Kim Patrick Saren: Sari-Jeepney, the First Philippine Google Doodle

Biography

The drawing, in his own words

Saren explained the design himself, and the explanation is more schematic than decorative. “This is a sarimanok inspired idea,” he said. “It symbolizes Filipino culture with deep appreciation of hard work and creativity. The concept is created to solve problems like traffic, economy, education and basic needs. The key on the tail signifies the solutions to the problems wherein we must fly high with pride and honor.”

The sarimanok is a legendary bird of Philippine art; the jeepney is the country's ubiquitous public transport. Welding the two produced an image that answered the contest theme literally. Asked what he could do for the Philippines, he drew a vehicle carrying the solution on its tail.

Fifty-one thousand entries

The first Philippine edition of Doodle 4 Google drew 51,000 entries. Saren competed in the 15-to-17 age band and was named the overall winner across all of them.

The judging panel mixed social work, advertising and the doodle profession: Efren Peñaflorida, the teacher named CNN Hero of the Year in 2009; CJ De Silva-Ong, senior art director at TBWA-Santiago Mangada Puno; Ma. Esther Santos of the PLDT-Smart Foundation; Fidelina Corcuera of the BPI Foundation; and Katy Wu of Google's doodle team, who selected the overall winner.

Two grants and a trophy

The prize was assembled from corporate foundations rather than from Google alone. Saren received a PHP 400,000 educational grant through the BPI Foundation, usable at any school or college, along with a Google trophy, an art kit from National Book Store and an Acer C720 Chromebook.

Nabunturan National Comprehensive High School received a PHP 350,000 connectivity grant through the PLDT-Smart Foundation. Connectivity, rather than hardware, is the telling detail: in 2014 the useful gift to a provincial Philippine high school was a connection, and the doodle a student drew there paid for it.

The other winners, and the homepage

Three category winners were named alongside him: Angela Kaitlin Tiu, aged five to eight, for Love and Care for the Philippines; Avryll Nartates, aged nine to eleven, for Coral Ripped or Coral Reef?; and Jay Portallo, aged twelve to fourteen, for Symphony for Peace.

Sari-Jeepney went onto Google's Philippine homepage on 10 November, three days after Adobo Magazine reported the result on 7 November 2014.

What is documented — and what is not

The firm facts are the contest ones: the title, the school, the province, the age band, the theme, the entry count, his own statement, the five judges, the category winners, both grant figures and the homepage date.

There is no age given beyond the 15-to-17 band, no year of birth, no home town within Compostela Valley, no family detail and no photograph credit. Nothing in the sources gathered here records what Saren has done since 2014, or whether the PHP 400,000 grant was used. Only one source is used for this page, and where it is silent this page is silent too.

Achievement Timeline

Kim Patrick Saren — every milestone on this page, in order.

2014

Google holds Doodle 4 Google in the PhGoogle holds Doodle 4 Google in the Philippines for the first time, on the theme “What can I do for the Philippines?”, drawing 51,000 entries

7 November 2014

Adobo Magazine reports Saren as the fiAdobo Magazine reports Saren as the first Philippine winner, with three category winners named alongside him

10 November 2014

Sari-Jeepney runs on Google's PhilippiSari-Jeepney runs on Google's Philippine homepage

2014

He receives a PHP 400,000 education grHe receives a PHP 400,000 education grant; his school receives a PHP 350,000 connectivity grant

Since 2014

No further published record appears inNo further published record appears in the sources gathered here

Historical Comparison

Person	Country	Milestone	Age / Stat
Audrey Zhang	United States	Doodle 4 Google 2014 national winner	Age 9
Kim Patrick Saren	Philippines	Half a mythical bird, half a jeepney: the drawing that won the first Phili	—
Vaidehi Reddy	India	A million entries, one Children's Day homepage, and a class IX drawing of	—
Jana Safia Panem	Canada	465,000 Canadians voted, and a Toronto eleventh-grader's renewable-energy	—
Sharon Sara	United States	Six girls, hands joined: a fifth-grader's drawing beat tens of thousands o	—

What is documented — and what is not

✓ Documented

Won the first Doodle 4 Google Philippines in 2014 with Sari-Jeepney, from 51,000 entries
Studied at Nabunturan National Comprehensive High School, Compostela Valley, and competed in the 15-to-17 band
Received a PHP 400,000 education grant; his school received a PHP 350,000 connectivity grant
The doodle ran on Google's Philippine homepage on 10 November 2014

? Unverified, disputed or wrong

No exact age, year of birth or home town in these sources
No family detail and no photograph credit
Whether the education grant was used, and where, is not documented
Only one source is used for this page, and nothing about him after 2014 appears in it

Questions people ask about Kim Patrick Saren

How old is Kim Patrick Saren?

No source used here gives his age or year of birth. He competed in the 15-to-17 age band in 2014.

What is Sari-Jeepney?

His winning doodle, which fuses the sarimanok of Philippine myth with a jeepney. A key on the bird's tail stands for solutions to national problems.

How many entries did he beat?

51,000, in the first Philippine edition of Doodle 4 Google.

What did he win?

A PHP 400,000 education grant through the BPI Foundation, a Google trophy, an art kit and a Chromebook. His school received a PHP 350,000 connectivity grant.