CEBU CITYU—Frenchman Gerard Jose has one wish: a home.
It is not for himself, though, but for the 30 children who were abandoned or neglected by their parents and are now staying at the Terre Sans Frontiere (TSF) Children’s Center.
The shelter has been existing for 15 years, but it does not have a permanent residence. “We’ve been moving from one house to another, depending on when our contract lease expires,” said Jose, TSF executive director.
Funds received by the center from TSF France and donations from individuals and groups are not enough to build a house. The money is used for the children’s education and daily provisions.
The center was first put up in Lapu-Lapu City in 1996 before it moved to Cebu City, Jose said. It transferred from Barangays Tisa and Guadalupe, then settled in its present address in Barangay Basak San Nicolas—its home for the past two years.
“We don’t need a big balay (house). We just a need place that can accommodate the 30 children under our care, a place where they can study, play and live—like it’s really home for them,” Jose said.
Early retirement
Jose, 59, has been living in the Philippines for the last 16 years. Shortly after leaving the French air force, he went to the Philippines in 1995, hoping to take a break from France’s cold weather and enjoy his early retirement.
But the sight of street children in the depressed communities of Cebu, particularly near Carbon, the city’s biggest public market in Barangay Ermita, made him stay.
He and his friend, Marc Louvel, became active volunteers of the Lingap Center while providing food and educational assistance to several nongovernment organizations (NGOs).
However, they both felt the need to establish a foundation that would cater permanently to the needs of the underprivileged children. In October 1996, they established the TSF Children’s Center, with funds coming from a France-based NGO of the same name.
2-year stay
The TSF takes care of 30 boys who are now elementary and high school students. The boys stay at the center for at most two years before returning to their families.
They are not orphans, according to social worker Suzan Tingzon. “These children have parents. It’s just that the parents are not able to raise them well because of either financial or social reasons. The children are systematically referred to us (in the TSF) by other NGOs, children’s center and government institutions,” she said.
“One of our goals is to prepare them when they go back to their families, to their communities. We also provide the parents with parenting seminars so they will be ready when the child will be reintegrated to the family after two years,” Tingzon said.
The TSF also supports 24 pupils in Grade 5, who are living with their families, and prepares them to move forward to Grade 6 and high school.
Raising hopes
To house parent June Dy, it takes patience to raise children with different personalities and attitudes. Some even tried to leave the center.
Dy understands the emotional turmoil the children go through. He himself came from a broken family and survived doing menial jobs and receiving food and clothes from friends and neighbors.
The center has opened its doors to various institutions and schools, such as Cebu Institute of Technology University (CIT-U) and Cebu Technological University, which give assistance to its programs and activities.
On Dec. 17 last year, the boys at the TSF spent the entire day with industrial engineering students of CIT-U, visiting three museums and holding an art exhibit at the TSF Center. “We don’t get to experience this every day so this is different. I am thankful to the people who take time to be with us,” said 10-year-old Peter Fernandez.
As he looked at the children, Jose could only wish for more thing—a home to permanently house the laughter and happiness of his “sons.”