A fresh and beautiful Rhian Ramos surprised her boyfriend, businessman and TV host Sam Verzosa, during the shoot of his birthday episode of the public service reality program Dear SV, which airs weekly on GMA Network.
“Nagulat ka ba? Malakas ka sa akin eh! Taon-taon na itong surprise na ito (Surprised? You have a strong influence on me! This is a surprise every year)!” Rhian said as she entered the stage to greet Sam.
A shocked Sam replied, “Kaya pala hindi ka sumasagot sa messages ko! Saan ka nagtatago dito? Ang galing naman ng staff natin, hindi ko alam ‘yan ah (That’s why you’re not answering my messages! Where have you been hiding? Our staff is great; I didn’t know about this)!”
The celebrity couple sat down with the entertainment media for a brief chat and shared what they admire about each other.
“Ang dami kong natutunan talaga (I’ve learned a lot). Not just about relationships, but also about myself, about Sam, about being a good partner and what that really means, including what healthy communication is. Siyempre kapag may away, doon mo lang matututunan kung ano ang (Of course, when there’s a conflict, that’s when you’ll truly learn what) healthy communication and healthy arguing. Ngayon ko lang talaga nadi-discover (I’m only now truly discovering). We try to be as patient with each other as possible. We support each other no matter what,” Rhian said.
Sam continued and said that he grew as a person through his relationship with Rhian.
“Nag-grow ako as a person. I’ve matured. Ito na ‘yung isa sa mga best versions of myself. Dahil sa kanya, lalo pang nailabas ‘yung mga magaganda sa akin, nabawasan ‘yung mga hindi magaganda at nabago ko ‘yung mga hindi magagandang ugali. Lahat ‘yun nagawa ko dahil sa pagmamahal (I’ve grown as a person. I’ve matured. This is one of the best versions of myself. Because of her, the good qualities in me have come out more, the bad qualities have lessened, and I’ve changed the undesirable traits. I achieved all of that because of love),” Sam said.
Sam and Rhian are both deeply involved in their respective careers, but they also make time to be together.
“Ngayon pa lang, hirap na kaming gumawa ng oras para sa isa’t isa. Ginagawan na lang talaga namin ng paraan na kunwari ‘pag uwi ko from taping (Even now, it’s already hard for us to find time for each other. We really just make an effort, pretending that when I get home from taping), we’ll have a couple of hours together,” Sam revealed.
According to Rhian, making time for each other is important.
“Nakakapaghanap naman kami ng (We are able to find) ways to spend time together. We go on vacation. If I have work near his house, I’ll just stay at his house first,” Rhian said.
Sam, meanwhile, surprised 100 families by giving them food cart business starter packs. Each food cart was covered and placed in the designated area at MLQU Campus (Manuel L. Quezon University Campus) in Quiapo, Manila. The 100 recipients were chosen from personal letters written to Sam. As each food cart was revealed and handed over to the families, tears of joy flowed, and many of them hugged and thanked Verzosa.
“’Yan po ang pa-birthday blowout ko sa inyo. Sana kahit paano makatulong yan sa inyo lahat para guminhawa ang buhay natin (That’s my birthday treat for all of you. I hope that in some way, it can help improve your lives and make things better for us all),” said the representative of the Tutok to Win Partylist.
The successful businessman and TV host grew up in Sampaloc, Manila. He shared that growing up poor taught him a lot about life.
“Gaya ninyo, lumaki din ako sa hirap at madalas may kulang pero hindi ako sumuko at nagsumikap ako para maiangat ang aking sarili at mga mahal sa buhay (Like you, I also grew up in hardship and often lacked things, but I did not give up and worked hard to improve my life and that of my loved ones),” he said.
Dear SV features stories from various Filipino individuals. Its pilot episode aired in February 2023 on the now-defunct CNN Philippines. The series returned on GMA Network, premiering on 18 November 2023.