Mrs. Thelma Ninonuevo Billy of Fairfax, Virginia, a member of the board of directors of the Associatin of Ilonggos in Metropolitan Washington D.C. (AIM) was among the recipients of the 2006 third annual Distinguished Community Service Award of the Asian American Business Roundtable (AABR) at ceremonies at the North Bethesda Marriott in Rockville, Maryland Nov. 10.
She is well
known to the hordes of homeless roaming the streets of this Nation's Capital.
She hails from Lapaz, Iloilo City and
Fabrica, Negros Occidental. Her regular weekly "Feed the Homeless"
schedule outside the Center for Creative Non‑Violence (CCNV)‑‑ a Homeless
Shelter in Washington DC ‑‑‑ is a personal commitment she fulfills religiously
for the past ten years.
An active
member of AIM, Inc., she facilitates regular shipment of Balikbayan Boxes in
containerized vans of brand new and slightly used clothing, canned goods,
books, etc. to depressed barangays in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao in
coordination with local church leaders and NGOs. The systematic collection of
US donations is done with the help of her Parish Church, the K of C, generous
friends, close acquaintances and even school children.. With proper
recommendation, displaced and jobless Pinoys and others of different ethnic
backgrounds can always rely on her kind support and generous assistance from
Thelma N.
Billy
When asked how
her personal crusade started and why, here's what she narrated:
"About 10
years ago‑‑‑ without even knowing it‑tears fell when I saw two obviously
homeless guys quarreling over left‑over food from the trash bin, so I gave each
$5.00."
"From
then on, I started the weekly feeding program with the support of my husband
and later, with his K of C Group. We decided to share the blessings bestowed
upon us by the Blessed Mother to the less fortunate‑‑‑ the hungry and the
homeless." Do you accept donations?
When asked if
she accepts monetary donations, she replied "not cash, just in kind."
Thelma is
married to Lt. Cmdr. George Hamilton Billy, USN (Ret), Past Grand Knight (PGK)
of the Knights of Columbus‑‑‑ Fr. Diamond Council of St. Leo the Great Parish
in Fairfax, Virginia. The couple who have two children, Elizabeth and George
Michael III, also donated $1,000.00 to Gawad Kalinga "AIM‑Iloilo Village
Project" in Buntatala, Jaro, Iloilo City.
Likewise, Mrs. Dolores Marie Billy‑the family
matriarch‑‑‑ financed the construction of
Santa Monica Church in Oton, Iloilo. Her continued support, serves not
only the spiritual but sometimes even medical needs of Barangay Santa Monica
residents.
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