Courtesy Visit to Philippine Consulate San Francisco

Philippine Consul General to San Francisco Henry S. Bensurto, Jr. met with Project Pearls Foundation founder Melissa Villa and its volunteers and scholars at the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco on Friday, March 31, 2017.

Project Pearls Foundation is an organization based in Bocaue, Bulacan that provides scholarships for the neediest of the needy in the Philippines.

Ms. Villa was accompanied by two Bulacan-based volunteers Cathy Baculi and Peachy Abellon, as well as three scholars from Manila, namely, Catherine Orsal, Princess Soria, and Lilibeth Sucion.

Consul General Bensurto shared with them his humble beginnings and journey towards a career in the Foreign Service.  To further inspire the Project Pearls volunteers and scholars, he presented a video on the Consulate’s thrusts to Spark* Connect* Empower* Filipinos, both in the Philippines and the rest of the world.

The three scholars took part in the #HerStory Global Summit held in New York, a joint initiative from LitWorld and Global G.L.O.W. with the mission to inspire girls to be the best that they can be.

The Consulate committed to work with Project Pearls in disseminating their cause to the public and working together to spark, connect and empower Filipinos everywhere.  Ms. Villa was one of the Kalayaan Heroes in 2014, an award given by the KalayaanSF Committee to members of the Filipino-American Community who make a difference in the lives of Filipinos in the Philippines and abroad. END

(From Left to Right) Project Pears volunteers Cathy Baculi, Peachy Abellon, scholars Catherine Orsal, Princess Soria, Lilibeth Sucion, and founder Melissa Villa with Consul General Henry S. Bensurto, Jr. and Deputy Consul General Jaime Ramon T. Ascalon during their courtesy call on 31 March 2017