A former pastor and now charcoal portrait artist, Alfredo Abiera, or “Tatay Alfred”, struggled to make any income, but after going viral with the help of netizens, more customers and help came his way.
Concerned citizen Zoe Phil Cagas saw Tatay Alfred sitting at the Ayala footbridge in Cogon, Cagayan de Oro City, with an illustration board asking to help him financially by ordering a charcoal painting.
He took Tatay Alfredo’s photo and posted it on his Facebook account with the caption, “Maybe someone is looking for a drawing.”
Cagas received a lot of questions and assistance. He went to find Tatay Alfred near Cogon Public Market and discovered that sometimes he goes to the Ayala footbridge as there are more people in the area.
He shared he can draw 2 to 3 portraits, which are mostly head portraits or half-body portraits and caters to colored portrait requests. His base price starts at Php 300.
While Tatay Alfred’s phone is his means of getting pictures and orders, having an older unit, he often experiences malfunctions and cannot receive anything.
That is when another concerned citizen, Monarica Atasan, a beauty and cosmetic line owner, met with Tatay Alfred to give him a brand new phone.
With the amount of orders and help he got, he was thankful to the public and to God. “So salamat noh, first and foremost, I’d like to give thanks to God. Everything is God’s way. Nagpapasalamat ako sa mga taong naka-appreciate sa ginagawa ko na I am doing art,” Tatay Alfred said.
This initiative from netizens has shown that kindness can still be present in an individual, as there will always be a person who is willing to help in providing assistance for a person’s daily living.
Photo Credit:
https://www.facebook.com/Morea1994, https://www.facebook.com/zoephil.cagas.5, https://www.facebook.com/queenie.ragudo
https://www.facebook.com/Morea1994, https://www.facebook.com/zoephil.cagas.5, https://www.facebook.com/queenie.ragudo
