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The Gawad Rosa Rosal Legacy Awards is one of the highest honors bestowed upon individuals whose lives are lived in service of others. Now on its third year, the award celebrates extraordinary Filipinos whose legacies mirror that of the great Rosa Rosal--selfless, enduring, and quietly powerful.

In this year's edition, the Gawad Rosa Rosal Legacy Award will be bestowed upon businesswoman-philanthropist Cecille Bravo for the third time.

(Left) Awards founder Richard Hiñola with Nicole Jhasmine (now deceased), who was a bone cancer patient and a beneficiary of Maria Cecilia T. Bravo's philanthropy.

According to Richard Hiñola, the creative force behind the award-giving body, this year's recipient has shown an unshakeable commitment to helping others.

“Walang talagang kapantay si Ms. Cecille Bravo pagdating sa walang sawang suporta. Hindi lang sa BEST Magazine, kundi sa lahat ng proyekto't adhikain namin--lalo na sa mga charity projects sa Luzon, Visayas, at Mindanao. Kahit saan, kahit kailan, nariyan siya. Hindi lang siya donor--isa siyang ina, kapatid, kaagapay para sa lahat ng nangangailangan.

"Wala siyang pinipiling tulungan--bata, matanda, may kaya o kapos. Kahit abala, hindi niya kami kinakalimutan. Patuloy niyang sinusuportahan hindi lang kami, kundi pati ang iba't ibang foundations, events, at award-giving bodies sa buong bansa. Ang biyaya, hindi niya hinahabol--kaya siya tuloy-tuloy binibiyayaan. Dahil hindi rin siya tumitigil sa pagtulong. Ang puso niya, para talaga sa bayan. Kaya siya ang muli naming pinararangalan--dahil siya ang tunay na huwaran.”

Cecille Bravo's name may be known in boardrooms as the Vice President of Intele Builders & Development Corporation, but her legacy will be written in the hearts of those she helped without fanfare. With her husband Pete Bravo, she helped grow a modest two-person startup into a company of 150 strong. But for Cecille, success has never been about numbers. It has always been about people. From disaster zones to forgotten barangays, from scholars to street children, she shows up--again and again--with love, food, hope, and healing.

The yearly awards program pays tribute to the enduring legacy of actress Rosal Rosal, who was a symbol of public service, grace, and compassion. Known as the “First Lady of Philanthropy," she spent more than 60 years serving as a volunteer and governor for the Philippine Red Cross, donating blood more than 200 times and standing on the frontlines of countless calamities--offering help when it was most needed, and hope when it was most scarce.