Social Entrepreneurship projects have literally taken a new drift in Cagayan de Oro with the advent of what aims to be Northern Mindanao’s biggest motor show aimed at raising funds for the economic upliftment of victims of the Tropical Storm Sendong disaster.
The 1st Cagayan de Oro International Motor Show dubbed “HOTCARZ Cagayan de Oro” is slated for March 30-April 1st, 2012 at the SM City Cagayan de Oro Car park Building and the Pueblo de Oro Business Park Grounds.
“This is a non-profit major fundraiser that would serve as a portal for the automotive industry to manifest their support and channel their contributions and donations to the victims of Tropical Storm Sendong in cash, kind, services or empty 1.5L or 2L PET Bottles,” said Elmer Francisco, president of ROUTE 11 (1111 Motor Corp.), an automotive service center which is spearheading the show with the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation, Inc. (Oro Chamber), SM City CDO, Pueblo de Oro Development Corporation, eFF – Elmer Francisco Foundation and MyShelter Foundation.
As a social entrepreneurship venture, the exhibit aims to raise funds for the Isang Litrong Liwanag Project and the Sendongpreneur project of the Oro Chamber and eFF-Elmer Francisco Foundation.
“All of the show’s the proceeds will be for the benefit of the three projects,” Mr. Francisco added.
“HOTCARZ is a motor show series that started in 2006 at Las Piñas City to promote brand new and pre-owned vehicles, automotive spare parts, accessories, consumables and after sales services; thus, uplifting the whole automotive industry,” Mr. Francisco recalls.
The CDO show would feature dressed-up show cars/bikes in competition; aftermarket automotive OEM, spare parts, accessories and consumables; aftermarket services; banks with auto financing options and insurance, and ancillary businesses to the automotive industry.
Among the activity highlights are test drives of latest models from local distributors and importers; demos of slalom and drifting; presentations of the Sendongpreneur, Isang Litrong Liwanag and Isang Litrong Bahay Projects, Miss HOTCARZ 2012 and a photo competition.
The Sendongpreneur project aims to provide start-up capital and training for Sendong survivors who have been displaced from their former communities and are now living in temporary shelters within and outside evacuation centers.
Isang Litrong Liwanag, a project in cooperation with MyShelter Foundation, aims to produce and install a million Solar Bottle Bulbs in a million households 2012. Isang Litrong Bahay is another project with MyShelter Foundation which aims to construct a training center where beneficiaries would be taught how to build houses from empty PET Bottles with the help of DOST-Department of Science and Technology, MIT – Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Hassel Studios.
“With Isang Litrong Liwanag and Isang Litrong Bahay projects, we could keep away those empty PET Bottles that we just usually throw away and end up being burned in dumpsites or clogging our drainage systems; moreover, we could turn them into Solar Bottle Bulbs and affordable yet reliable houses,” Mr. Francisco said.
eFF is coordinating with various government and non-government organizations such as DSWD-Department of Social Welfare Development, CSWD-City Social Welfare Development, DTI-Department of Trade and Industry, DOLE-Department of Labor and Employment, OB-Operation Blessing, CRS-Catholic Relief Service, HRC-Humanitarian Response Consortium, IDRN-International Disaster Response Network, ILO-International Labor Organization of the United Nations, UNDP-United Nations Development Program, Child Fund International and the UNFPA-United Nations Population Fund.
