Heritage Program Inspires University Students

It was Kara Evangelista’s first time to visit the Casa Gorordo Museum. She considers the museum her favorite, for how the wooden structure of the nineteenth-century house has been maintained amazed her.

Amidst a sudden downpour of rain, the culmination of this year’s month-long Kabataaan, Kultura ug Kabilin (KKK) saw the participation of hundreds of students of the University of San Carlos (USC).

“Though the places are of walking distance from each other, the rain exhausted us. However, the experience was worth it. Besides it’s not often we do such. It is really something new,” Evangelista, a USC Hotel and Restaurant Management student, said.

Last September 29, student participants flocked to museums and heritage sites around downtown Cebu while completing group tasks.

The tour included Fort San Pedro, Sugbu Chinese Heritage Museum, Basilica del Santo Niño, Cathedral Museum, Jose R. Gullas (JRG) Museum, and Casa Gorordo Museum.

Each group was provided with an activity guide that they have to answer. It contains a set of questions related to or about a museum or heritage site.

Among those who facilitated the activity were students.

Earl Endab, an Anthropology student, was one of the 15 volunteer facilitators.

“I want to share my knowledge on Cebu’s history and culture to fellow students. I believe that doing so nurtures the Cebuano heritage,” Endab shared, adding that the youth has to engage themselves in activities similar to KKK other than spending most of their time on social networking sites.

Evangelista also shared Endab’s view, lauding KKK as a worthwhile activity for the youth of today’s generation whose attention is spent much on modern technology and gadgets.

“We have been influenced by technology, but seeing all these monuments and structures reminded us who the Cebuanos really are and how life was before,” she said.

“I am thankful for the chance to learn outside the classroom, to experience firsthand the lessons we have been taught in our history classes,” she added.

When KKK started in 2009, it only had 150 student participants. The program had expanded overtime as 1,650 students were in attendance last year.

KKK is organized by RAFI in partnership with the University of San Carlos (USC)-Department of Anthropology, Sociology and History, and the Cebu City Government.

The program aims to connect theoretical lectures on history, society, culture and heritage through visiting museums and heritage sites, demonstrate the value of museum and heritage sites or institutions as tools for education, encourage a dynamic dialogue between heritage groups, host communities and young people in the promotion and protection of the sites, and develop a sense of pride.

KKK is a program under Culture & Heritage, one of the focus areas of RAFI, which aims to help communities understand, value, and share their cultural identity with others. RAFI’s other focus areas are Integrated Development, Micro-finance & Entrepreneurship, Leadership & Citizenship, and Education.

For more information about KKK, please call 418-7234 local 703 and look for Florencio Moreño II or Karl Damayo, or visit www.rafi.org.ph or www.facebook.com/rafi.org.ph, or follow @rafi.org.ph on Twitter. (by Apple Ta-as/RAFI intern)