I had the rare opportunity to be one of the three special guests who inaugurated the latest IRVINS branch at the Abu Dhabi Mall last Saturday afternoon, May 27. The other two were Vin Jimenez, Managing Partner – Joy Bubble Coffee Shop, and Nidal Jaber, CFO – Al Futtaim Abu Dhabi.
We were invited by Mylene Moreño-Ante, owner of iChips Plus Foodstuff Trading LLC, the exclusive distributor in the UAE of IRVINS famous snack products such as the Salted Egg Fish Skin and Salted Egg Potato Chips. The snacks are formulated by expert chefs in Singapore. Mylene’s husband, Norbert Ante, was on hand to oversee the ribbon cutting ceremony. Norbert is a Quality Assurance professional.
According to Mylene, they operate two other kiosks at Deira City Center on the 1st Floor along the Metro Walk near Caribou Coffee and at the DMCC Metro Station – JLT side exit. They also have modern trade partners such as Little Bangkok, Super Bowl, Joy Bubble Coffee Shop, Grandiose Supermarket, Noon, and Drops.
My wife and I invited some Abu Dhabi-based friends to join us. We were very glad to see Daisy Dy-Liacco who conducted an ‘Expressive Art To Heal’ free basic painting online workshop organized by my wife, Rachel, on June 5, 2021. The participants were individuals who lost their loved ones during the pandemic. Daisy is a certified Art4Healing facilitator. She said that Art4Healing is a method designed to help people express themselves when it is difficult to articulate emotions with words. Daisy is an Art Teacher.
After 25 years in the UAE, Daisy and her husband, Ray, and their children, are going back to the Philippines for good. I had known Daisy for over 30 years. We were together with the Philippine Airlines Mountaineering Club (PALMC). The picture in this column was taken in December 1991 at Mount Pulag in Benguet which is the highest peak in Luzon. I am on the left side – very young and slim.
Another friend who is also a teacher is Dr. Rex Venard Bacarra. We call him ‘Doc Dom’ being a former monk in the Philippines. Dr. Rex has been in the UAE for 15 years. He relocated to Abu Dhabi at the start of the year where he teaches in a military institution. He has two doctoral degrees: Ph.D. in Management Research (Org. Dev. & HRM) and Ph.D. in Philosophy.
Rachel and I met Dr. Rex in November 2016 at the photo shoot of the second edition of Illustrado Magazine’s 100 Most Influential Filipinos in the Gulf. During the pandemic, our CFC community’s youth group has been fortunate to have Dr. Rex as resource speaker for several times. He talked about ‘Parenting in the Age of Covid-19’ which provides parents a greater understanding on the anxieties, fears, and boredom of the youth.
Coincidentally, another friend who has been in the country for 15 years and who used to be based in Dubai is Irene Corpuz. She is passionate about empowering women in Cyber Security through the Women in Cyber Security Middle East (WiCSME) where is a co-founder and board member. She was one of our speakers at the 3rd FEME Forum in Abu Dhabi in 2018 which was about ‘Using Mainstream and Social Media To Promote Business’. We met Irene in 2012 where she and husband Robert joined our CFC community in Jebel Ali.
Rommel and Maro Pacariem are our partners in the CFC community in Abu Dhabi who look after not only the spiritual nourishment of leaders and members but also their emotional and legal needs. Since 2018, we had organized in-person and online sessions on mental health awareness, financial literacy, labor issues, and reintegration preparations. They have been in Abu Dhabi for 15 years and are involved in Audit, Finance, and Investment operations.
Thank you Norbert and Mylene for inviting us. We were very happy to take the trip to Abu Dhabi to support your entrepreneurial journey. Plus, the opportunity to see some of our personal and CFC community friends.
