Fil-Dutch beauty queen keeps coming back to PH to help Leyteños

The place that Filipino-Dutch beauty queen Sheryl Baas calls home might be thousands of miles away — the Netherlands — but her heart has always been in the Philippines. Although Baas was raised in the Netherlands, her Filipina mother, Susan Paderes, made sure her daughter never forgot she was also a Filipino. Paderes and her Dutch family regularly traveled to the Philippines since Baas was two to visit her relatives in Matalom, Leyte. As a young girl, Baas thought it would take decades before she can help the people in her mother’s hometown, a third-class municipality.  The 5’9" professional model shared that her mother used to peddle wood on the streets just to contribute to the family’s meager resources. During her visit to Manila on Thursday, Baas, the reigning Mrs. Globe 2013 told GMA News Online: “I always dreamed of starting development programs in the Philippines since I was young but I thought I first have to be older and richer before I can do it.” It was only after she won as Ms. Netherlands in 2006 did Baas realize she can make a difference for Leyteños using her crown. During her reign as Ms. Netherlands at age 23, Baas set up the Sheryl Lynn Foundation (SLF), a non-government organization focused on helping Filipino children have access to quality education. Since 2007, SLF has been providing scholarships, school supplies and helping build classrooms and schools in various parts of Leyte. SLF’s biggest project to date was the construction of a three-classroom school building in Hitoog. Although Baas’ travels as a beauty queen have taken her to various countries, she continues to return to the Philippines whenever she can to promote SLF’s advocacy and visit her hometown. To wrap up her six-day stay in the Philippines, Baas will be flying to Leyte next week to inaugurate new projects and spend time with her relatives. The Filipina-Dutch beauty queen’s love for the Philippines even extends to her studies. As a cultural anthropology and development sociology major in Netherlands’ Leiden University, Baas sought her professors’ permission to conduct research for her course in the Philippines. She traveled to Leyte earlier this year to study the condition of potable water in the province. As a two-time beauty pageant titlist, Baas is aware of the perception that women like her possess nothing more than a pretty face. However, she chooses to see being a beauty queen as a gift that opens more doors for her to promote her advocacy. “It helps to have a title because more people recognize me when I speak about my charity work in the Philippines. I see beauty and fame as tools to help me promote my cause,” she said. And though she is set to pass on the crown to a new Mrs. Globe in October, Baas is confident she will be able to find new platforms to sustain SLF’s projects in Leyte. “Even before I won Mrs. Globe, I’ve been raising money for SLF through organizing benefit projects in the Netherlands and asking for money from friends, family and even strangers. Given that experience, I know I can continue my work with the foundation for years to come,” she said. For Baas, pageant titles—like beauty—may be fleeting, but the desire to make a difference will always be in her heart, just like her love for the Philippines. - VVP, GMA News