In November 2006, my husband and I went off to Montemar Beach Club in Bagac, Bataan. More than just a leisure trip, this outing was primarily to attend the Grand Pawikan Fest, a special project to relate the importance of the “pawikan” (Philippine sea turtle), not only to the locals of Bataan, but to everyone in the Philippines.
My husband and I learned about this Pawikan Conservation Project from colleagues in his Rotary Club District. As Rotarians, they have been constantly searching for worthwhile activities that they can participate in to help the society progress in any way possible.
According to the management of Montemar, this project started when they noticed turtle hatchlings wandering on the beach of the resort in 2003. They then reported this to the involved bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Meetings and observations were conducted regarding this discovery. Training of locals who were going to manage the proposed turtle hatchery program was also done.
All these led to this Grand Pawikan Fest, which was highlighted by the ceremony of releasing our sponsored “pawikan” hatchling into the clear waters of Montemar.
After a whole day of basking in the sun and swimming in the sea, the program started right before dusk with the awarding of certificates to all sponsors of the “pawikan” hatchlings. All of the sponsors, were then given a hatchling each. We all proceeded to the shore and released the hatchlings all at the same time, as the sun was setting. It was truly a touching moment. It was so inspiriting to see that there are still many people, families, in fact, who care for the environment.
The Grand Pawikan Fest is now an annual event to continuously help this Pawikan Conservation Project. We only needed to donate 800 pesos to sponsor a pawikan hatchling and help conserve this endangered creature. For me, it was truly an inexpensive, simple and exciting way of helping our biological environment.