Bagets...All Grown Up Now

"We are not just about kalokohan now," emphasizes Cheska Iñigo, who was 12 at the time of the filming of the original "Bagets" movie in the 1980s. "We want to be seen and remembered as responsible, successful individuals who have been through a lot and survived. We would like to stand as an example to kids now, that you really can go through life’s difficulties and come out on top; that just because life has been difficult for you, it doesn’t mean that you have to be screwed up forever."

The "Bagets" movies launched the careers of some of today’s popular actors like Aga Muhlach, William Martinez, Herbert Bautista, Ramon Christopher and singers like Raymond Lauchengco and Francis Magalona, actresses Eula Valdes, Jobelle Salvador, Yayo Aguila, and Cheska Iñigo. The movie brought them together to form a close-knit friendship, and they have been meeting regularly over the years, lending each other support when needed, or just plain reliving their teen years and good times. Recently though, the gatherings have been more purposeful, and led to the birth of the Bagets Foundation.

Since its inception more than a year ago, the cast members, together with their director and mentor Maryo J. delos Reyes, have been meeting monthly to get the foundation into full gear. The foundation is dedicated to providing youth of marginalized families with access to education in the arts, to provide a support group and an efficient platform for future job placement.

"It is about time we grow up in front of the same eyes that saw us as teenagers, trying to make out life’s mysteries and doing things for sheer fun," Lauchengco admits. Even if its cast members have tackled more challenging and mature roles and have moved on to other pursuits, the Bagets are remembered with nostalgia. With the foundation, the Bagets want to show how they are moving on and moving along to the beat of the times.

Ten students from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) will form the initial roster of scholars of the Foundation this coming school year. Assisted by Dr. Robert F. Soriano, dean of the College of Communication of PUP, these freshman and sophomore students in journalism and broadcast communication who have excellent academic records in high school were chosen after rigid screening. All of them come from economically marginalized families. The foundation will pay the students’ tuition fees and book allowance, and the students in turn will be expected to excel in academics and develop their potentials in their chosen field. The scholars are between the ages of 12 and 20, the same ages of the cast members when they did the movie.

If these youngsters have any similarity with the Bagets icons, it would be their desire to prove themselves. Being in the circle of scholars will test their limits, something that the proponents know all too well.

"Papatunayan po namin na di kayo nagkamali sa pagpili sa amin," says Azcarraga, 18. But they also admit to their need to be accepted and supported. "Basta nandyan po kayo, kaya namin," says Origenes, 19.

The foundation members are heeding that special need, and are personally channeling their resources to making their scholars well rounded. Not only will these scholars enjoy the financial assistance given by the foundation, they will also be immersed into the two other equally important programs of the foundation.

They believe that to solidify the learning of these students, mentoring is crucial. "Kami mismo ang magiging mentors nila," says Iñigo. The foundation has a big sister-big brother setup wherein each member of the Bagets foundation will mentor one of the students. The mentorship program offers the youth the opportunity to listen to the personal testimonies of the foundation’s members about the transforming power of creative expression. The Bagets Foundation seeks to ensure that while the deserving students are getting an academic education, their emotional and spiritual well-being are looked after as well.

And the one component that completes the triumvirate mission of the foundation is career placement. Through career placement, the foundation hopes to assist its scholars in finding jobs in the industry after they have properly been prepared for future careers, in this case, in the communication and entertainment industries.

"Now that we are in a position to help them, we are taking advantage of the chance to give back to the industry that has been very good to us. Without the industry that propelled us to popularity, we wouldn’t have gotten the chances that we had," says Lauchengco.

"And we would like very much to share our vision with others who have the desire to help these students," adds Bautista, who chairs the foundation. The foundation is open to corporate sponsors willing to partake of the responsibility in seeing these scholars through graduation and employment.

"We will also work with other colleges and universities. PUP is just the start," adds Bautista, who strongly belies the notion that his active involvement in the Foundation is part of a political agenda. "Our scholars are not all from Quezon City, just two of them. My Bagets family needs me to be here simply because we know that these kids need us most. In fact, one of them was about to stop studying next school year, if not for the scholarship," Bautista declares.

The heart of the foundation is the desire to give access to education. And the Bagets’ members are doing this now because they are bridging the gap in time when they could have pursued their degrees. "Kami kasi nung panahon namin, there were no programs in place to support us in our ‘wow’ moment. Daming pera, sikat ka, ang dali-daling magsabi na ayaw ko na mag-aral kasi at that point fame is there like forever. But at the end of the day, it will not stay with you. Without an education, what will you do? How will you feed your family? It is really important," explains Iñigo, who admits that most of them quit school at the height of their fame.

With the exception of Bautista who finished his education in a "real" school, most of the Bagets’ members are now catching up on the classroom education they missed.

"I eventually went back. I got my degree. I’m taking my master’s now at UP Open University. But most of us, when we got into this industry, gave up our education for it, then later on realized how important it was," shares Iñigo, who juggles her tasks as mother, student, and treasurer of the foundation.

They themselves may only now be playing catch up with their education, but they definitely will change the lives of the 10 scholars. As successful actors and actresses now, not to mention parents to their own kids, they know better how to use their talents and resources.

"We do have fees and dues," explains Aguila, the Foundation’s secretary. "This forms the core of the funds we are using to send these students to school." And apart from their contributions, the Bagets Foundation regularly holds fundraising activities to support its programs. Cast member Raymond Lauchengco recently kicked off his concert series with a benefit for the Bagets Foundation, leading off other concerts which will also benefit the foundation. An album by member Eula Valdes is in the works. Several other projects are being pursued to raise more funds and eventually increase the number of scholars.

"Our foundation is just more than a year old. And as we are strengthening our operations, we hope people will understand that at the moment, we are not entertaining direct applicants. What we have is tie ups with the colleges," explains Iñigo, as the foundation is besieged by a lot of scholarship applicants. "We will definitely broaden our programs to include more young people as we have more resources."

Back in the ‘80s, they made a movie that not only defined their generation but gave voice to a new youth culture. A lot of people tried to imitate the way they dressed and danced. Now, in a different time, they are dancing to a new tune. The Bagets have another example to set. And this time, their words are no longer mixed with funky beats or psychedelic fashion. They have now chosen other teenagers to learn from the lessons of their generation.

For more information on the Bagets Foundation, email [email protected] or call (0920) 9389004.