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Health Is Wealth: Dr. Virginia Alva chose the healthy environment of South Forbes
Golf City primarily for her kids Angelie Caryce and Gilbert.
A Healthy Environment
by Irwin Cruz
Photo by Roy Van Morales
Published in The Philippine Star, 14 October 2006
Megacities are not for everyone. Living in a supermetropolises such as Metro Manila can be exciting, vibrant and wonderful. They are undeniably hotbeds of social, economic and cultural activity, a feature which draws immigrants to come and makes their residents stay.
But for all their lights, variety and energy, megacities can also be horrid. Overcrowding, traffic congestion, air and noise pollution pose not just as daily nuisances but real risks to people’s well-being. Studies have shown that just living in Manila can increase a person’s risk of lung cancer by 15%. A WHO bulletin reports at air pollution in Mega Manila has been the direct cause of 45,000 emergency room visits.
It is therefore not a surprise that Dr. Virginia Alva, a native of Quezon City, would have planned to live in the lush environs of Sta. Rosa early on. "I never really imagined myself living and raising my family in the city," says the family doctor who has been in the medical profession for 21 years.
This articulate mother of four loves the charming, Mediterranean-inspired Alicante villa at South Forbes Villas. From its opulent living room, we can view the lush open garden, whose tropical plants dance to the whiffing of the gentle Laguna wind.
She and her husband, Gil Perfecto Alva, a ship captain, have long envisioned raising their kids in a healthy environment. In 1985, they left Mega Manila and settled in Sta. Rosa. Dr. Alva now has a clinic in the area and works as the physician for Laguna Technopark and Caritas Don Bosco, where her four children go to school.
For Dr. Alva, living in Sta. Rosa has been free of hassles. "Here, there’s no traffic. It takes me 5 minutes to go to work. After I drop off my kids, I still have time to come back home and prepare for the day," she says.
It is no wonder that the Alva family have decided that they are here to stay. Long before outh Forbes Golf City started receiving clients, she already had her eyes set out in the property. Her children are growing, and they need a bigger house. So when it finally opened, not only did she buy one but three plots of land in South Forbes Villas.
Her first child, Angelie Caryce, is 14 years old and will finish high school this year. The bright young girl says that she likes South Forbes because it is "clean, quiet and well-landscaped. And it looks first-class."
Her brother Gilbert agrees. "There is no pollution over here," says the witty, astronomy-loving 12 year-old. And for a kid who is so much into sports such as cycling, badminton and basketball, that is just perfect.
Taking advantage of its enviable surroundings, South Forbes promotes healthy living for the entire family by creating verdant landscaped parks. Meanwhile, its clubhouses and pocket parks have various sports facilities such as gyms, swimming pools, basketball and tennis courts where both parents and children can partake of an active lifestyle. Moreover, South Forbes has its tree-ensconced South Forbes Golf Club with fantastic views of Mount Makiling and Laguna de Bay. As a bonus, all lot owners get a free golf membership, at no activation fee, only at South Forbes.
These are just some of the many features of South Forbes that attracts people like the Alvas, young families who made a choice for healthful, stress-free, wholesome lifestyle, not only for themselves but for their families.
For instance, unlike other families, the Alvas only have one car. "Here there is no coding, no traffic." Because of this, they contribute a lot to the protection of the environment, values that it seems Dr. Alva wants her children to have while they are young. Furthermore, her family is able to save on the money normally spent on a gas and a second car, and divert onto other things like a beach vacation in Quezon.
Another attraction is the community infrastructure. "Everything is here," she says. South Forbes is right smack in the middle of the new educational center of the South, with top-notch schools such as De La Salle, St. Scholastica’s, Brent and Caritas Don Bosco at its doorstep. This makes it ideal for parents who place a great importance on their children’s schooling.
As a health practitioner, Dr. Alva could not ask for more. "I am just a text away from my patients," she says. Because there is no traffic jams, she can immediately attend to them. She also eagerly awaits the opening of the new Southern Luzon Hospital and Medical Center, which is just minutes from her clinic. With this new addition to Sta. Rosa, it completes the establishment of a health infrastructure that is a must for all new and growing communities.
For people like Virginia and Gil Alva, who have a laid out a well-thought plan for their children’s welfare, a house at South Forbes is that golden seal that marks their love for their family. Set in an idyllic atmosphere, where nature and sport are at your door, their home will provide them with an enriched, healthy family life no megacity could ever deliver.