23-year-old Pinay named world's most outstanding volunteer

While some of her peers spend their youth shopping and partying, 23-year-old Alexandra Madrigal Eduque has been quietly devoting her time and resources helping Habitat for Humanity Philippines (HFHP) build homes for thousands of underprivileged Filipinos.

Her passion for the homeless greatly impressed the London-based global network Resource Alliance that she was given two of the most coveted awards at the 2013 Global Awards for Fundraising in Amsterdam earlier this month.

Eduque, who hails from the prominent Madrigal clan, bagged the Outstanding Volunteer Award and the International Fundraising Congress (IFC) Choice Award — the first Filipino and youngest winner of any award given by the international award-giving body for fundraisers.

Resource Alliance said Eduque deserved to be named as its Outstanding Volunteer for 2013 because of her "tremendous contributions" to HFHP, which she has been a part of since she was 15 years old and for being the founder of the Habitat Youth Council.

“Alexandra's voluntary work, spanning advocacy and fundraising, impressed us all through laying the foundations for lasting impact. As a young volunteer she has already made a considerable difference to the lives of the people supported by Habitat for Humanity in the Philippines and is an inspiration to others,” said Neelam Makhijani, Resource Alliance chief executive.

Best moment in life

In a statement, Eduque described winning the award as one of the best moments of her life.

"I still am in disbelief over my win, as I really did not expect it at all. I was extremely happy flying to Amsterdam because I was shortlisted as a finalist,” she said.

“To me, it was a feat in and of itself. When my name was called as the winner of the Outstanding Volunteer Award, I remember I was in a daze and how I wish I could rewind back to that moment to just see it all over again," Eduque said.

The Global Awards for Fundraising is an international awards program endorsed by the national associations of fundraisers around the world. It is organized by Resource Alliance to recognize and celebrate the outstanding achievements in fundraising.

Habitat Youth Council

In an earlier report, Eduque said she founded the Habitat Youth Council to provide the youth with a platform to help address the issues of poverty and housing in the Philippines.

Since its inception four years ago, Eduque and her Youth Council have raised more than P100 million, and have mobilized over 8,000 youth volunteers to build over 500 homes for Habitat. The youth council also pioneered disaster relief, and has served over 28,000 families.

In November 2012, she also established MOVE.org Foundation, a non-profit organization that aims to provide quality early childhood education to the marginalized.

Eduque, who recently graduated from Columbia University, said she grew up nurturing a passion to help others by seeing her grandmother, the late businesswoman and philanthropist Chito Madrigal, do the same.

"I saw from an early age how my grandmother did what she could to help the underprivileged. I was inspired by her countless and tireless efforts in bringing about change and that’s something that I want to be to other people – an inspiration to do good," she said. — KBK, GMA News