Jose Corazon de Jesus, also known by his pen name Huseng Batute, was a Filipino poet who used Tagalog poetry to express the Filipinos' desire for independence during the American occupation of the Philippines, a period that lasted from 1898 to 1946. He is best known for being the lyricist of the Filipino anthem Bayan Ko. Huseng Batute was born on 22 November 1896 in Santa Cruz, Manila to Vicente de Jesus, the first health bureau director of the American occupation government, and Susana Pangilinan of Pampanga. He was christened Jose Cecilio de Jesus but he later dropped Cecilio and replaced it with the Spanish name Corazon (heart) because he said it best described his character. De Jesus spent his childhood in Santa Maria, Bulacan, his father's hometown. He completed his education at the defunct Liceo de Manila, where he graduated in 1916. His first published poem was Pangungulila (Yearning), which was published in the defunct Ang Mithi (The Ideal) in 1913 when he was 17 years old. In 1920, he received his bachelor of laws degree from the defunct Academia de Leyes but he never practised his legal profession because he was already busy writing a column in verse for the Tagalog newspaper Taliba. The column was called Buhay Maynila (Manila Life) which he wrote under the pseudonym Huseng Batute. Through his column, de Jesus satirized society under the American colonizers and espoused independence for the Philippines which was then a commonwealth under the United States. De Jesus published some 4,000 poems in his Buhay Maynila column... (read more)

Gawad Kalinga (GK) translated in English means "to give care," it is a Philippine-based anti-poverty movement. It provides a Christian based holistic approach to poverty alleviation dealing with all community aspects that include values formation, community organization and involvement, education, basic health care, and livelihood programs. It started in 1995 as a daring initiative by Couples for Christ to rehabilitate juvenile gang members and help out-of-school youth in Bagong Silang, Caloocan City... (read more)

• Mamerto A. Hilario was a Filipino novelist in the early 1900s. He wrote the novel Luha ng Babae...

• Pedro S. Dandan was a Palanca Award-winning Filipino fictionist, playwright and poet...

• Maria Ylagan-Orosa is a Filipino pioneer food technologist, pharmaceutical chemist, humanitarian and war heroine...

• Chadleen Lacdo-o is a Filipino singer and the Singing Ambassador of Operation Smile Philippines...

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  Manny Pacquiao stops Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto to win his seventh title in seven boxing divisions.
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  Phivolcs places Mt. Mayon under Alert Level 2 after exhibiting two ash explosions.
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Hello Epey! Corregidor was compared to Gibraltar, the peninsular fortress that guards the main entrance to the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Africa. American servicemen who came to the Philippines during the World War noticed Corregidor's resemblance to the fortress in Europe and dubbed it the “Gibraltar of the East.” Both Corregidor and Gibraltar were also alternately dubbed “The Rock.” If want to know more about Corregidor and its rich historical records, click HERE.

• Efren Peñaflorida - hero of education
• Higantes Festival - grand paper-mâché parade
• Clark Air Base - urbanized military facility
• Trinidad Tecson - woman of the revolution
• Mock Battle of Manila - advent of American colonization
• Francisco V. Coching - Philippines' greatest illustrator
• Battle of Leyte Gulf - largest naval battle in history
• Ma Mon Luk - food trip in old Manila
• Vintage Magazines - back to back issues