ShareThisIRIGA CITY, Camarines Sur – Superstar Nora Aunor is being honored in Iriga City, her birthplace.
The city’s mayor, Madelaine Alfelor-Gazmen, is spearheading the setting up of a mini-museum to honor the city’s most prominent daughter and other famous sons and daughters of Iriga City.
Nora Aunor
This will be a big reminder to the youth of their famous sons and daughters who could act as their role models, she said.
Gazmen said the entire first floor of the city’s library will feature Nora Aunor and other famous Iriguenos.
Gazmen disclosed that she is already in talks with Nora’s cousins, the Cabalteras of Iriga City, and the relatives of other famous personalities for the turnover of memorabilia of the famous sons and daughters of Iriga for display in the city library.
The mayor said the Cabalteras have “pledged” the superstar’s Long-Playing (LP) record albums for the mini-museum.
Born in Iriga City, the superstar’s real name is Nora Cabaltera Villamayor.
She started as a vendor in the PNR station here and rose to become singing champion, then as an actress.
“We honor them for helping put Iriga on the map as well as to remind people that they come from a line they can be proud of,” Mayor Gazmen said of the project.
Aunor is widely acknowledged as the Philippine’s superstar. She is the first Filipino actress to win an International acting award in a major Film Festival (Cairo 1995 for the movie “The Flor Contemplacion Story”). She has been directed by four Philippine National Artistss and has appeared in more than 170 films.
Currently in the United States, Nora ran for governor in Camarines Sur, but lost, basically due to lack of experience in political campaigns.
She then migrated to Los Angeles where she is currently engaged in concerts and shows and special appearances.
Her latest concerts were held in Australia and Canada.
She was supposed to go back to the Philippines after several years in US, but her plans fizzled out when her aesthetic operation in Tokyo, Japan, on her way home, went awry. She lost her voice, her biggest asset in her singing and movie career, in the process.
Nora had said before Christmas that she will go home one of these days. Her fans, supporters and relatives are looking forward to her homecoming soon.
Mayor Gazmen said that the Nora Aunor albums that the Cabalteras promised to donate to the city library will come from a discography of 500 songs, some 30 of which were hit albums.