For years, Vice Ganda has carried an advocacy that sits close to his heart: the belief that every child deserves a real chance at education. He has quietly sponsored several students through school, many of whom have already marched proudly with their diplomas. What he gives today is rooted in what he once received.
“I was once like them,” he said. “I was once a kid who was sent to school by someone I didn’t meet in person.”
Vice grew up supported by a Japanese benefactor, a woman named Noriko Tokura from Kyoto, who funded his schooling from childhood through college. He never met her. Later in life, he tried to find her, even visiting the address listed on her letters, only to learn the home was no longer residential. The search ended, but the impact remained.
This experience shaped the way he now helps others.
“Hindi ko kailangang ma-meet yung scholar at hindi niya ako kailangang pasalamatan. I just need to help. That is enough,” he said.
Yet each time a student succeeds, he admits the feeling is deeply rewarding. “Mare-realize mo na may nagagawa kang tama. Masaya mag-give back.”
Vice’s long-held advocacy eventually connected him with Rhea Anicoche-Tan, founder of Belle Dolls and president of Beautéderm.
Vice recalls that he never approached her for assistance. When Rhea heard about his educational efforts, she reached out voluntarily, offering help without expectations or publicity.
“Baka gusto mong dagdagan yung mga pinapaaral mo,” she told him. Education, she explained, was a commitment she had long shared.
Their mutual purpose grew into a friendship and later into a working partnership. Vice and his partner Ion Perez eventually became ambassadors for Belle Dolls, a move Rhea said only formalized a relationship already grounded in shared values.
“Continuation lang ito,” Rhea said. “Definitely, mas stronger na ang partnership namin ngayon.”
She added that their efforts extend beyond scholarships, as they also support livelihood assistance for parents.
As Belle Dolls ambassador, Vice represents the Beautè Secret Collagen and Stem Cell Juice Drink, while Ion leads the Healthy Coffee line.
For all three, the collaboration is less about product promotion than about reinforcing the advocacy that brought them together: helping more children stay in school and giving families a chance to rebuild.
