Listening First, Leading Next: A Local Hero for Youth in Southern Leyte
Stories
For over ten years, Keisha Batalon served the people of Padre Burgos, Southern Leyte, as a Medical Technologist at the local Rural Health Unit. She knew the community’s health challenges intimately. In 2023, she felt a calling to reach beyond clinical care and engage directly with young people.
When she was named Local Youth Development Officer and Health Education and Promotion Officer, Keisha saw an opportunity to not only provide health services, but to listen, guide, and empower adolescents to take part in shaping their own futures.
Her journey with the Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF) under its Expanded Youth Leadership and Governance Program (EYLGP) began with learning spaces that shifted her perspective. “I can say that before EYLGP, I already had passion in youth leadership,” she shares. “But after EYLGP that ‘passion’ to lead activities turned into leading with purpose. For me, it was no longer about just programs, it is now about transforming lives. I began to understand that leadership is not about title, it’s about service. EYLGP was such a blessing because since then my heart for youth empowerment became more grounded in humility, accountability, and purpose.”
Related articles:
- Southern Leyte Shows Progress in Reducing Teen Pregnancies
- Serving One’s Community Has No Age Limit: Improving Adolescent Health and Rights in Leyte
- Emilio Galangue: Empowering Youth in Basey, Samar
Keisha deepened her understanding of the struggles and hopes of young people. She discovered that real change begins not with programs imposed from above, but with listening closely. “I have observed that when young people feel safe, they are more likely to openly talk about their thoughts, ideas, concerns, and struggles without fear of judgment, discrimination, or harm.” This insight became the foundation for her work, designing initiatives that respond to their lived experiences.
By mid-2024, she was translating these lessons into action. She led community roll-outs of EYLGP modules in several barangays. That same year, she helped open the Padre Burgos Teen Center, a safe space where adolescents could access health services, talk freely about their concerns, and feel seen. She also spearheaded the local adaptation of TrucKABATAAN, a mobile medical mission that brought essential health services directly to adolescents who might otherwise go without.
Keisha’s approach was always personal. She mentored youth in Barangay Cantutang as they ran their own version of the Commission on Population and Development project, “Isip-isip Before You Unzip,” creating spaces for honest conversations about relationships, sexuality, and life choices. She organized events to celebrate youth contributions, and worked alongside the Local Youth Development Council to advocate for ordinances that protected young people—on curfews, internet access, and safe spaces in their community. Slowly, she saw more adolescents stepping forward and voicing their ideas.
For Keisha, the true reward is found in these connections. “What I am most proud of as a youth leader isn’t the awards, titles, or recognition but it’s the trust, connection and relationship I’ve built with the youth,” she reflects. “It warms my heart that many of them see me not just as an officer, but as their ‘ate’—someone they can approach whenever they need assistance, advice, or simply someone who will listen. Receiving messages, either personally or via social media, saying that I’ve inspired them, even in small ways, to become better students and leaders reminds me that leadership is influence, and I’m grateful to be part of their journey.”
By 2025, the impact was visible. Attendance at youth events doubled, and trust between the community and young people grew. Most strikingly, the number of live births among 15 to 19-year-olds in the municipality dropped from 13 in 2022 to just four in 2025.
Yet Keisha knew the work was far from over. She faced challenges in engaging youth who felt apathetic, reaching out-of-school adolescents, and sustaining participation over time. Still, she remained guided by a simple principle: empathy matters more than criticism.
“My hope for the youth of Padre Burgos is that they grow into confident, compassionate, and purpose-driven leaders. Young people who don’t just dream of change, but become the change for our community,” she adds, “And as long as I am given the opportunity to serve, I will continue walking beside them, guiding, mentoring, and believing in them.”
Photos from: Municipal Local Government Unit of Padre Burgos, Southern Leyte