The Regional Development Council (RDC) VIII-Executive Committee honored the three regional winners of the Search for Outstanding COVID-19 Volunteers 2020 (SOCV 2020) during the RDC VIII Executive Committee Meeting on 15 December 2020 on Zoom.

Mr. Niño Archie S. Labordo took the top prize as the Most Outstanding Regional COVID-19 Volunteer in the region for 2019, while Mr. Francisco F. Buctot, Jr. and Ms. Asuncion A. Pernites were named Outstanding Regional COVID-19 Volunteers.

Mr. Labordo led multiple campaigns during the pandemic, first to give out Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other medical supplies to health workers in Tarangnan, Samar at the height of the pandemic, then providing food packs for checkpoint personnel and orientation webinars for nurses, all while working regularly as a Nutrition Officer at the National Nutrition Council (NNC) VIII and as a triage nurse at the Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Tacloban City.

On the other hand, Mr. Francisco F. Buctot, Jr., as Assistant Director, Executive Operations and External Affairs of the Southern Leyte State University – Hinundayan Campus led the efforts of SLSU to provide support to the community by harnessing the expertise of the University – such as the making of face shields, disinfectants and fliers for COVID-19 awareness and prevention, and the manufacturing of food packs and agricultural food products for frontliners, students, and ordinary households.

Ms. Asuncion A. Pernites mobilized external resources and even used her own money to provide meals frontliners, all while volunteering as a border frontliner in the Kawayan Border Checkpoint.

All three were recognized for selflessly offering their time, services, skills, and resources to help the community’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Article and Photos by:  Knulp Aseo