TBK Gives - Back for 2020, and bigger and better than ever- HOPE

One of the highlights of my year is the annual HOPE event in El Nido, Palawan. HOPE is a charity set up by a friend who I met when he was working in Bahrain, Mama Jam Fernandez and his family and friends. The Fernandez family is very big in the El Nido area, owning Tandiken Cottages, a Thai restaurant and a travel agent 0among other enterprises. However, as an OFW who has worked as a Chef in Bahrain, on a cruise ship, and now in Austria, Jam and his friends like to give back to the community through HOPE.

I first joined HOPE in 2018 when I sponsored a student at Aberawan school called Aimea who was then 8 years old. The following year I was in El Nido in January 2019 and participated in two HOPE events at Bagon Bayan and Sibaltan Elementary schools.

For those of your not familiar with HOPE it is funded by OFW's around the world who donate money, books, and gifts to the charity. With this they purchase colouring books, pens, crayons and reading books and canvas bags. Then we get a load of local volunteers ( In 2020 my friends from El Nido Cove helped out) to pack the bags and then deliver them to the school and distribute them to the kids. In 2019 we had 200 elementary kids, and in 2020 it was 400.

Special thanks to all those who donated funds, and to the bag packers ( Ram , Edzel, Robert, Marnel and Johanna) and helped out on the day ( Jeremy, Eric, Jhoanna, Making, Elay , Althea, Marnel, Ran, Robert and Jam.) One of the things that impresses me every year is how beautiful the schools are and how welcoming the teachers and students are when we visit.

Jam and I pose with the teachers at Manlag

The team at Manlag, out in the countryside many Kilometers from El Nido, had welcoming signs up, lectern, microphones, speakers, cold drinks and snacks ( Meryenda) for the volunteers. If ever I was to have kids this is the kind of place I would like them to go to school. The grounds are immaculate, everything is painted in bright colours, there is a big playground and a big focus on recycling- a subject close to my heart.

The kids ranged from 5 to 12 – from the main elementary school and a day care centre in the village. They all lined up by grade and waited patiently during the prayers , speech by the head mistress and Kuya Jam, and a few ( and I mean very few) words from me in Tagalog. Then our volunteers took to the floor . Marnel did a great job as MC. With help from the teachers, we presented each year group with their gifts inside an hour. Then we moved to the kitchen area where the teachers had made a porridge for the kids, funded by HOPE. Again, the students lined up by year to receive their food which they ate in their classes before returning the cups for washing and to collect their orange squash. They were so well behaved!

Finally, the teachers fed the volunteers with delicious fish, chicken and rice. After some photos with the teachers we headed back to the van and as we left the kids waved goodbye, which, as usual, moved me to tears. It is one thing giving to charity, but actually being there to see the look on the kids faces and see their gratitude , for me, makes it all worthwhile.

On our way back to El Nido we called in at the Manlag National High School where Jam’s cousin is Head Teacher to present some money for new library shelves and some library books that had been donated by more of our generous sponsors.

Yes they really are teachers, I must be getting old if the teachers are looking so young! Apparently they are having difficulty recruiting teachers and have trainees doing their teaching practice at the school!

Finally, exhausted, we headed back to Vanilla beach where the guys from Cove left us, and then on to Cove itself where Robert was working late shift. After catching up with John and Ritchelle, and having Touron, water, coffee and Calamansi juice we raced back to Jhoanna’s house where the girls got changed and went back to school.

My special thinks to Making, Elay , Althea and of course..... big sis.....

...Jhoanna!

Back in Barutaan as I rested and Jhoanna did her chores the sound of drums could be heard as the kids from all the schools processed around the village led by the Majorettes and the Drum troop, to start the local fiesta.

Sadly we had to head south to Puerto again the next day as Jhoanna had college and I had to get back to Bahrain .

Thanks to Ran for arranging for all the volunteers from Cove and Lio

However I feel that all my hard work last year has not been in vain as I will always remember the happy smiles of the kids we donated to this year, as well as paying Aimea’s school fees and a contribution to Jhoanna’s college fees and expenses.