The role of women has been basically defined as the wife, nurturer, mother, teacher and caregiver. They are fundamental roles in the development of a human society that is born from the center of family life and communities. Women shape the formative beginnings of children and have given them that breath of life in order to breathe and live in a world that holds their destinies.

           The functions of those roles are simplistic from a stand point of its structured and systematic daily procedure appearing with ease as a second nature way of life for women as wives and mothers. The ability for women to multi-task and to execute their roles with responsibility and familial life and devotion is not only admirable but great leadership at the helm of family life. Women hold the lantern of life: hope, faith, trust, and unconditional love.

           The paradox of this power and essence is that women in the past are held prisoners in their homes unable to fully express their true selves. Their functions and roles were givens in human society in the past and still  resonates to the present time and age.  She is considered an inferior and holds that position as a vital player in family life but only in conditioned situations and circumstances in society.

            Today we are witnessing a shift in women’s roles, functions and partnerships in the world. Women today after one hundred years have taken flight and have flown off cliffs and ridges and have crossed oceans to find their voices. They have expressed themselves with the intention to be leaders in the ascension of a changing world. They are standing tall beside men and see each other on an eye level understanding that they are partners and creators of a world that desires only good for its existence and purpose.

             Nations with high ratio of literacy can better achieve higher goals in the global market. They grow and develop with change and compete with advancement and inventions. They initiate training and development in their technical fields of business and educational programs. They are progressive and prepared to face the rapid movement of change. In today’s knowledge economy, the more people know, the better the chances that organizations become effective and efficient.

              In the USA and Canada the quality of education is progressing with the stepping up of educational institutions that offer vocational and training programs apart from their normal credit programs. Many schools are offering online education in order to meet the needs of the working students, mature students and even retirees.  Working people need these degrees to update their knowledge and improve their skills.  It gives them the opportunity to get better jobs.

               Even professionals like doctors and dentists are required to follow mandatory lifelong learning. It is vital to their profession so they can keep up with new information from research and development in the medical field. They have to learn new techniques of practice and perfect the old ways. Patient care and management is essential learning for people in the medical field.

               Distant learning is another way to get education and self-improvement. People who cannot travel to attend a class can enjoy studying from their homes. They learn at their own pace and time. It is an ideal way to focus and enjoy learning.

               Keeping the importance of education in mind; families must   make it a priority to instill the value of education.  It is in the home where respect for knowledge is instilled in a child’s mind. It is lived in the structure and discipline of good manners, sound values and development of the thinking process from what they are taught to what they learn in formal education.

               The importance of education cannot be neglected by any nation. It is the responsibility of nations to provide a strong and good system of education to its people. A literate country can be self sustaining and progressive. Therefore in today’s world education becomes the bloodline of economies and the bread and butter of people.

The newspaper is now a year old and each month was interesting as we all faced the learning curve with eagerness and enthusiasm. We felt motivated in every issue that we successfully prepared and published. We felt the acceptance of the community that moved us towards a better perspective to serve the needs of our readership.

We aim to give more information that would stir the good feelings and deep sense of meaning in the lives of people. There is an abundance of stimuli and we often focus in negative information that promotes restlessness and depletes our energy.  We want to give positive feelings when people read our publication. It makes life more meaningful and hopeful.

We celebrated an anniversary that was focused on honoring the good qualities that are inherent in people. We presented individuals whose lives were lived in the spirit of perseverance, commitment, integrity, dedication, loyalty, compassion, benevolence, courage, humility, magnanimity and love.

We are honored by the presence of everyone.  It was a community gesture of unity and acceptance.

Thank you to our staff and volunteers.
We appreciate your effort, time and dynamic contributions.

Each day heroes were born and lives were saved giving the survivors a new life or a taste of death. The horrific experience made everyone value life and significantly realized that each breath meant seeing a new dawn or seeing a final end.

The survivors were waiting for food and medicine and help came from all corners of the globe. However, it was challenging to get to the people because of airport facilities and road blockages. It was human resourcefulness that played a major role to bringing the city back to the pulse of life. The locals took to the nearby villages and gathered fruits and vegetation. They started cooking their food and selling their produce. They rose from the ruins and moved on to a life born from a new day.

Funds have been pouring in from the donations all over the world and diverse ways of getting financial aid to rebuild the country were bustling from different continents and countries. Cleaning the city from its dust and rumbles were tasks that were benevolently executed by an international crew of humanitarians. Thousands of dead people were buried along the hilly lands, nameless, yet each one had a story, a life once lived.

Life’s constant is CHANGE…..

The people of Haiti are resilient. They move with total acceptance to what change is in their lives. It is well written in their history as a people. The filial feeling of family and their deep faith in God are the powerful pillars that shape them to rise from every fall. This natural disaster makes them more resourceful and stronger as a people.

Leaders are vested with this power and privilege to effect and affect change with the choices taken at the crossroads of big decisions.  It is a task that ripples towards progress or decline, movement or inertia, growth or deterioration.

Communities prosper because leaders step up to manage with a vision towards progress and cooperation. Their vision is bigger than the  stumbling blocks of  fear for  the unknown and uncharted course.  They lead unshaken and undaunted by the cry of oppositions. As a matter of fact, these obstacles become stepping stones that bring them closer to their vision and purpose.

In our community, we are feeling that monumental shift of leadership in all places. They are found in circles where people convene and build friendships. The shift is a progressive trek towards what is uplifting for everyone.

It is also equally evident that the followers are individuals who also have  the right and the privilege to make choices. They are spurred towards the outcome of a choice. It is action taken that would make life easier or beneficial for them or a turn off the road to a riveting journey of consequences.

These are two realities that make us all responsible individuals making conscious and responsible choices in our lives. It is our right to exercise this opportunity every moment from the mundane to the  life changing direction. It is best to reflect on this thought when you go out there to elect political leaders, community leaders and collaborative partners and finally significant partners in business and in life.

After all, it is all about the outcome, the journey, the lesson, the pursuit, the vision, the mission …it is all about LIFE.

            Anyone can follow a path but we all know that people with leadership blaze one. Leadership can also be defined as being able to motivate and inspire others. In this way, leadership doesn’t necessarily have to come from the executive level. It is something that encourages a new direction for a group and that can come from anyone.

            Family life have leaders – they are our parents who take responsibility for growth and development as individuals with a life of purpose and meaning. Siblings have leaders that are normally vested in the eldest of the family but it can be taken over by someone whose power to stir in action becomes the chosen command.

            Nations, governments, schools, churches, organizations etc. are spawning environments for leadership.

           But it takes someone to lead, guide, conduct, steer and usher in the vision, mission, ideas, concepts, direction and destinies that mark the histories and lives of the human community and the living beings in this universe we all inhabit.

            That someone has that power and the unwavering desire to make that change and move that force and turn that energy towards a vision and mission that blazes all paths.

            The call for leadership is born in the times of urgency, in the occasion of decision making, in the advent of choice and at the edge of movement or inertia. It is determined in the depths of intentions and change.

            Corazon Cojuangco Aquino, a plain housewife and the widow of Senator Benigno Aquino the assassinated political opponent of Ferdinand Marcos   responded to the call of leadership when she became the 11^th president and the first female President of the Philippines and Asia. It was a calling that she heeded behind the peaceful movement of the People Power Revolution of February 22 to 25 1986. It was the day Ferdinand Marcos conceded and his 20 year dictatorial regime ended.

            She was a world renowned advocate of democracy, peace, women empowerment and religious piety.  Her leadership was defined with her strong faith and trust in God that she overcame several coup attempts from her opponents.

            Former President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino passed way passed away at the age of 76 last August 1, 2009. Her life mission will be recorded in the pages of our Philippine history and World history as the first woman president in Asia who rose with power and wings within the confines and sanctuary of her home to stand alone on the open arena of a shifting world order. Her leadership has blazed a historical path.

            We will wear the colors of yellow in the forms of ribbons, shirts and dresses   as memorabilia of loving remembrance of her.  

By: Elenita Belgica 

           The word community can be very misleading if we define it as a location or a distinct space in our geography. But it is more succinct when we describe it as a group of people sharing common goals and sentiments.

           At the very core, a community is a breathing organism populated by people who seek each other out for the sole purpose of working together towards a common mission.

          The beauty of community bonding is that most of the members get together because of a shared interest emanating from the community’s objectives. But they are totally different from each other. That is where both the challenge and beauty of community building come to play.

          The diversity of interest, values, origins, background and points of views are fertile grounds where communication and expansive thinking can be explored. They are the dynamic process where great action are undertaken through the open exchange of thoughts and ideas. These are the colorful fabric that are tightly woven into a massive tapestry of human development and evolution.

           The challenges and learning curves within the growing pains of community life are marked by dialogues, disputes, factions, inertia and impulsive actions. They are also necessary in clearing and pasturing of paths towards the pursuit of its objectives.

            When we are building communities we must not lose sight of our common objectives for they are the very reasons why we are together. Personal differences are manifestations of our diversity as a people. After all a sense of community is conceived in the womb of diversity.

The birth of a new newspaper is a positive sign of growth and change. It ushers in the awareness that needs are expected to be met, and purpose a resolute vehicle towards progress and process in human growth and societal evolution.

The world has shifted to a new pace and rhythm. We have to march to the beat of that calling to make a change in our values. New directions have to be plotted for life to have new meaning and depth.

Montreal Pinoy Post is a visionary spark to make a difference in the lives of people from the vantage point of print media. Our objectives is a troika: inform, educate, and entertain.

The newspaper’s sections or categories are doors that open wide to new ideas, thoughts, dynamic actions and movements lived in the daily flow of life. It gives everyone an opportunity to feel empowered by what they have shared or what they have learned or gained from the contents.

It wants the readers to have an easy read, a lightness of feeling as they peruse through the pages. Each section becomes a feel good moment. When you put the paper down, you are charged by action towards what inspired you to change or to foster new thoughts towards positive resolutions. But what matters is you laugh at the humor of life.

The newspaper is an ongoing invitation to link and network in a global community where contributors come from diverse cultures, and different parts of the world. It affords everyone the opportunity for expression and identification. We have young and mature writers with dynamic ideas they wish to share .

The birth of Montreal Pinoy Post, your new paper on the block is an occasion that merits a celebration. Birth is new life and growth.