As 2013 draws to a close, we delve deep into our consciousness and ask ourselves if we have done enough for the marginalized and the victims of natural disasters that hit our country this year.
Typhoon Yolanda once again tested the Filipino people’s generosity and willingness to help in times of crisis. The international community also proved their worth during this time of adversity and stepped up with their donations. There is the poignant story of Kenji Hirakawa, son of a Japanese soldier who was only three months old when his father left to fight for Japan’s Imperial Army in the Philippines. He said, “My father lies somewhere in Luzon. I am enclosing 200,000 yen (P87,000) for all the troubles my father may have caused the Filipino people.†He said he hopes the money can alleviate the plight of the typhoon victims.
Also very touching is the generosity of spirit of young pop star Justin Bieber who flew all the way to Tacloban from the USA to bring cheer to the typhoon victims. And more than that, he is also raising money online and offering as a raffle prize a round-trip ticket from whatever part of the world the winner is coming to spend a day with him in his recording studio in Los Angeles. #Give Back Philippines is the website of his fundraiser.
My friends and I have an angel network and we call ourselves Angels to Street Kids, ASK for short. We don’t belong to any foundation, rather, we’re just a group of well-meaning, civic-minded citizens who wish to help the marginalized in whatever way we can. We welcome friends who want to join us. We spend our own resources or ask big companies to sponsor our cause. During this season of love and giving, we sent out relief goods and donations to the typhoon victims in the different provinces and we continued our feeding program for the poor kids in Mandaluyong and Taguig. Aside from the street kids, this Christmas season, we decided to bring cheer to the elderly as well because they are the most forgotten sector of our society. Christmas is for everyone, young and old, and surely, the elderly also deserve to be remembered. The first barangay that welcomed us was Barangay South Signal, organized by their councilor Estela Gasgonia, where we fed 170 of their very senior citizens. They were so appreciative and during the program, they sang O Holy Night together with our mascot Taj Curata. We gave loot bags filled with basic necessities sponsored by Suzette Ayson. A week after, we fed the elderly in Barangay Tuktukan, which was organized for us by Michelle de Leon, our Girl Friday in Taguig. Seeing the happiness on their faces gave us so much joy as we fed them and gave them our Christmas presents, donated by our friend Emma Pante. They also enjoyed the ice cream from Arce Dairy, donated by Ariel Arce. In return, they had a little program for us where they sang three Christmas carols accompanied by a male guitarist.
We also went to Welfareville where we fed 200 malnourished children of the GK community there. This was organized for us by Rabbi Mendoza, a GK volunteer. The hot meals we brought, which consisted of barbecue and java rice, juice and some desserts, were sponsored by Goldilocks. The malnourished children were ecstatic — we heard from some of them that it was their first decent meal for the week.
ASK welcomes donations of amenities, food packs, medicines, and vitamins or cash. Text or call Pretzel at 09177910725 or Jessa at 09484205898 or Alfred at 09157454450 and 09491503397.
Our feeding program is on a weekly basis.