagawa at pag ang resulta ay mas para sa ikabubuti at ikagaganda, whether we do it quietly or whether with much fanfare gaya ng ginagawa ng iba (and i mean no judgement sa mga ganun), ang importante, for me is mag trickle down yung tulong sa mga tao at mapunta talaga sa dapat maka tanggap and if it means going out of your comfort zone, by all means, do it.

ROBERT: Who are the people, or other groups or organizations would you want to thank for, by supporting you in your angelic charity works?

LOVELY: Gaya ng lagi kong sinasabi, if I will depend on my own resources lang, for sure hindi ko kakayanin makatulong ng ganito katagal but because of the kindness & generosity of many people, tuloy tuloy ito. I’d like to thank and applaud the following: Elliz Cochanco & family of Fly Ace Food Corp., Malou Soyangco & friends, my daughter Nadine Nocom and Cafe’ Naci, Ala Domingo, Asec Janneth Ong, Tala Vera, Alma Concepcion & Chairman Eduardo Francisco of ONE MARIKINA MRRD NECC, my Rotary club family- RCMD headed by Dr. Valdecanas, I am Hope organization headed by Bea Alonzo & Rina Navarro and of course, Ms. Jenny Umali, Christian Bimmer and the whole “Expose and Express” team for creating the “Feed a Frontliner through Lovely’s Food Giving Movement” fundraising project. Most of all, sa lahat ng sponsors, sa mga nag donate in cash and in kind at mga tumulong sa pag di-distribute ng Food “Care Packages” at pati sa mga household staff at driver ko na tumutulong sa pag prepare ng meal packs, ng food care packages at sa delivery para magawa ko ang lahat ng ito. Walang katapusang pasasalamat .

ROBERT: SEEING PERSONALLY AND FEELING ALL THE DRAMA FIRST-HAND, UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL, WOULD YOU SAY BY NOW THAT THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IS INDEED ONE GREAT HEALTH CRISIS THAT ALL PEOPLE MUST BE EXTRA-CAREFUL OF?

LOVELY: Seeing the pandemic up close through my exposure and proximity to the people greatly affected by it, I’d say, yes, Covid 19 is indeed a great health crisis that we all must be careful of but more than that, I also saw how people can move mountains when their hearts open up and come together to help each other. Nakita ko ang bayanihan, ang malasakit, ang pag mamahal. People cooking for people they dont know personally. Celebrities, private companies and ordinary people doing the best they can to ease each other’s burdens. Overall, more than the negativity that Covid 19 brought, I saw the humanity of people in action amidst this tragedy.

ROBERT: In your relief operations and distribution of relief goods, how affected were you in seeing the people's sufferings?

LOVELY: Basically, I think the greatest fear of people amidst this pandemic is the loss of freedom to freely go about, move around and hustle to try and “bring home the bacon”, so to speak. Pigil ang kilos ng mga tao na humanap ng pagkakakitaan and because most people live from paycheck to paycheck, yun lang di ka maka trabaho, maka labas ng bahay para maka hanap ng pagkakakitaan ay malaking pasakit na. Nakaka durog ng puso makita ang gutom, dalamhati at takot sa mukha ng mga tao.

ROBERT: What can you say about the future of of the Philippine Entertainment Industry and the acting field of work after the Covid-19 Pandemic?

LOVELY: One of the most hardly hit sectors is the Entertainment Industry talaga. Mga live performers, actors, production staff and crew- lahat apektado. First, most of us are hired on a per project, no work no pay basis and even when we go back to the “new normal” at mag resume na ang mga tapings, syempre may mga guidelines that need to be followed like social distancing, etc. As a result, I think shows will limit their casts and crew to a minimum and because of this, they will need to hire fewer actors, fewer production people. Even live concerts / performances/theater performances are discouraged. Even mga presscons will not happen for now, I think. It will all be virtual nalang muna. So we can just imagine how many people will lose their jobs or not be employed as much as they used to be. Its a very bleak year for us in Entertainment.

ROBERT: Among the CHIKAS group of actresses that was launched by the late film producer Baby Pascual (R.I.P.) in the early 1990'S, you are still among those who's visible. Are you still in contact with your fellow CHIKAS?

LOVELY: Lima kami na sabay sabay ni-launch sa Chikas, namely: Karla Kahlua, Tanya Gomez, Rachel Anne Wolf, Jaclyn Jose & myself. Kasama rin ang dad mo na tumulong sa pag propromote sa amin noon kaya salamat din sa kanya. Lahat silang apat, kahit paano, medyo alam ko ang whereabouts dahil na rin sa Social Media. Although hindi kami madalas nagkaka usap talaga, when we do, nandun pa rin yung familiarity and bond that we developed nung Chikas days.

ROBERT: You are one among those prettiest faces that I have seen in local showbiz, once the Pandemic is over, will you still be accepting acting jobs?

LOVELY: First of all, thank you for the kind words. I appreciate it very much and , yes, after the pandemic is over, I hope and I pray to go back to working as an Actress. Unang una, passion ko talaga ito at pinaka masaya ako na ginagawa ito bukod sa syempre kailangan din natin talaga ng trabaho. Kaya sana nga ay magkaroon din ako agad ng project sa mainstream tv. Although on cable, may konting raket ako yung, Culinary & Lifestyle show na uumpisahan na namin sana before the pandemic, yung “A taste of Love”. But this is more of like a personal project that I do with a group of production people na naging good friends ko na. Kaya ang talagang pinag dadasal ko ay magkaroon ulit ng regular show after ng Pandemic kagaya ng Sahaya and I also look forward to doing tv guestings again and hosting. Nakaka miss na mag taping!

ROBERT: LAST QUESTION, MS. LOVELY. Your message to the Filipino people like me and you, who are all affected by the Corona Virus disease. How can we lift up are spirits again?

LOVELY: “Alam ko na lahat tayo ay nahihirapan ngayon. We are all under the same storm although not on the same boat dahil ang iba ay mas matibay ang bangka kaysa sa atin. Kaya sana tulungan natin yung mga nakasakay sa bangka na hindi masyadong matibay para maka sagwan at ng malagpasan din nila ang bagyong ito. This is the time to be a “man for others”. Ang maganda lamang nito, kagaya ng iba pang mga pangit na napag daanan na natin dati, lahat naman ay lumilipas kaya wag tayong mawawalan ng pag-asa. When everything is lost, we need to have FAITH that things will get better because that will be the only thing that will keep us hopeful, positive and motivated. Most of all, always remember that there is a God who is bigger and mightier than all of the ugliness in this world.”

------ end of interview--------

QUESTIONS AND INTRO WORDS BY ROBERT MANUGUID SILVERIO

ANSWERS BY MS. LOVELY RIVERO

Photos Cortesy of Ms. Lovely Rivero

NOTE: Photos below were not captioned because it speaks for itself, and to create a "more dramatic feeling". Thank you.---rms*