Please lower your interest rates for loans used to pay for college tuition fees.

If you can offer almost zero interest rates for balance transfers, you can also
offer similar rates to parents working very hard to save money for their children’s
tuition fees.

You will get these benefits if you lower interest rates for tuition fee loans:

• You can use this as one of your major bank promotions or advertising strategies.
• You will reap goodwill.
• You will contribute to the education of children and young people in the country.
• You will harvest good business karma arising from the gratefulness of parents you’re going to relieve from heavy-to-bear interest rates.
• You’re helping those that are really in need. They’re the ones that will pay their loans in monthly installments. The rich ones are going to charge, but they will pay in full come statement time.
• Your stockholders will support this move as it will increase their profits per share in other intangible ways.
• You’ll get free Internet advertising because bloggers always blog about good things on their blogs, websites, article directories, and forums.

Come on, please, beat the competition. Enrollment time is weeks away.

From A Very Grateful Parent.

Photo credit: Photo of students reworked from a photo taken by Roberto Verzo (Wikimedia Commons)

You should also be not more than 21 years old, have no failing grade and currently enrolled in a four-year course.  Specifically, your general weighted average for school year 2009-2010 should be at least 80 percent for the artist/athlete, entrepreneur and community leader awards, or at least 85 percent for the Ibang Klaseng Talino Awards.

You should also be able to write an essay in English titled “What Is My Role in Nation Building As a Child of an Expat Pinoy?” or in Filipino titled “Ano ang Papel Ko sa Pagpapaunlad ng Ating Pamayanan Bilang Anak ng Isang Pinoy Expat?” Total number of words must not be less than 1,500 and not more than  2,000 words.

Ten winners will be chosen:

• Seven winners — Ibang Klaseng Talino Awards
• One winner — Ibang Klaseng Artist/Athlete Award
• One winner — Ibang Klaseng Entrepreneur Award
• One winner — Ibang Klaseng Community Leader Award

Start writing your essay now, as you prepare your papers. This contest ends on September 30, 2010, with the names of winners announced on October 10, 2010.

The ten OFW children who won last year were:

1. Kennie Kabee A. Alegno
BS Accountancy
De La Salle University – Dasmariñas

His mother, Editha A. Alegno, has been working in an office in the United Arab Emirates for five years.

2. Armando G. Araneta, Jr.
BS Marine Transportation
John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University

His father, Armando C. Araneta, has been working as a seafarer in Europe for 25 years.

3.  Jirah Cortes Armandico
BS Nursing
Trinity University of Asia

Her mother, Florida Cortes-Armandico, has been a nursing supervisor in Saudi Arabia for 17 years.

4.  Jezza May A. Boquilon
BS Geology
University of the Philippines – Diliman

Her father, Ronito C. Boquilon, has been working as a seaman in Brazil for 14 years.

5.   Jordan C. Cabandong
BS Political Science
Far Eastern University

His father, Rene M. Cabandong, has been a a Site Supervisor in Qatar for 15 years.

6. Alyanna N. Cunanan
BS Accountancy
University of Santo Tomas

Her father, Paul Ziegfried S. Cunanan,  has been working in China as an operations manager for seven years.

7.  Daryl K. Del Rosario
BS Management
Ateneo de Manila University

His father, Lorenzo P. Del Rosario, has been a seafarer in Great Britain for 27 years.

8.  Maris Cay E. Gabornes
BS Political Science
University of the Philippines – Visayas Tacloban College

Her father, Manuel D. Gabornes, has been a seafarer in Japan for 36 years.

9.  Nikko Jones G. Servanio
BS Marine Transportation
John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University

His father, Banjo J. Servanio, has been a seafarer for 19 years in different countries.

10.  Lean Angelo A. Silverio
BS Physical Therapy (Medicine)
University of Santo Tomas

His father, Leandro R. Silverio, has been working overseas as a lead paint shop operator for 23 years.

Submit entry on or before September 30, 2010.
Mail or personally deliver entry to
Paul Joseph V. Fonte
BPI Search Project Secretariat
9th Floor BPI Card Center
8753 Paseo de Roxas
Makati City

To get application form and more info, visit www.bpiexpressponline.com
or call Program Secretariat at 816-9011 or 845-5414

Thanks to Marist R. Nagera, account executive of BrandSpeakAsia, Inc. for the press release.

This morning, our neighborhood was stirred up by the sudden piercing cries and screams of a 10-year-old girl inside a long vacant unit beside her family’s house.  “Kuya! kuya! kuya!…”

Neighbors ran to see what happened, and they were shocked to see her 13-year-old brother hanging from a rope tied to one of the exposed beams.

It appeared that the boy has been dead for hours. He must have died during  the night.

The immediate conclusion was that he killed himself. According to most of the stories that soon circulated, the boy has just gone home after running away for a few days, and must have been punished severely.

Several in the neighborhood say that the boy was always being scolded and was always ordered to do chores, barring him from playing.

What must have worsened the situation was that the boy was naturally quiet.  He may have not spoken about what he’s going through with his friends.

The mother of the boy is working abroad, earning for this boy and his two younger sisters.  She left the children with her parents because her husband was apparently irresponsible.

I came to know later that these three kids at one time were taken by the DSW from the husband because he neglected them when they were living with him in the province.

OFw parents are heroes.  They sacrifice.  They bear hours and hours of lonely work in foreign lands… for their children.

But they should ensure that their children are in good hands.  They should instruct their children how they can be contacted directly and easily in case there are problems.

Texting, calling and emailing are now affordable.  Even financially struggling neighbors are willing to lend their cell phone loads, especially if children are involved.  They should talk to their children directly and not always through certain people.

Who am I to judge the people who took charge of the boy?  They are good people too.  The boy is their own flesh and blood.

But why did the boy kill himself?

If you’re a parent whose high-school or college-age kid is living in a dorm or studying in another city or an OFW who likes to control your child’s weekly allowance, take advantage of free Internet banking services offered by local banks.

Most large banks now in the Philippines offer free Internet banking, and they offer lots of services that prompts you to say Wow.

However, in this article, I would describe only two, BPI Express Online and My BDO Internet Banking, because they’re the ones I use.

1. If you already have accounts with BPI and/or BDO, then you’ve
done the first step. Your savings account or checking account
would become the wallet from which you would get money to give
to your child weekly.

2. Next is to get an ATM card for your child, or ATM cards if you have more than one child to support.

If you get a regular ATM card, you are required to maintain a balance  –  2,000 for a BDO account;  1,000 for a BPI Family account or 3,000 for a BPI account.

For most children, this maintaining balance is a temptation — a cake on the table ready to be consumed.

So the best option is to get a BPI Express Cash Card or a BDO Cash Card.  Both of these ATM cards do not require a maintaining balance.

You can get a BDO Cash Card for only 120 pesos or a BPI Express Card for only 120 pesos also.  (Update for BPI Express Card:  There’s now a 15-pesos fee for ATM withdrawal and a withdrawal amount minimum of 500 pesos.)

If you like to know other cash cards,  go to this post:  Best Savings Accounts for Students in the Philippines.

For OFWs, a better account is available — BDO Kabayan Savings.  It only has a 100-peso maintaining balance, and it has other benefits too.  Info on BDO Kabayan savings account.

OFWs can also get a BDO Remit Cash Card.

Other banks also offer accounts for OFW remittances.

3. Then enroll your BPI savings or checking account with BPI Express Online or your BDO account with MyBDO Internet Banking.    You enroll online and then print the filled-out form for submission to your BDO or BPI bank branch.

Just prepare your user name and password and be ready with your account number and your BDO or BPI cash card numbers.

4. After your Internet banking account is activated, you can plan and schedule when and how much money to put into your child’s cash card.

If your child needs 200 a day, you can reload your child’s cash card 1,200 or 1,500 every week. Just adjust the amounts when your child needs to pay the dorm or buy something.

Just tell your children that the minimum withdrawal for BPI Express Cash is 500 pesos and for BDO Cash Card, it is 200, (changed to 100 pesos as of March 2011).  Tell them to withdraw,  if possible, only from these banks’ ATMs to avoid other banks’ ATM fees  (about 10 to 12 pesos for each withdrawal).

5. For OFWs, Internet banking can save you remittance costs and at the same time prevent your children from having access to large amounts of money, which can be tempting.  One-day millionaires among OFW children are common.

You don’t have to send money every month or every week, so you’ll save on remittance fees.  Just remit an adequate amount to your own savings account and then transfer controlled amounts to your kids’ accounts through your Internet banking account as often as you like, as there’s no transfer fee.

Related Articles:

OFWs Can Send Money to the Philippines Thru BDO Remit
List of Banks in the Philippines — Universal Banks, Commercial Banks
Cheapest Checking Account in the Philippines
BDO Kabayan Savings, BDO Remit Cash Card for OFWs
BPI, BDO, or Metrobank Fees — Why Keep Paying Them?
Savings Accounts in the Philippines with the Lowest Maintaining Balances

One of many things missed by OFW parents is everyday interaction with their children, including what their children are thinking about various things.

Well, yes, even non-OFW parents have difficulties in getting into the inner thoughts and feelings of their children.

One way for OFW and non-OFW parents to know more their children, especially teenagers is to encourage them to join the online site MyLot.

MyLot is free to join. Your daughter or son must be at least 16 years old. If your child has been using Friendster, then this is a very easy site for your child to explore.

Simply, MyLot is an easy-to-use question and answer site. Your child can post a question, or she or he can answer questions. Don’t worry about pornography or online violence; it is prohibited by MyLot.

I just recently discovered this “knowing more our children” as one of the benefits of MyLot when my teenager daughter joined the site. At first, she just joined because she heard she can earn money from it. Later, she found out she can also improve her English writing skills on the site.

Your children can develop confidence writing on MyLot because many of the young people and adults writing are non-native English speakers. I’ve observed that many of our children can write better than many of those writing on the site.

This early, my daughter has attracted a lot of online friends because of her writing.

But the benefit to us, parents, is knowing their inner thoughts. You don’t have to know you daughter’s password to be able to read her thoughts, as MyLot is open to everyone. In my case, I discovered feelings and assumptions that I never thought my daughter has, such as her dream of having her own room and her fears about our family losing our house to foreclosure, just like what happened to her close friend.

Your child can also earn income as she posts and answers questions. It is not much, but if she has lots of interest in it, she can reach the $10 minimum payout faster. She can be paid through Paypal, but if she’s younger than 18, she can use your Paypal. There’s an article here about Paypal, if you like to know more about Paypal.

Lastly, as you introduce MyLot to your children, advise them not to reveal personal information, such as home address and telephone number, and not to join anything that asks for payment. Since the Internet is becoming a big part of our lives, you might as well capitalize on it or make them ready for it.

You can visit MyLot now and explore.

Related Articles:

OFW Jobs and Children: A Suicide Stirs a Neighborhood

OFW Parents Take Advantage of Free Internet Banking to Manage Your Childrens Weekly