COMING from 51,000 entries across the country, a 15-year-old high-school student in Compostela Valley was adjudged best in the Doodle 4 Google (D4G) competition on November 7 with his entry “sari-jeepney.”
Kim Patrick Saren of Nabunturan National Comprehensive High School came out on top answering the question “What can I do for the Philippines?”
Filipinos are among the most resilient people in the world. Throughout the years, we have undergone social, cultural, political and even natural difficulties, and have risen from these challenges through perseverance and undying national pride.
“This is a sari-manok-inspired idea. It symbolizes Filipino culture with a deep appreciation of hard work and creativity,” Kim wrote on his doodle.
Before Kim and his mentor Christopher Vista came up with the sari-manok-inspired idea, they had made 20 drafts of different doodles. They never expected to win the competition, although they hoped they would.
“We didn’t expect to win because there were so many beautiful entries. I am really thankful because this will help me a lot,” the ninth grader said.
Kim joined his first art competition when he was in first grade. His family serves as Kim’s inspiration to do more art.
He created an art piece to solve problems like traffic congestion, economy, education and other basic needs, where the key on the tail of his doodle represents the solutions to the problems and which signifies that “we must fly high with pride and honor.”
“Through the competition, we saw the depth of the Filipino youth’s insight, creativity and innovation. They are very keen on the idea of nation-building, “said Ryan Morales, Google Philippines country marketing manager.
The doodles reflect the aspirations of the nation over pressing issues, such as solutions to flood, environment protection, food for the poor, value of education, culture preservation and global competitiveness.
Kim’s doodle was displayed on the Google Philippines homepage on November 10. He was granted a college scholarship and a connectivity grant for his school.
Kim belongs to the 15-17 age group category. Aside from Kim, three other winners were picked per age category and were judged based on artistry, creativity and theme communication.
Angela Kaitlin Tiu’s “Love and Care for the Philippines,” Avryll Nartates’s “Coral Ripped or Coral Reef?,” and Jay Portallo’s “Symphony for Peace” also won for the 5-8, 9-11 and 12-14 age group categories, respectively.
D4G was a competition encouraging the Filipino youth to be creative both online and offline, and reinvent the D4G homepage logo.