Bringing together sport, community, and purpose in a one-day fundraising event.
Last April 12, the ABS-CBN Foundation and Pickleball Hub successfully mounted the Perfect Match Pickleball Tournament, which gathered around 100 players who competed in doubles matches.
The event featured three divisions; The Masters, The Prime, and The Next Gen, catering to different age groups and skill levels.
But the highlight of the day was the Kapamilya Celebrity Exhibition, which was exclusive to Kapamilya artists and sponsors.
Among those present were ABS-CBN Foundation Managing Director Roberta Lopez Feliciano, Pickleball Hub Co-Founder Rob Henares, and Tournament Director Pardner Azarcon.
Kapamilya players who participated included Tirso Cruz III, director Andoy Ranay, Cherry Pie Picache, Marc Solis, Maika Rivera, Nikki Valdez, and reporter Jervis Manahan.
Lopez-Feliciano, in the press release noted, “At the Foundation now, we’re really making an effort to spread awareness about our advocacies, and pickleball is such a popular sport nowadays.“
“So, it’s just a way to get people interested and to know about what we do. We want to do activities that will pull people in,” she added.
For his part, Henares told, “Isa sa mga objectives namin dito sa Pickleball Hub is makatulong sa mga Pilipino. And this is our small little way [of doing that].”
Proceeds from the competition are said to directly support the ABS-CBN Foundation’s key advocacies, such as the child protection and development (Bantay Bata 163), disaster response (Sagip Kapamilya), environmental conservation (Bantay Kalikasan), education initiatives (Programa Genio), and sustainable livelihood efforts (GaLing Pamayanan).
Aside from this, the foundation will also mount a fun run event this June, called the Kapamilya Run, in Muntinlupa City for the benefit of the same advocacies.