Correction : Please note a correction in the spelling of the email address for condolences. The correct address is: gagcaoili@unicef.org. Our apologies in case you sent an email and had it bounce.
Leopoldo “Pol” Moselina: A Tribute
UNICEF Retirees Celebration of His LifeMary RacelisJune 1, 2024
It is a privilege to be able with my UNICEF colleagues and friends to speak today about Pol Moselina and what he meant to us. I’m glad he is also right here with us and, I hope, listening.
Pol as Visionary
Pol was a true visionary. Not though, an image of visionaries as floating in distant, ethereal spheres. His vision came from being grounded in people’s everyday lives. That led him to become a pioneer in many ways. Let me highlight three of his contributions to UNICEF and its chief concern -- children and women, especially the most marginalized among them.
Children in Especially Difficult Circumstances, Urban Basic Services
Pol first came to UNICEF’s attention when as a teacher and community worker in Olongapo City, he drew attention to the many women forced into becoming bar-girls and commercial sex workers. Hundreds earned their living by serving the needs of foreign troops on R and R, or those of local males in search of sex and fleeting companionship. By-products were the hundreds of children borne out of wedlock and victimized – poor, taunted and deprived of their rights.
Pol “walked the talk” in those low-income neighborhoods. His contacts with people there enabled him to grasp their issues – their worries, their joys and the actions the women took or didn’t take to protect their children. Greater awareness reached those in positions of power resulting in programs aimed at making a positive difference for beleaguered children and women. His approach also enabled children and women themselves to speak and participate in decisions affecting their lives.
Victoria “Bubut” Rialp, UNICEF-Manila program officer for urban basic services, recognized Pol’s program as innovative and exemplary, centered as it was in a small-city local government context. After a few years of UNICEF support to the Olongapo program, she invited Pol to join UNICEF and extend his learnings to other Philippine cities. He would deal not only with Olongapo City women and children, but extend these lessons learned to other Philippine cities. Marginalized in UNICEF’s larger development framework, “children in especially difficult circumstances” soon became part of UNICEF’s global urban basic services efforts.
Its initial “survival and development” mantra gradually expanded in the James Grant era to include “protection” and “participation”. The Philippine urban basic services program emphasizing CEDC though Pol and Bubut gained strength in joining similarly emerging UNICEF programs in cities worldwide. For the benefit of the UNICEF staff here, let me recall the urban basic services champions: India, Bill Cousins; Sri Lanka, Leo Fonseka; Brazil, John Donahue, Vesna Bosnjak, Bill Myers and Victoria Rialp; Ethiopia, R Padmini; New York: Ximena de la Barra and Clarence Shubert. All served in other duty stations as well.
Programming with Faith-Based Organizations
In Pol’s later UNICEF years, he began to include faith-based organizations in programs to benefit women and children. Although his own moral and spiritual principles drawn from Catholic beliefs motivated him, his advocacy extended to all religions in the Philippines. Thus, congregations of Protestant Christians, Evangelicals, Anglicans, Muslims, Buddhists along with Catholic bishops, priests, nuns, and lay pastoral workers, came together in collegial, ecumenical ways to focus on the needs of women and children. After all, he argued, faith-based institutions were highly motivated to serve the poor and were permanently located in communities. They could, therefore, respond immediately in the face of disasters and other locally challenging situations. Unlike outside assistance groups, their knowledge of local people and culture, government officials and existing situations enabled them to act quickly and effectively as first responders shifting eventually into longer term support.
Religious-linked partnerships did not generally find favor in UN development circles, dominated as they were by essentially secular approaches. Moreover, in addition to fearing accusations of bias toward a particular religion, development workers distinguished their programs from the humanitarian ones usually espoused by religious groups. Pol’s advocacy enabled UNICEF to pioneer as a UN agency whose grounded programs demanded practical and non-bureaucratic strategies for serving the needs and aspirations of women and children.
Anak Natin, Inc.
When Pol, owing to his heart condition, decided to leave UNICEF before the usual retirement age, that did not stop him from doing developmental and humanitarian work. His efforts focused almost entirely on faith-based groups. Following family exhortations and doctor’s advice though, he adopted a more flexible and manageable schedule.
Yet, “retirement,” as he and I agreed, is doing what you always liked to do, but in your own time and discarding more undesirable “work” tasks like performance evaluations or detailed accounting and program reports. Our definition of retirement was challenged, however, when former UNICEF-Philippines Representative Terrel Hill, who had retired in Idaho, contacted Pol as his former program officer to discuss a promising new initiative. Also pursued were friends, Lina Laigo, former Secretary of Social Welfare and Development, then serving on the Council for the Welfare of Children. I was Terrell’s third retiree friend on that outreach.
Would we join him in forming a US-based NGO to enable supporters there to provide funds dedicated to needy Filipino children and women? The idea stemmed from Terrel’s having met Fil-Ams there who had noticed his T-shirt displaying a Filipino scene with a Tagalog slogan. When Terrel told them about UNICEF’s program for children in the Philippines, they wanted to donate but in more targeted ways. Thus was borne “Anak Natin!” As a famous statement among retirees goes, “You can take a person out of UNICEF, but you can’t take UNICEF out of a person!”
Our four-person board was composed of Terrel as President, Lina as Vice-President, Pol as Treasurer-Secretary and I as member. Terrel solicited funds in the United States. US$50 paid for one “School in a Box,” to be delivered to a needy community’s day-care program. Since the Box was already part of UNICEF Philippines’ program, Pol ordered the funded number of boxes, which were stored in the UNICEF Manila warehouse. The process was simplified because he knew the UNICEF procurement system and Supply staff there. He also had the approval of the Representative.
With Lina furnishing the names of deserving barangays according to the Council for the Welfare of Children, Pol got the required number of boxes ready for distribution. At various times, two out of the four of us and sometimes Terrel’s wife, Jean, would drive or sail to often distant even remote designated communities to deliver them. We would happily watch the teacher and children excitedly open the boxes and exclaim wide-eyed at its contents. It was always inspiring watching their faces light up upon discovering the books, notebooks, crayons, pencils, paper, folders, blocks, games, puzzles, drum, ukulele, and radio-recorder in the treasure trove. There were also toothbrushes, added by Terrel, M.D. as a “must”.
We Salute A Good Man
Above all, Pol was a good man! While some feminist circles tend to generalize in criticizing men’s behavior vis-à-vis women, Fely (Pol’s wife), Grace (daughter-in-law) and I agreed as we remembered him last night, that Pol was a special man. He was caring, kind and passionate about children and women being able to chart their own courses in their life journeys – and he was there to help.
Pol, we know that those pearly gates will swing open with accompanying joyful praise when you reach there. From all of us here in UNICEF, along with your family and friends, thank you for being YOU!
______________________-
Note: Condolences may be sent to the family through his daughter-in-law, Atty. Grace Agcaoili, (gagcaoili@unicef.org) Justice for Children Global Lead, UNICEF NY.
Pol “walked the talk” in those low-income neighborhoods. His contacts with people there enabled him to grasp their issues – their worries, their joys and the actions the women took or didn’t take to protect their children. Greater awareness reached those in positions of power resulting in programs aimed at making a positive difference for beleaguered children and women. His approach also enabled children and women themselves to speak and participate in decisions affecting their lives.
Victoria “Bubut” Rialp, UNICEF-Manila program officer for urban basic services, recognized Pol’s program as innovative and exemplary, centered as it was in a small-city local government context. After a few years of UNICEF support to the Olongapo program, she invited Pol to join UNICEF and extend his learnings to other Philippine cities. He would deal not only with Olongapo City women and children, but extend these lessons learned to other Philippine cities. Marginalized in UNICEF’s larger development framework, “children in especially difficult circumstances” soon became part of UNICEF’s global urban basic services efforts.
Its initial “survival and development” mantra gradually expanded in the James Grant era to include “protection” and “participation”. The Philippine urban basic services program emphasizing CEDC though Pol and Bubut gained strength in joining similarly emerging UNICEF programs in cities worldwide. For the benefit of the UNICEF staff here, let me recall the urban basic services champions: India, Bill Cousins; Sri Lanka, Leo Fonseka; Brazil, John Donahue, Vesna Bosnjak, Bill Myers and Victoria Rialp; Ethiopia, R Padmini; New York: Ximena de la Barra and Clarence Shubert. All served in other duty stations as well.
Programming with Faith-Based Organizations
In Pol’s later UNICEF years, he began to include faith-based organizations in programs to benefit women and children. Although his own moral and spiritual principles drawn from Catholic beliefs motivated him, his advocacy extended to all religions in the Philippines. Thus, congregations of Protestant Christians, Evangelicals, Anglicans, Muslims, Buddhists along with Catholic bishops, priests, nuns, and lay pastoral workers, came together in collegial, ecumenical ways to focus on the needs of women and children. After all, he argued, faith-based institutions were highly motivated to serve the poor and were permanently located in communities. They could, therefore, respond immediately in the face of disasters and other locally challenging situations. Unlike outside assistance groups, their knowledge of local people and culture, government officials and existing situations enabled them to act quickly and effectively as first responders shifting eventually into longer term support.
Religious-linked partnerships did not generally find favor in UN development circles, dominated as they were by essentially secular approaches. Moreover, in addition to fearing accusations of bias toward a particular religion, development workers distinguished their programs from the humanitarian ones usually espoused by religious groups. Pol’s advocacy enabled UNICEF to pioneer as a UN agency whose grounded programs demanded practical and non-bureaucratic strategies for serving the needs and aspirations of women and children.
Anak Natin, Inc.
When Pol, owing to his heart condition, decided to leave UNICEF before the usual retirement age, that did not stop him from doing developmental and humanitarian work. His efforts focused almost entirely on faith-based groups. Following family exhortations and doctor’s advice though, he adopted a more flexible and manageable schedule.
Yet, “retirement,” as he and I agreed, is doing what you always liked to do, but in your own time and discarding more undesirable “work” tasks like performance evaluations or detailed accounting and program reports. Our definition of retirement was challenged, however, when former UNICEF-Philippines Representative Terrel Hill, who had retired in Idaho, contacted Pol as his former program officer to discuss a promising new initiative. Also pursued were friends, Lina Laigo, former Secretary of Social Welfare and Development, then serving on the Council for the Welfare of Children. I was Terrell’s third retiree friend on that outreach.
Would we join him in forming a US-based NGO to enable supporters there to provide funds dedicated to needy Filipino children and women? The idea stemmed from Terrel’s having met Fil-Ams there who had noticed his T-shirt displaying a Filipino scene with a Tagalog slogan. When Terrel told them about UNICEF’s program for children in the Philippines, they wanted to donate but in more targeted ways. Thus was borne “Anak Natin!” As a famous statement among retirees goes, “You can take a person out of UNICEF, but you can’t take UNICEF out of a person!”
Our four-person board was composed of Terrel as President, Lina as Vice-President, Pol as Treasurer-Secretary and I as member. Terrel solicited funds in the United States. US$50 paid for one “School in a Box,” to be delivered to a needy community’s day-care program. Since the Box was already part of UNICEF Philippines’ program, Pol ordered the funded number of boxes, which were stored in the UNICEF Manila warehouse. The process was simplified because he knew the UNICEF procurement system and Supply staff there. He also had the approval of the Representative.
With Lina furnishing the names of deserving barangays according to the Council for the Welfare of Children, Pol got the required number of boxes ready for distribution. At various times, two out of the four of us and sometimes Terrel’s wife, Jean, would drive or sail to often distant even remote designated communities to deliver them. We would happily watch the teacher and children excitedly open the boxes and exclaim wide-eyed at its contents. It was always inspiring watching their faces light up upon discovering the books, notebooks, crayons, pencils, paper, folders, blocks, games, puzzles, drum, ukulele, and radio-recorder in the treasure trove. There were also toothbrushes, added by Terrel, M.D. as a “must”.
We Salute A Good Man
Above all, Pol was a good man! While some feminist circles tend to generalize in criticizing men’s behavior vis-à-vis women, Fely (Pol’s wife), Grace (daughter-in-law) and I agreed as we remembered him last night, that Pol was a special man. He was caring, kind and passionate about children and women being able to chart their own courses in their life journeys – and he was there to help.
Pol, we know that those pearly gates will swing open with accompanying joyful praise when you reach there. From all of us here in UNICEF, along with your family and friends, thank you for being YOU!
______________________-
Note: Condolences may be sent to the family through his daughter-in-law, Atty. Grace Agcaoili, (gagcaoili@unicef.org) Justice for Children Global Lead, UNICEF NY.
May his soul rest in eternal peace
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