Elderly repairman Lolo Rodel, also known as “Lolo Smart,” thanked his supporters after receiving recognition from YouTube when he turned to vlogging following his job loss.
He shared that he received the “Silver Play Button” award from the video-sharing platform and credited his success to people who have supported and helped him amplify his online presence.
“Todong HAPPY po kami dito sa unboxing po nito… Sa tatlong tao na may mabuting puso na nag-share ng ating Lolo Smart Channel,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
“Si Labambanito Lantican at ang kangyang mga followers na nag-subscribe at nag-share at matiyagang nag-monitor… Si Ninong Ry at ang mga subs niyang tumugon… Si Mayora at mga followers ng Home Buddies. MARAMING SALAMAT po sa inyong lahat na sumuporta ke Lolo Smart kaya natanggap ang Silver Play Button…” the elderly added.
“SALAMAT din po sa mga nag-effort na mag-SHARE pa muli na hindi ko na mabanggit pa ang mga names na may malaking contribution din kay Lolo Smart, para sa inyo po ito.
God bless po sa inyong lahat at MARAMING SALAMAT MULI…” he further said.
Lolo Smart accompanied his post with a picture of him posing with his YouTube award.
His post has earned 9,000 likes and reactions, as well as over 480 comments, so far.
Lolo Smart has also been replying to his supporters in the comments section.
Last month, art director Ramil Lantican introduced the elderly repairman on social media after saying that he stumbled upon Lolo Smart’s YouTube in the middle of looking for tutorial videos.
“I broke my fan this morning so I thought of checking some tuts (tutorials) on YouTube. Then saw this Lolo Smart’s YT channel!!” he shared on Facebook before.
“I don’t know but I just felt amazed when watching him. I think it’s because of how calm he talks, like, parang inaalalayan ka talaga niya in every step, and at the same time… I can see the effort he puts into it!” Lantican added.
He also said that Lolo Smart’s videos have subtitles that can be helpful for viewers.
Lantican claimed that the elderly have been in the repairing business for 40 years already. The repair shop that he worked for closed when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020.
Lolo Smart is also a senior citizen. During the enhanced community quarantine, senior citizens were required to stay home at all times.
This rule forced him to remain at home and utilize his skills in another way, namely by helping Filipinos repair their appliances and gadgets through YouTube tutorials.
READ: Meet ‘Lolo Smart’: This elderly man makes tutorial videos on electronics repair
His channel has 179,000 subscribers as of writing.
What about the award?
According to YouTube, the “Silver Play Button” award is given to those who have reached 100,000 subscribers. It only applies to channels with a clean record or those without spammy and deceptive content, among others.
“Creator Awards are given at YouTube’s discretion. Each channel is carefully reviewed to make sure the criteria [are] met,” it said.
Other YouTube awards are the “Gold Play Button,” granted to channels that reached one million subscribers, and “Diamond Play Button” which recognizes those with 10 million subscribers.
The “Red Diamond Play Button,” on the other hand, is granted to creators with 100 million subscribers.
“YouTube Creator Awards are our way of recognizing the extraordinary effort creators put into their growing channels and to build thriving communities, responsibly,” the video-sharing platform said on its website.
