Though he was unable to achieve his goal of giving the Fighting Maroons a championship, Paul Desiderio was still able to fulfill his promise to UP.
Given this, Chooks-to-Go still awarded Desiderio his very own branch that will be with him for the rest of his life.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony was held after the taping of Desiderio’s Maalaala Mo Kaya episode.
“Sa tuwa ko at in behalf of the UP community, maluwag sa loob ko na ibigay kay Paul ang Chooks-to-Go store na ito,” said Bounty Agro Ventures Inc. president Ronald Mascariñas.
“Bukod sa kikitain niya sa PBA, ngayon may dagdag pa na puhunan ang kanyang pamilya.”
“Hindi ko ito ine-expect kasi ang sabi nila, magkaka-store ako kapag nanalo kami ng championship,” admitted Desiderio.
“Laking pasasalamat ko kay Boss Ronald at sa Chooks-to-Go dahil magiging malaking tulong ito sa family ko.”
Prior to the UAAP Season 81 Men’s Basketball Finals, Mascariñas – who is an alumnus of University of the Philippines-Los Banos – dangled a Chooks-to-Go branch as a reward to Desiderio should he be able to lead the Fighting Maroons past the Ateneo Blue Eagles.
However, UP were swept in the finale.
Still, Desiderio’s journey from Liloan, Cebu to Diliman is a success story that continues to serve as an inspiration, not just to Iskos and Iskas, but also to every Filipino dreamer.
“Nakita namin yung pangarap ni Paul sa basketball. Among the players, nakita namin na siya yung mas nangangailangan. Kaya kahit wala na yung support namin sa team, we continued supporting Paul,” the sports patron added.
“Nakita niyo naman nung Finals, hindi siya nag-give up. Lumaban siya para sa UP. And we hope that he can still continue to inspire others, especially the youth, even if he is in the pros.”
Desiderio chose an existing store in Fairview, as it is near UP.
“Hindi lang para sa akin itong store na ito, para ito sa UP,” declared Desiderio.
“Atin ‘to!”
