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Goducate visits earthquake victims in Mindanao, Philippines

The most recent series of earthquakes that hit the Philippines on Nov 16, 30 and 31 left North Cotabato, a province in the northern part of the Island of Mindanao (the second largest group of islands in the country), in shambles. 

Some of the houses were newly built but none escaped the earthquake

On Dec 5, five Goducate Philippines staff, in partnership with Sultan Kudarat Association, visited Barangay Buenavista in the Municipality of Makilala, in North Cotabato. Barangay Buenavista is one of the 38 barangays (villages) in Makilala. 20,704 families (some 103,520 persons) reside in the Municipality of Makilala, where the earthquakes eroded more than 200 hectares of land.

The visiting group had first to get a clearance pass from the Makilala Incident Management Team before proceeding to the relocation site. The specific relocation site that the group visited was housing about 150 families from Sitios Lapu-Lapu and Rizal. The relocation site is a private property owned by a businessman who generously allowed his rubber plantation to be occupied by those whose houses were destroyed by the earthquake.

The classes have resumed in tents like this in Barangay Buenavida, Makilala, North Cotabato

The local elementary school in Barangay Buenavida was also destroyed by the earthquake, so the teachers and the remaining students resumed classes in makeshift classrooms made of tents in the same relocation site. According to the teachers, only about 120 of the more than 200 pupils have remained. The rest had left North Cotabato out of fear that the earthquake might hit the province once again. 

During the relief operations, lunch was served, and packed goods were given following the master list of the households registered in the relocation site. As a stress-debriefing procedure, the Goducate staff together with the partners from Sultan Kudarat Association facilitated games for the children and adults, separately.

The names were called out for the goods according to the masterlist given by the Makilala Incident Management Team
*Our guest writer is Carmela Damaso, a Goducate staff member in Iloilo.
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Goducate trainees in China finish their training at Goducate Training Center in Iloilo

One of Goducate’s projects in China is to train people to be community development workers. Last month, 9 of these trainees spent the last 2 weeks of their training at the Goducate Training Center (GTC) in Iloilo, Philippines. The idea was to expose them to a foreign country and a foreign culture, and to give them an idea of what it is like to have to adapt to a different environment.

Since if Chinese community workers are sent abroad to serve, it is likely that one of their main tasks will be to teach Chinese as a second language, at GTC, the China team taught the other trainees some Chinese words and songs. They also attended a class teaching how to run an English corner, the principles of which can be applied to the teaching of any language.

Much of the practical training at GTC is done in the neighboring communities. There the China team saw how GTC trainees visit local families to help them help themselves. For example, they showed the families how to raise farm animals, or to increase outputs from their farms.

The China team also visited an area hard hit by Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) late last year, and where the Goducate Tent School project has been restoring classrooms in schools badly hit by the typhoon. This restoration work is complemented by various educational activities in the community. The China team visited the schools to teach the children Chinese songs and various kinds of paper crafts. It was good to see how the children were a little reserved at first, but by the time the China team was leaving the kids were joyful and smiling and laughing away.

Although the China team’s introduction to the outside world was very gentle, in that the GTC is set in beautiful surroundings and the team was surrounded by kind-hearted people and pampered by good food and wonderful service, the servant’s hearts they saw in the others became a lesson in themselves.

Teaching Chinese in classroom undamaged by Typhoon Haiyan
Teaching Chinese in classroom undamaged by Typhoon Haiyan
Learning craftwork at GRC
Learning craftwork at GRC

*Our guest writer is Brenda, a China team trainer and program coordinator

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Goducate extends Typhoon Haiyan relief work to Leyte

Typhoon Haiyan (local name Yolanda) was one of the strongest tropical cyclones ever recorded. When it struck the Philippines in November last year, Goducate decided to focus its help on North Panay, an area devastated by the typhoon that was closest to the Goducate Training Center in Iloilo. After distributing immediate relief supplies and providing water purification systems, Goducate decided to focus on rehabilitating schools. Those that had lost roofs were given a tarpaulin covering. For buildings that were too unstable to be re-roofed, Goducate provided “tent schools”. In addition, Goducate’s community development workers helped in remedial classes, and organized seminars and workshops for parents on backyard farming, public health and nutrition, and livelihood projects.

By May, Goducate had rehabilitated 55 schools, enabling an estimated 10,000 students to study in “normal” classes (many classrooms were used by more than one class).
It was then that Goducate decided to extend its help to Leyte, part of the area worst hit by Typhoon Haiyan, and north of Tacloban where most of the help from international agencies was concentrated. Here Goducate has decided to concentrate on community work.
After the distribution of relief goods such as medicines and school supplies, the Goducate team started to visit various communities assessing needs and addressing them. Programs introduced have included awareness of the nutritional value of moringa (which most people already have growing in their backyard), preventive health, and agricultural ones such as vermiculture, container gardening, and backyard gardening. In addition, the community health workers help in schools where needed, for example, by holding English corners. The programs have been very popular. For example, a lecture on moringa awareness is usually followed by a request to do more. And in one high school, almost 90% of the 300 students come for the English corners.

Some of our programs scheduled for July had to be postponed because of Typhoon Rammasun (local name Glenda), which wreaked quite some damage to Goducate in Laguna, and Typhoon Matmo (local name Henry), but work has resumed and is being extended in the area.

Parents attending a moringa awareness session
Students attending an English Corner
Preparation of a FAITH garden. (Food Always In The Home is a project introduced by Care Channels, a non-profit organization).
Preparation of a FAITH garden. (Food Always In The Home is a project introduced by Care Channels, a non-profit organization).
Students attending an English Corner
Parents attending a moringa awareness session