Fil-Am accountant in New York bartends for Arnel Pineda’s charity

For the past few years, Filipino American senior accountant Arnold Manaog has been marking his birthday in an unusual way:  becoming a guest bartender in a popular New York City bar to raise funds for charity.

 

This year, Manaog, who turned 44 on February 9, raised $5,000 and donated it to the Arnel Pineda Foundation, Inc. (APFI), which cares for streetchildren.

 

According to the APFI website apfi.org,  the foundation  “provides underprivileged children quality education, health services and medical attention.”  APFI “ was formed, principally to address their sad plight by preparing them for a brighter future through education.”

 

On his Facebook page, Pineda, frontman of the rock band Journey and a friend of Manaog wrote: “Noble and very generous indeed, bro. maraming, maraming salamat sa kabayanihan mo at dahil dyan etong sa’yo..monumento sa NEW YORK..thank you talaga bro.”  

 

Manaog began his charity fundraiser in 2009, donating $1,000 in proceeds to the Ayala Foundation for Typhoon Ondoy victims. 

 

Last year, his bartending raised $2,000 for Typhoon Sendong victims.

 

Not a professional bartender, Manaog said his friends, who support his charity, sometimes challenge him by ordering complicated drinks.

 

“If they order something hard to mix, I just smile and give them a beer. They’re my friends so they’re okay with it.” 

 

Manaog is a senior accountant at MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball.

 

More than 100 Filipino-Americans and native New Yorkers attended Manaog’s fundraiser this year at Woody McHale’s, an Irish bar in New York City’s meatpacking district of Chelsea. 

 

Guests paid for $5 a ticket but some gave more, with one donating $500. 

 

Each ticket was entitled to join a raffle where prizes like Major League Baseball tickets, NBA tickets, baseball jerseys, a liquor gift basket,  beauty products and intimate apparel were solicited by Manaog himself.

 

He even gave to Pineda’s foundation the $120 tip he collected from his bartending this year.

 

“I’m willing to donate my last cent if it would benefit everyone. I can’t thank enough my family, friends near and far, and colleagues who believe in the cause I also believe in. We share the same goal: to help in our own little way,” Manaog said.

 

Manaog realized that his birthdays could be celebrated in a more meaningful way. He says, “I thought it would be nice to guest bartend and raise funds while celebrating with friends and family.”

 

Manaog, who has lived in the US for the past 23 years, grew up in Pasay City, Philippines. 

He saw how poverty deprived children of their rights to education, food and shelter. He studied at San Isidro Catholic School also in Pasay for elementary, attended high school at San Beda College Alabang and went to college at San Juan de Letran in Manila. 

 

Erin Baker, a co-worker at MLB.com said, “Every year, I always look forward to Arnold's event. It’s not just really fun, it’s also for a cause very dear to Arnold."

 

Marissa Comia, a close friend who co-celebrated her birthday adds, “I'm grateful to celebrate a special day by helping raise funds for Manila streetchildren. The fundraisers he participates in show how big Arnold’s heart is. He finds it very rewarding to serve others. His generosity is his greatest trait.”

 

Manaog, a member of the San Beda College Alabang High School Batch 1985, helps his alumni group organize events to raise funds for the underprivileged in the Philippines. 

 

Previously the group donated  the proceeds from their US reunion to the Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation which ferries kids who used to swim to and from school. With the help of donors, the Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation have provided hundreds of yellow boats for communities in the southern Philippines like Layag-Layag, Zamboanga City; Isla Mababoy, Masbate; and Lakewood, Zamboanga del Sur.

 

Meanwhile, Manaog  plans to continue this birthday tradition. “It’s like killing two birds with one stone. I celebrate with friends and family and at the same time, raise funds to help the poor in our motherland.” - VVP, GMA News