Keeping children in school through volunteerism

MANILA, Philippines—John Muir said, “In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.”

This is especially true for the 127 volunteers of the Big Brother Big Sister (BBBS) Community Outreach in Marinduque last May 7 to 9 who, despite the havoc caused by tropical storm “Bebeng,” remained undaunted in their mission to bring school packs to the children of some elementary schools in the poverty-stricken island province.

Fearless

The group heard of the brewing typhoon prior to their departure but still headed to the port in Lucena City for the three and a half hours ferry ride to Boac, Marinduque’s capital.

Equipped with mountaineering gears and lots of courage, the volunteers braved through rough trails and crossed several rivers for almost 10 hours to be able to distribute school bags, notebooks, pencils and comic books to some 800 children who will be going back to school in June.

The “ates” (big sisters) and “kuyas” (big brothers) even made sure that the supplies have been properly waterproofed to avoid getting soaked.

Warm welcome

The BBBS outreach activity was a gesture deeply appreciated by the locals of Marinduque.

Notwithstanding the bad weather, the children excitedly gathered at their schools and welcomed the big brothers and big sisters with their ingenuous smiles. Their teachers and parents, meanwhile, prepared coffee and soup for the visitors from Manila.

“They were very grateful that people from the city would bother to trek through rough trails just to reach them,” said Angie Tan, one of the organizers. “They even offered some of their produce to us but we could not bring them as the load would be too heavy to carry.”

Obstacles

Because of the storm, all flights and ferry trips going out of the island were cancelled, causing the volunteers to get stranded for one night. But Governor Carmencita Reyes’ daughter, Atty. Regina Reyes-Mandanas, also the provincial administrator, was quick to offer their residence in Buenavista town.

“We didn’t mind it even if we met a lot of unexpected difficulties. We signed up because we wanted to be of help and that’s what’s important,” said volunteer Emily Tiozon.

Asked if she would still join next year, Valerie Corales, another volunteer, said: “Of course. It’s for a good cause. And besides, it’s the least that we could do to make these children feel that they have big brothers and big sisters who care for them.”

Tough climb

The first BBBS was conducted in 2005 at Itogon, Benguet by a group of mountaineers whose aim was to bring school materials to children in remote mountain areas where roads are inaccessible and access to supplies is scarce. Their objective was to keep children in school by supplementing the parents’ capacity to provide the necessities of schooling.

According to them, parents are reluctant to send their children to school if they lack the money to provide them with school supplies, clothes, foot wear and other needs. They believe that if parents do not have to worry about the school supplies of their children anymore, they will be encouraged to let them enrol and stay in school.

Gaining support from more volunteers, the outreach in Itogon was succeeded by other charity events in Lacub, Abra (2006), Tanudan, Kalinga (2007), Kapangan and Kibungan, Benguet (2008), Buhi, Camarines Sur (2009) and Batad, Ifugao (2010).

“We are intending to do this as long as there are children who need us, sponsors to support us, and volunteers to help us,” Angie Tan said.