The Children of the Poor

As the schools nationwide, public and private, begin to open this month of June 2014, millions of our children troop to their favored learning institutions in their locality, province, or Metro Manila areas. In places devastated by killer typhoons and earthquakes, very few of these schools have been rebuilt or repaired. It is safe to say that there are still hundreds and thousands of the children who cannot develop their God-given talents through the standard educational system. It is a great cause for concern and worry. Of course, something is being done by government and non-governmental institutions (NGO’s) local and foreign.

Among the million children duly enrolled, there are thousands in kinder, grade and elementary levels who go to classroom undernourished or malnourished at home. These are the homes of the poorest of the poor. There are charitable church-based and non-church groups responding to this need in collaboration with the DSWD.

I am happy to note that our Archdiocese has recently opened a feeding center located near the Church in the Our Lady of Fatima Parish. Around the archdiocese are projects similar to this and are undertaken quietly by our religious congregations of men and women. And there are also private lay initiatives in this area of children’s need. They are to be appreciated and supported. God bless them.

Modesty I aside I found myself involved in this kind of project, too. I chair the board of the Catanihan Foundation, Inc. in the Skyline area in Catalunan Grande. I am also in the board of similar project in Lasang of the Daughters of Saint Anne and another of the same run by the Cavanis Sisters in Tibungco.

Much bigger involvement for children’s welfare that I have for several years now is the SOS Children’s Villages, Inc., around the country. We give parental care to abandoned children and those at the risk of being abandoned. Our system has a training program for ‘mothers’, village directors, social workers, village staff. and volunteers. Our children live in cottages. They go to nearby schools. We involve them in reach-out activities for other children and families in the neighborhood. Each village has a board. In our SOS Village in Bajada, the board chairman is the Archbishop of Davao.

I chair the national board of the 8 SOS villages located in Balanga, Bataan, Alabang, Paranawue, Lipa, Batangas, Calbayog, Samar, Tacloban, Leyte, Cebu, Zarraga, Iloilo, and Davao. We are in 130 countries. It is a non-denominational organization. Our main office is SOS Kinderdorf International in Insbruck, Austria.