Buhay OFW magazine

After several months, Buhay OFW magazine was finally launched on the afternoon of Nov. 17 by Toots Ople and her horde of supporters. The new magazine features stories of OFWs and several columns, one of them by no less than Labor Secretary Marianito Roque.

"(The magazine) celebrates the life of an overseas Filipino while paying tribute to the families they have left behind," Toots writes about Buhay OFW magazine.

Buhay OFW's maiden issue revolves around employment in Canada, including tips and heartening stories of OFWs there. Thus the first article is aptly about "Buhay Canada" and calls Canada "The new destination point of Filipino workers."

To make it more acceptable to other OFWs, there are also stories of OFWs from different parts of the world including one from Greece and another from Israel and even one of the bleak Christmas of an OFW in Jordan.

Buhay OFW also has positive stories -- success stories of OFWs who made good like Crisanta Sampang who was a domestic helper in Hong Kong but is now also a book author, having written about the quirks of being a maid in Singapore and other funny and absurd situations of OFW life.

The centerpiece article, however, is one on Blas Ople, who is aptly called the Father of OFWs and who said before his untimely death that his lasting legacy to the nation was overseas employment, mostly because the overseas employment program fluorished under his 18 year rule as Labor Secretary.

The magazine is certainly a good read for overseas workers everywhere. It should be interesting to all OFWs and not just those from Canada. The next issue, out January 15, 2009, will center on OFWs in the Middle East -- another good topic!

Buhay OFW is available at all branches of National Bookstore.