Storybook magic comes alive at Bacolod museum
BACOLOD CITY—A vibrant forest of trees, animals and flowers appears to have leapt straight out of a children’s storybook and into an ancestral home along 54th Lizares Avenue in Bacolod City.
The setting is HOPEtopia, a newly opened interactive children’s museum, learning center and activity hub managed by the Negrense Volunteers for Change (NVC) Foundation. The space serves as a whimsical environment for environmental education and a renewed love for reading.
The museum draws inspiration from “Our Common Home: A Laudato Si’ Story,” written by Australia-based Filipina author Bernadette Silvana. The book, rooted in Pope Francis’ encyclical on caring for the Earth, promotes ecological responsibility as a message for people of all faiths.
By translating its theme of environmental stewardship into a physical, play-based experience, HOPEtopia aims to nurture children’s connection to nature through immersive learning.
In the illustrated book, Silvana describes a grand home where “hallways stretched long and wide with forests, jungles and deserts of sand and ice,” a vision that finds a fitting backdrop in the 80-year-old heritage house once occupied by Dr. Francisco and Carmen Kilayko and their family.
Interactive
Actress Chart Motus guides children and parents through the interactive walkthrough, where rooms and windows open into vivid scenes of diverse communities depicted as living in harmony within a shared forest home.
The experience shifts as visitors are led into a darkened room filled with thunderous sound effects, illustrating environmental destruction. Five-year-old Ethan Quirante, the youngest in a recent tour on May 2, reacts by shouting, “Disgusting!”
The tour concludes in a forest-themed room where children and parents write or draw commitments to protect “our common home,” which are then placed into a symbolic mailbox.
Twelve-year-old Derek Sanchez visits the museum dressed as Pope Francis, inspired by the Laudato Si’ message.
Jaden Bien Ojas-Fernandez, 13, who is on the autism spectrum, says the experience made the book feel “brought to life” inside the house.
“Thank you for making this masterpiece,” he shares, adding that he hopes to return soon for the museum’s library, which he considers his favorite part.
Donations
The library houses a wide collection of books donated by NVC Foundation supporters worldwide, many of them from Singapore.
NVC president Millie Kilayko says HOPEtopia also hosts reading sessions for children, led by teacher Mary Jane Quilisadio, aimed at reviving children’s love for books and reducing screen time, even for just a few hours.
She cites the foundation’s experience in its nutrition programs, noting that excessive gadget use has been linked to delayed physical and emotional development among children.
While the museum’s structure, books and activity materials were donated by supporters, visitors are asked to contribute to maintenance costs—starting at P100 for reading sessions and P150 for participation in the interactive walkthrough.
HOPEtopia also serves as a venue for children’s parties and other activities, Kilayko said.
“Once we are fully settled, we will also invite children from marginalized sectors to join activities without requiring donations to help defray costs,” she adds.
Located within Garden 54, the complex also houses NVC’s showroom and the Artisans of Hope livelihood workshop, where mosaic crafts are produced to support feeding programs for malnourished children and livelihood projects for their families.
The heritage home’s exterior has also been adorned with mosaic accents showcasing the workshop’s craftwork, while the grounds feature Mary’s Garden, a play space anchored by a larger-than-life mosaic image of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.
Those interested in visiting HOPEtopia may arrange tours through its official Facebook and Instagram pages, Kilayko states.
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