Monday, October 19, 2009

pinoy community leaders/achievers

Suzette GM Lopez:

The woman in the mirror


By DAVID CASUCO


There are nationalists, freedom fighters, and street p

arliamentarians. And then there is Suzette Granada Mallorca Lopez.


During the dark days of Martial Law, when the brightest minds in the Philippines were locked up behind bars and the traditionally vibrant Manila media totally muzzled up, Suzette was a s

mall voice crying for social justice from the squalid Tondo area. She stood her ground, albeit shaky, and continued to denounce the evils of the Marcos government.


The usually aggressive and cruel military spared her ofany harm despite her open dislike of the people in the Palace. The military probably did not look at her as a serious threat because she was just twenty-something and possesses with a disarming and irresistible Ilongga charm. They were wrong when they underestimated what this headstrong lady could do. She was out there rallying the Tondo folks to support the opposition forces. She did not blink while she was fighting the oppressive regime. She was one of the frontliners among very staunch street parliamentarians that included the late Chino Roces.


Representing the Manilena Jaycees in the 1986 presidential elections, Suzette was the take-charge person in notorious Tondo for “fair and honest elections.” She did her job very well in a district where hard-knocks rule the streets.


When freedom was finally won, Suzette and her fellow activists found out to their dismay that there was a bigger battle to be fought. She was appalled at how breast-beating power brokers jumped over the picket fence to rejoin new administration. She couldn’t believe that the

cause she values so much is but a pipe dream.


“It was very devastating for us (activists and freedom fighters). It was like we’re looking at ourselves with shattered glasses,” said Suzette. “We realized that there was just no way to repair a rotten bureaucracy.”


She turned to God. She then understood everything.


Suzette’s spiritual journey led her to the understanding that the biggest problem in this world is not social injustice, or poverty, or bureaucratic malfunction. She found out that man’s biggest problem is sin. And that is why God sent a savior in Jesus Christ, and not some str

eet parliamentarian.


“I still pick up fights every now and then. But now I am very confident and strong. I draw my strength from the Lord,” she said, quoting Paul’s words in the bible. “I think I have done my part. I may not have impacted the system, but I believe I have ‘given my seat to the disabled’,” she said, paraphrasing the logo of “Project Pintura” that she spearheaded with fellow Manilena Jaycees in the early 80s and brought them five international awards and recognition.

Now working as a realtor and an underwriter, Suzette flair for activism has entered another dimension,this time as a strong advocate for “knowing your roots and culture.”


“I noticed that Filipinos and Filipino-Americans in California do not have access to their cultural roots. I figure out that there has to be some way to re-educate the parents of this generation who do not have the desire to teach their kids about the rich heritage of their homeland,” she said.


Suzette introduced a Filipino cultural renaissance of sorts using the cultural programs of the Sining Kambayoka Cultural Arts Foundation, Inc. (website: skcafi.org), a non-profit organization she co-founded. She spent a lot of her personal resources to finance SKCAFI projects.


Last year proved to be a banner year for the organization. Suzette gave her unwavering support and great effort to the mission of the foundation and SKCAFI entered into the consciousness of the Fil-Am community. They did it by doing cultural performances in events, big and small, all over California, Nevada, Texas, New York, and Hawaii.


The SKCAFI cultural performers spearheaded by award winning choreographers and artists from the Philippines like Basilidas Pilapil, Rowena and Feriorein Bontor, Eddie Michael Casuga II, Clareve Banate, Zahra Mallorca and Emman Mallorca, joined by the locals: Joy, Zsa-Zsa, Muriel and Gabrielle (the Orbe-Brown performers) and the Alunan clan staged great performances – capped by their splendid stage and street dancing presentations at the famous Honululu Festival where they represented the Philippines. The group also opened the pre-game of Dodgers vs. Chargers at the Dodgers Stadium staging the exotic and ethnic tribal dances of Southern Philippines to the amusement of the elated crowd. With the support of the City of Carson and some Mindanao organizations, SKCAFI launched the first ever street dancing festival and exhibit in the city amidst the 30,000 attendees to celebrate the Philippine Independence Day.


Looking at her personal resume, Suzette who was raised by a very conservative Catholic family of Ilonggos – is indeed, an in

teresting copy. She is what people call a remarkably gifted person. Consider: A consistent honor student from elementary to high school, was voted best cheerleader and most rounded personality when she graduated high school. She was a university scholar and finished Accounting at the University of Iloilo (UI). She is gifted with a sweet velvety voice that could hold water on a professional level.


“The plan was laid out for me to become a recording singer. I wanted to become a lawyer. My mother would not have me either,” she said. “So, I ended up with a degree in Accounting at the University of Iloilo. I was a university scholar then,” she deadpanned.


She could have been a successful professional singer, or lawyer, but as a salesperson she soared to great heights. Once, while working at the Systems and Business Equipment Corporation (a subsidiary of Smith Bell and Co.), her boss challenged her to bring in millions order from a government agency. Suzette, the first woman sales representative to work with the company, was able to close the deal in a couple of hours to the chagrin of the whole male sales staff.


As a real estate professional and a life agent manager in California, Suzette does her work on a high level. She keeps a high-strung lifestyle as her job demands it. She drives around L.A. on her Mercedes Benz with an average of 100-200 miles a day.

“Building a good rapport with clients is rewarding, and the benefits that go with it are very good. Of course, life sometimes gets crazy, and we find ourselves holding the short end of the stick. Do I ever sulk or complain? Nah, the very thing that keeps me going is knowing that I have a God I can count on when the chips are down,” she said.