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Arrianne finally gets her dream!

A Fourteen year old Arianne Andrade, fulfils her mother’s responsibilities to her younger Brothers and Sisters( 4 of them), when her mother and two other sisters work as house keepers away from home; going back home during the weekend, and her one armed father making charcoal out of cut trees from the mountain.

Making ways to be always at our Saturday basic literacy and learning review with her brothers and sisters, Gina our Volunteer Teacher finds out that she is more than willing to learn.

She told Gina how she was force to stop her 5 grade school studies because of poverty, that her mother and sisters need to work for a living and she must to attend her little brothers and sisters while their father is up in the mountain.

She shares her dream and vision of being a school teacher someday.

But when Gina shared to her about our ALS ( Alternative Learning System), which gives opportunities for the out of school youth) under our Department of Education in Partnership with Goducate Learning Center; she happily showed her interest for study to finish her Elementary Grade.

For two weeks already she had been faithful attending the class in our learning center, and also earning her allowance through our Goducate soap- making livelihood project of Php 2/ per soap, together with two other students.

– Leo, Goducate Representative, Laguna, Philippines.

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Goducate volunteers build Goducate Center in Laguna Philippines

The Goducate Learning Center is now under construction in Laguna, which is in the heart of recent flood hit areas in the Philippines. As it is the December vacation time for the young people, so there were a lot of volunteers to shovel and mix the cement, sand and gravel… we only have one hired worker who is the expert.

Goducate often uses volunteers in our projects. This is very cost efficient. The land for the learning center was donated by a single mum” and the local authorities granted permission to cut some coconut trees to provide the lumber for this building.

We hope that before this year ends we can finish the construction and make use of this building by January.

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Goducate’s new learning center in Lanit Iloilo

On Oct 25, Goducate opened its new learning center in the little village of Lanit, 25 minutes drive from the city of Iloilo, Philippines.

About 6 months ago, some Goducate workers started Saturday classes for the children of this village. Prior to this, these same Goducate workers had been teaching these same poor kids in the city of Iloilo.

However, when their families were relocated to Lanit to make way for the new airport, the kids asked these workers to continue teaching them. So the Goducate workers asked permission from the Lanit village-head (called “barangay captain” in the Philippines) to use the village basketball court to hold classes for the kids. However, this became unfeasible later when there was competition from other users for the basketball court.

When a kind Filipino, who resides in the USA, heard about our need, he offered us the use of his large rice-fields in that area for free. So it was decided to fill a small portion of land at the edge of his rice-field and build a little building for a Goducate Learning Center.

The children at the Goducate learning center in Lanit
The children at the Goducate learning center in Lanit

Lanit is a relocation site for former squatters in Iloilo. Most families struggle to make ends meet and to keep their children in school.

When I arrived on the afternoon of October 25 for the Official Opening of the center, the little building was filled with over a hundred children and another hundred parents and well-wishers. The local village (barangay) officials were also there.

It was indeed a joyous occasion for that little neglected village on the edge of the rice-fields.

The little kids will now get to learn their ABC’s.

And the older kids will have a nice place to study and play.

More photos (click thumbnail to view photos):
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