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IAMRAFI: Of Dreaming Big

The Story of Chrisley Ann Cinco Hinayas,

Development Communication Specialist

By Marco Paulo Trajano Deligero  | August 14, 2018

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Being with RAFI for the past six years, Chrisley considers her job as an opportunity to fulfill her passion. Discover how, on her 21st birthday, her life was changed — forever.

The Young Lady From Mandaue City

Born and raised in Mandaue City, Chrisley joined Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI) in June of 2012, as her first employer, bringing her idealism and passion for development work.

Having Kara David and Howie Severino as her idols in documentaries since high school, Chrisley said that with RAFI she has been able to explore her interests in documenting social issues by retelling the stories of the organization’s partners and stakeholders.

“With the opportunity given to me before as a Communications Writer, I was able to make use of my interests in writing and conceptualizing documentaries. It provided me an avenue to tackle varied social and developmental issues. It has always been one of my passions ever since,” She shared.

She also revealed that she is not fond of using the word ‘beneficiaries’ to refer to the people the organization has helped. 

“I believe that the people RAFI has reached out to are partners because they are co-owners and co-implementers of the projects that the foundation initiates,” Chrisley added.

More Than a Job, More of a Mission

As her graduation was fast approaching in 2012, Chrisley’s professor told her that there was an opening in RAFI for a Communications Writer. She applied, and got the position. She was only 19 then.

“Through my job back then, I am blessed to meet different people from all walks of life — educators, environment advocates, students, youth leaders, and even former Moro National Liberation Front combatants, among others. It’s amazing to hear their stories which also become inspirations to others as well,” 

More than just writing the stories, she considers her published work — both in print and online media — as ‘perks’ of the job since writing is also one of her personal interests. 

For two years now, Chrisley has been focusing on Development Communication (DevComm) initiatives under the Reputation Management of RAFI. DevComm strategies, for her, is very instrumental especially in the development work of RAFI.

“There’s a lot to do when it comes to shifting our perspective from the traditional communication to Development Communication. There is a pressing need for a paradigm shift,” she added.  

‘Physically and Emotionally Drained’

Super Typhoon Haiyan or Typhoon Yolanda made a huge impact in her life. A few weeks after the typhoon’s onslaught, she, together with other two RAFInians, were deployed to Samar and Leyte to document for RAFIEye, the official newsletter created solely for that disaster response.

“It was really physically and emotionally draining. I saw utter devastation. I never expected that the effect of Yolanda was like a war zone where bombs were dropped from the sky. It was a catastrophic scene from a movie,” Chrisley recalled.

She also mentioned a time when she was assigned to write a story about a school building turnover at the mountain barangay of Babag in the town of Asturias wherein she heard about the plights of the students in going to school. 

“The students needed to wade the knee-deep river just to go to the nearest school. I felt the genuine happiness and excitement of the school staff, students, and even the parents when they heard about the rehabilitated classrooms,” she said. 

She added that there are a lot of these undocumented stories of hardships and simple life joys from the communities that need to be told, not just in RAFI but to a larger audience as well. 

“They were very grateful for the gift of a new classroom. For us to know these stories from the ground, we need to provide them with a platform to share these stories,” she said.

More Than Just Writing

For Chrisley, being with RAFI gives her a new perspective in life.

“I’ve been very blessed to be given such privilege to be a storyteller of these people. It made me reflect on the different facets of life outside the office. There are so many inspiring people out there in the field. One just needs to go out,” she added.

For her, RAFI is one of the avenues wherein she has met people with different interests yet tell extraordinary stories. She was inspired to meet kind, humble, and genuine people, especially those living in coastal and mountain barangays. 

“It is a privilege to tell and share their stories. Not all people in RAFI have that opportunity,”

“These are people who are passionate about making a difference. They may be ordinary people to many yet they are doing extraordinary things in their communities. The rawness of the stories from the ground make their lives so inspiring to share. My role is to justify their wonderful works in a creative way, and that is by writing,” Chrisley added.

‘Adopt-a-Dreamer Project’

It was in April of 2013, in planning for her 21st birthday, that her life took on a new direction.   

“I wanted to spend my birthday in a different way. I invited my college classmates, and friends to celebrate it with me together with the children of Kandingan Elementary School, a far-flung barangay in the Southern town of Aloguinsan,” she recalled.

She fondly narrated how from a simple call for donations for toys and school supplies on Facebook paved way to collect more than what she prayed for. They collected a total of 150 sets of educational materials and hygiene kits for the kids. On June 8, 2013, the group of friends went to the school and did Chrisley’s pre-birthday celebration. 

“At first, we just called the initiative as ‘adopt-a-dreamer project’ because we were just planning to really sponsor school supplies in the coming years. But, God had a bigger plan for us,” she added.

The Beginning of ‘The Dream Big Project’

As fate would have it, something bigger happened.

In 2015, during the foundation’s general assembly, Mr. Jon Ramon Aboitiz (JRA) was invited to talk about leadership. His talk, for Chrisley, re-affirmed her lifelong mission in life — to never stop dreaming big and to pursue her passion for DevComm. 

“There was a part of his talk that kept on re-echoing. JRA said: Dream big. Dream big. Never stop learning and growing! Always dream about what you want to do. Challenge the norm. Be the best that you can be!” She shared. 

“That line struck me the most, and I will never ever forget that! On that day, my passion to serve brightened even more. I decided to call our volunteer group ‘The Dream Big Project’ because after all, we are all dreamers,”

“From that talk, I learned the value of authentic leaders. JRA said that leaders do not only inspire others with their charisma, but also empower people to lead. His speech inspired me that I, too, could be a leader. I just have to start somewhere and dream big,” she said.

On The Dream Big Project and AFP Partnership

Chrisley also shared that aside from the volunteers, she owes the successes of The Dream Big Project and its initiatives to a strong partnership with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Central Command.

“So far, we have already reached more than 20 far-flung schools with over four thousand students here in Cebu. We have crossed rivers, trekked mountains, and even journeyed to almost impassable roads. We owe those blessings to our volunteers, co-advocates, partners, and the AFP,” she shared.

Aside from giving school supplies, they also conduct sessions on peace and development, environmental education, hygiene and sanitation, and arts, among others.

Lessons Learned In Life

Chrisley shares her guiding principle.

“I may not be the best in my chosen field, but it doesn’t mean that I cannot do something.  This is one of my guiding principles in battling life’s ups and downs. Whenever I feel undervalued or unappreciated, I go back to the memories of the extraordinary people I have met. They may have simple lives yet they are doing extra miles for others. That for me is a very fulfilling life to live,” she said.

She also shared that on work ethics, it is important to feel the sense of purpose in your job and how it could contribute to the bigger vision and mission of the organization. This way, one would not be lose track on why we are here in RAFI.

“You should always keep in mind that you are doing your job not just because you are being paid to do it, but also because you love it and your work has a purpose. It is also a way of giving back to the community,” she said.

On Being a RAFInian

For Chrisley, being a RAFInian means living by the values you learned even outside the walls of RAFI.

“For me, it’s simple: do not stop being a RAFInian even when you are outside the office. You should extend the values you learned from the organization in making your own little or big footprints outside. You don’t need to tag along your position or rank. Just have a genuine heart that wants to make a difference in someone else’s life,” she said.

People Who Matter

“I thank God for giving me the heart to always see the goodness in people and for giving me ‘gifts’ that I can use to extend help to other people,”

“To my family who often sees my shadow lingers on the walls of our home. They are very supportive in whatever I dream for in life,”

“To my The Dream Big Project family, who always brings out the best in me, thank you. I find my strength and grow my passion with them,”

“To the Armed Forces of the Philippines, thank you for always believing in the cause of our advocacy for the past years, for making me part of a bigger family of peace advocates,”

“To my friends and to the people I have met and interviewed, thank you for the inspiration all these years,”

“And to my RAFI Reputation Management teammates who believe in my potentials, thank you very much.” #IAMRAFI

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“These are people who are passionate about making a difference. They may be ordinary people to many yet they are doing extraordinary things in their communities. The rawness of the stories from the ground make their lives so inspiring to share. My role is to justify their wonderful works in a creative way, and that is by writing.”

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