MARISSA OCA
Five minutes into our conversation with Marissa Oca on a hot May afternoon and we knew that this was one tough, driven woman. “I am a blazing fire of passion for work,” she said. “Work has to be done.” The toughness and the drive she apparently got from her late father, Capt Gregorio Oca, whose steely character and negotiating skills made him a maritime union leader to reckon with even outside the Philippines. But the passion is all her own and it is deep-rooted.
Ms Oca heads the Gig and the Amazing Sampaguita Foundation Inc (GASFI), whose “Twenty Minutes at Bedtime, Read to Your Child” programme seeks to promote the love for reading amongst seafarers’ children and strengthen family ties. She set up the organisation in memory of her only son, Ambrosio Gregorio (“Gig”) Oca Robles. Gig was president of the Youth for Christ in his high school and had a fondness for the national flower, sampaguita. In March 2009, just before graduation day, he accidentally fell to his death from a hotel balcony at the age of 17.
I am a blazing fire of passion for work. Work needs to be done.
~Marissa Oca
The tragedy gave Ms Oca a sense of mission, a zeal that continues to cut like a knife through her entire being. Initially a book donor project, GASFI has published 10 children’s books which are anchored on traditional Filipino values and mirror real-life situations often faced by seamen’s families. Ten more books are in the pipeline. Translating them from English into the various Philippine languages isn’t on the horizon for now. “No money,” Ms Oca explained. Although it can count for logistical support on the Associated Marine Officers’ and Seamen’s Union of the Philippines (AMOSUP) founded by her father, GASFI is autonomous and has to solicit donations from other sources.
Involvement with seamen and their families came naturally to Ms Oca. When she was about four years old, her father, then a supervisor in a stevedoring firm, would drive her around the piers in his jeep. In 1993 Capt Oca appointed her administrator of AMOSUP’s community development programme. Ms Oca remembers the old man as a “very practical, candid” person. “He was very real. He struck a balance,” she said.
For Ms Oca, though, it’s not just balance that seems to matter but diversity. An economics graduate of the University of California in Santa Barbara, she went on to obtain a master’s degree in hospital administration from the University of the Philippines. She is in the process of developing a degree programme on leadership for the Maritime Academy of Asia & the Pacific (MAAP), AMOSUP’s training arm. Her foundation is also looking to launch a project to help Filipino cassava farmers. That she has boundless energy isn’t surprising. She learned early on the importance of seeing beyond oneself and reaching out to others. “After a while,” she said, “it’s not about money.”
NOTE: This is an ongoing series focusing on women in the maritime world, which is still very much dominated by men. It is hoped that other women will draw inspiration from their dreams, struggles and achievements. Please search our archives for more portraits of maritime women.
Hi Baristo Uno
I like this! You are doing a great thing here, showcasing the talents of the women in the Philippines who contribute in directing and running the maritime industry.
I am always impressed that there are many women in shipping in the Philippines compared to other countries, including the UK.
All the best,
Catherine
Thanks for the thumbs up. We plan to feature women from other countries as well. Suggestions are most welcome.
This is really nice featuring women in Maritime Industry. 🙂
Definitely a tough woman and with an amazing sense of duty to all Filipino seafarers.
Barista Uno-
Can we publish this in the Maritime Review?
Chuck Agustin
Chuck, you have our permission to reproduce the blog post in the Maritime Review. We ask only that you cite the source (Marine Café Blog) and provide the URL (www.marine-cafe.com).
Truly inspirational! Thanks for letting the world know about women with drive through your series of portraits. Would like to read more!
Marissa S. Oca is a visionary like her dad. If she were male she would have stepped into the shoes left vacant by that great Filipino seafarer, Capt. Gregorio Oca.
She is devoted to his visions. And on her own, with GASFI, in honor of son Gig, she created READ ALOUD FROM NORTH TO SOUTH of the Philippines, Read to your child, 20 minutes before bedtime. If you don’t find yourself in the first pages of the book you are reading, you will find yourself in the wrong places in the future. You become the words you read. You become the hero of your life.
Marissa S. Oca is the seafarers’ heroine, unknowingly.
Touché for your work for Maritime Cafe Blog. Suggestions for other women involved in seafaring: Dr. Marilou Arcelo of John B. Lacson Maritime School in Jaro, Iloilo, Ms. Doris Magsaysay Ho, Ms. Rizza Cloma.
Thanks very much for your comment and suggestions.
Just so everyone will know, our portraits of maritime women are not advertorials. Heaven knows there’s been too much of that in the maritime and mainstream media.
Dear Baristo Uno,
I am in media, advertorial is always part of the ballgame in the industry. I don’t doubt you. If you need photographs of women in shipping, you may drop by at my studio at Rm. 329, LRI Design Plaza, 210 Nicanor Garcia St., formerly Reposo), Bel Air II, Makati City.
You are doing a good job for the maritime industry and is this solely for women? Won’t men get sore? Hahaha!
8963208 or 09155430482 or visit http://mandy-navasero.blogspot.com
Thanks for your offer, Mandy. Marine Café Blog operates on a shoestring budget and may not afford your professional services. But we’ll keep you in mind.
Yes, advertorials are part of the ballgame in the industry. Which is sad because readers – at least, our readers – deserve more.
The series is exclusively about women because they are, in many ways, more complex and interesting than men.
This is wonderful! Love the logo! Wondering who is allowed to use it? Canadian women desperately need something like this. I’m the National Director for Weather Programs for the Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons. We are volunteers and non-commercial boaters.
Thanks for your kind words. The logo was designed by our web team as a sort of trademark for the “Portraits of Women” series. I am pretty sure one of your staff can design one for your organisation even without any graphics design training.
Mine are stock photos. You may shell out whatever budget you have. For your vision of enhancing women in the maritime industry.
What is your real name, why are you hiding behind “Barista Uno”. Did you work as a world class bartender in a cruise liner? Hahaha!
As a media person, you should know that it’s normal for bloggers to use a handle. It’s as legitimate as your advertorials in the industry.