According to WWJD, Tuloy sa Don Bosco School in Manila, Philippines was established in 1997 by Father Marciano Evangelista, known to his students by the affectionate nickname Father Rocky. More than just an educational institution, the organization provides a haven for at-risk youth.
Many of them lived on the dangerous streets of the city and were likely to live a life of poverty, drug addiction and crime. The Père Rocky school educates a thousand students, of whom about a third have access to accommodation. More than keeping these children off the streets and giving them a basic education, the organization emphasizes vocational training and creative expression through the performing arts.
The Père Roque Tolui Sa Don Bosco school manages to educate thousands of students each year. Nearly a third of them have been housed.
In order to ensure a better life for children in the future, the school focuses on teaching children and adolescents various professional crafts and creative forms of expression through the performing arts. These arts include painting, sculpture, cooking and singing.
The Miss World 2017 pageant chose Father Rocky as the winner of Humanitarian of the Year. Father Rocky was completely humbled and shocked that he was able to get such an excellent award from such an outstanding organization.
Singers Celine Tam and Jeffrey Lee, who were nine and twelve respectively, were to perform Rocky dad Josh Gorban’s favorite song, You Raise Me Up. The lyrics of the song are very relevant to Father Rocky’s personal life:
“You lift me up so I can stand on the mountains, You lift me up to walk on stormy seas, I’m strong when I’m on your shoulders, You lift me up more than I can.”
Jeffrey and Celine wore their best clothes during the performance. Despite his young age, each child can clearly understand the seriousness of the situation and the importance of his performance for Daddy Rocky. But that’s not all, Father Rocky’s students sang with the duo as a choir, from the Philippines.
The audience was touched just as much as Father Rocky. You could see tears streaming from their eyes twinkling from the lights above. The highlight of the performance was dozens of backing vocalists who streamed live from the Philippines to support the duo and express their thanks to the man of the hour!
