McTavish a proud Filipino

Being Filipino is never about how you look. It's what's in your heart that counts.

- JOAQUIN M. HENSON

Bruce McTavish looked every bit the New Zealander of Scottish descent that he was, but from when he started living in the Philippines in 1967, he knew where his home and heart were. McTavish was married to a Filipina, Carmen Tayag, for nearly 50 years and in 2010, Rep. Carmelo Lazatin filed House Bill No. 1445 endorsing his application for citizenship by naturalization through legislation. He waited eight years for his naturalization, which came with assistance from Sen. Manny Pacquiao and Rep. Yeng Guiao. While waiting for his papers to clear, McTavish once joked that if he were 6-10 and played high-level basketball, naturalization would've come much sooner.