Sun Life Financial Philippines honors Financial Literacy Advocates at Sinag Awards 2017

Last week, Sun Life Financial Inc. recognized anew on Wednesday, December 6, at the Fairmont Hotel, Makati City the vital role of the journalists and online influencers in achieving its goal of enabling a financially literate country. This is my first time sharing the same stage with the President of Sun Life Financial Philippines, Ms. Riza Mantaring (above)! And YES I FINALLY WON!! BWAHAHHAHA

Now on its 4th year, SINAG: Financial Literacy Journalism Awards 2017 continues to be a nationwide competition, open to print journalists and digital influencers from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

Various stories that tackle subjects related to financial literacy, such as entrepreneurship, long-term financial planning, studies about the Filipinos’ financial habits, and updates about the market were all welcomed. These simply need to be educational, inspiring, and useful in helping Filipinos appreciate the topic of finances, the importance of money management, and the benefits of financial security.

What do you see? An award? A carved piece of glass? A reason for praise? Admiration? Inspiration? Motivation? Celebration? I see an outcome. A #goal achieved. The process of cause and effect. For some context and #perspective my dear friends; the first entry I submitted for this was way back in 2014. I have tried again and again, until I finally did it this year 2017. I'm not perfect, heck I don't even see myself as talented as the others in this space. But I did it anyway. It was not easy, #rejection never is and the outcome was not the way I imagined it; whether you #win or lose, #succeed or fail, you still win and will continue to win compared to those who do not start. Thank you for all those who have shown their support as well as to @sunlifeph ; be grateful, always! #gratitude #hustle #grateful #yolo #dailygratitude #award #philippines #reflection #personalfinance #financialliteracy #life #milestone #thankful #faith #adventure #climb #grind #rise #finance #financialeducation

A post shared by Vernon Joseph Go (@vernonjosephgo) on Dec 9, 2017 at 3:40am PST

And the winners are..

• Digital category winners: Maria Nimfa Nadtja Villaver of liitatpayat.com (Grand Winner), Clariza Gino of savingspinay.ph (1st Runner Up) and Grace Maulion of tipidmommy.com (2nd Runner Up)
• Print category winners: Daxim Lucas of Philippine Daily Inquirer (Luzon), Vernon Joseph Go of The Freeman (Visayas) and Nelson Bagaford of Sun Star Davao (Mindanao)
• Student category winners: Joevane Bitad of STI College – Alabang; Franchesca Pauline Cantos of Miriam College; Miraclene Moltio of University of Baguio and Bea Nicole Amarille of University of Sto. Tomas.

Photo-Op with the Luzon-Metro-Manila based bloggers

About Sinag Awards:
Sinag Awards is Sun Life's way of honoring the efforts to boost financial literacy in the Philippines through the stories from print, digital and the like channels. This advocacy remains as crucial as ever, as we all strive to lead more Filipinos towards the path to financial freedom

Launched last 2014, Sinag is an annual competition participated by print and digital journalists whose best works are recognized for helping educate the public to be financially responsible and educating them on the right habit and tools to be successful on their financial journey.

Sun Life Financial is a leading international financial services organization providing a diverse range of protection and wealth products and services to individuals and corporate customers.