How a Benguet weaver stitched a legacy of preserving cultural heritage

BAGUIO, Philippines – The July 16, 1990, earthquake severed the Cordillera from Luzon, cutting off access roads and crippling infrastructure. In the town of Kabayan, Benguet province, Maxencia Pili, alongside a few women, took to crocheting blankets to supplement their incomes. They walked some 75 kilometers via the Atok Trail to Baguio, selling what they had crafted along the way.

What started as a modest initiative grew. By 1993, Pili had expanded beyond crochet into weaving, joined by Saturnina Atinan and Fe Paday.