The beneficiaries were the PDLs in General Trias City Jail, Cavite composed of 1,156 male and female PDLs.

The District event aimed to cover the 7 Areas of Focus of Rotary.

The Rotary International Multinational Manila (RIMM) co-hosted the event along with other 50 plus clubs.

The District donated sacks of flour and rice, assorted canned goods, biscuits, coffee, school supplies, hygiene products, towels and cans of paint.

During the event there were other free services for the PDLs namely:
– Dental Extraction
– Pap Smear Check Up
– Optical Check up
– Seminar for the 3 R’s (Re-use, Reduce and Re-cycle)

District 3810 also assisted in the installation of a water pressure tank and motor pump to maintain hygiene among the prisoners and cleanliness inside the prison camp.

Such activities have mostly been reactive to the events that have happened, such as providing aids to damaged areas by natural disasters, ending polio, etc.

Now, Rotarians are stepping forward and challenging to create a new format of society.

We can see that the existing consumerist format of society is a dead end. As the result of pursuing profits of a few people, groups or corporations, there are dire poverty, wars and destruction in nature. Even mainstream mass media are control by them and the truth has been hidden. They do not tell us that there are unstoppable climate changes, but we have already seen or experienced them.

We people have to rise and unite. We need to voice that we want to end this consumerist society and create a new society that belongs to people and is organized directly by people.

Such movement has already been active. Please see the Creative Society format.

With this educational support program, total of 265 Aeta Students were benefited.

The following is the list of donated items:

1. School stationery materials for printing.
2. Feeding for malnourished (under weight 65kg) students.  Distributed dry foods each bag with vegetables and fruits.
3. Rice donation for School faculty.
4. Donated 7 boxes of thermal gun scanner for fever and ample supply of antibacterial soup for hand washing.
5. Distribution of school materials for 265 students at Christmas Gift Giving for Day Care Center, providing toys, assorted cookies and chocolate. Additional snack for 60 students and parents.
6. Snack distribution at elementary school faculty year end party.
7. Sponsored lunch for the school visitors who held the program for face to face classes grade 1 to 3
8. Sponsored medals for graduation and for the recognition day

We herewith want to thank our club members for their continuous support in making such humanitarian missions possible whenever and wherever the need arises.

Mayor Randy Salamat included our club in their appreciation for its contributions to stop child sexual abuse and a plaque of recognition was awarded.

Due to pandemic, many school children could not physically attend the event and their parents lated picked up the items such as school supplies, hygiene kits, face masks, etc. donated by some other ogranizations at the schools.

Rotarian Imelda worked together with Aeta village community elementary school in Subic Bay, Zambales.

The donated items by our club include the followings:

• Ethanol Alcohol
• KN95 & Disposable Facemasks
• Disposable Gloves
• Hand Sanitizing Bar Soaps

Updates in October, 2020

Our club Rotarian Imelda continued to provide school supplies and sanitary materials for distance education to Aeta students. The donated materials by our club included the followings:

• LONG PLASTIC ENVELOPE FOR THE MODULE EDUCATION
• BACKPACKS, NOTEBOOKS, PENCIL & PEN
• FACE SHIELDS, SOAP, TOOTHPASTE, FACE POWDER, SHAMPOO, ETC.
• NOODLES & COOKIES

The parents of the students in the Aeta Village appreciated the support that Rotarian Imelda and our club provided as they believe that education is the key to success in life.

Feb. 19 – During RIMM’s initial visit, we also visited the former village location and offered assistance with reconfiguration of the lots on the new mountain parcel along with effective erosion control as the lots had been laid out as if the site was flat land. The offer was declined by the AETA council as some families had already constructed homes along with the feeling of ownership security and thought that they could handle it.

Feb. 28 – RIMM conducted its first support mission with Rotarian (Sergeant) Jun, Pres. Henry, PE Lito, and PP Klaus driving the van filled “to the gills” with clothing, rice, vitamins and tarps largely donated by DSWD for this purpose and supplemented by RIMM with other items such as floor mats, etc.

Feb. 29 – Supported by the Mayor of Alfonso, RIMM provided further assistance to the AETA village. Gina. Vedan, Municipal Social Officer (MSO) of Alfonso, Cavite (Department of Social Welfare & Development -DSWD) and the Mayor’s uncle Fred drove in the city’s king cab truck filled with food, school and hygiene supplies, buckets, dippers, blankets, etc. Rotarian (Sergeant) Jun, Pres. Hide, and PP Klaus drove in the RIMM van, also overloaded with supplies. On site at the AETA village was already an energetic and dedicated group of Catholic nuns who supplied water, medical supplies, some clothing, etc., while also running an effective soup kitchen as well as a medical mission.
Discussions were held with the village chief and village council pertaining to further needs such as a generator, a chainsaw, more reliable metal roofing they desired and further housing needs.

March 3 – PE (President Elect) Lito writes letter to a nonprofit, requesting assistance with solar for the AETA village. “Rotary Club of Multinational Manila is currently and actively involved in helping/sourcing/facilitating assistance for an Aeta community comprising of 64 families largely displaced as the result of the recent eruption of Taal Volcano and are now relocated in San Luis, Batangas.”

March 7 – The bamboo discovered for sale on Feb. 29 along a Batangas roadside was subsequently purchased by RIMM for further AETA village home construction. With Rotarian (Sergeant) Baurile leading the way in his own car, 100 pieces of good quality bamboo about 15 feet long were delivered to the AETA village drop-off site in a rented truck along with P15,000 cash.

March 11 – A large cooperative effort before the Covid-19 lockdown between DSWD, Alfonso Mayor Randy and our club who paid for the P8,000 rental of the large truck, brought needed supplies not only to the AETA village but also primarily to about 600 families in Agonzillo whose barangay was heavily affected by heavy ash fall from the Jan. 10, 2020 Taal Volcano eruption. For the AETA villagers RIMM provided a small generator, a 10 liter gas can with gasoline, a 20-inch chain saw, 2 liters of small engine oil, and six small cans T-2 oil for a two cycle engine (chain saw). P5,000 was also provided in cash for further direct purchases of needed materials by the villagers such as requested hollow tile for initial “permanent” erosion control measures protecting the newly constructed tribal meeting hall. 13 metal drums, toys, 64+ banigs (floor sleeping mats), tarps, etc. were also provided from Alfonso’s emergency relief supplies. Club Rotarian Jun demonstrated how to operate the generator and chainsaw. One of the villagers is a chainsaw operator on his part-time job. Emergency supplies were also provided to nearby families as well as members of the AETA tribe who had not yet relocated to their new village.
With the bamboo and part of the cash provided on March 7, the villagers had already purchased needed materials for their new tribal meeting hall while waiting for some of the ordered metal roofing sheets to be delivered. Because of the sudden Covid-19 lockdown, RIMM could not visit the site for further purchase of the roofing sheets not could it send money by wire.

March 30 – IPP Raymund was finally able to wire P60,000 for further purchase of additional metal roofing sheets as desired by the tribe to complete the basic roofing of 37 homes already partially constructed on site. P50,000 was a Rotary District grant received by RIMM from Governor Liza for this specific purchase. The additional P10,000 from RIMM were immediately used to buy materials for the continued construction of the tribal hall and payment for their Aeta laborers.

May 13 – The first roofing sheets were finally delivered after a temporary easing of the lockdown. Out of 37 Aeta households a total of 26 were given 5 roof sheets each while 11 are still waiting for their roof sheets to be delivered to them because of the lockdown. Additional bamboo needed for clipping the bamboo to the roof sheets, for flooring inside the house, for walls to insulate further the house, and for making tables & chairs could not be purchased by RIMM yet and delivered because of the Covid-19 lockdown.

With the lockdown still in effect in Lemery, the village is still waiting for the delivery of metal roofing sheets for the remsining 11 of the 37 homes already contructd on site.

July 11 – Honorary Rotarian Jun drove to Lemery and Taal Batangas, investigating the quality and price of 150 pieces of bamboo inclusive of delivery and ordered 150 pieces at P45,000. Despite the still Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) still in effect, he was able to finally initiate this mission, As a FRONTLINER (A frontliner is an individual whose call of duty and expertise is needed & appreciated during the Covid-19 pandemic in all its aspects one can think of), he was the only person authorized to pass through the tight checkpoints. The needs are great now because the rainy season had already started a while ago.

July 15 – Rotarian Jun delivers P22,500 from RIMM for ½ the cost of the bamboo to start the selection, cutting and storage for pickup on July 18.

July 18 – Rotarian Jun delivered the final 22,500 from RIMM for the purchase of the bamboo. He supervised the loading of the rented truck and, driving his car, guided it past four checkpoints through Batangas and Lemery to San Luis. Non-residents are required to coordinate with the Local Government Units (LGU) of Lemery and Batangas to provide necessary documents such as travel passes from the Phil. National Police (PNP) that must also include health certificates, etc. in order to enter or pass through their jurisdictions. But as a frontliner and a member of the Philippine Army Reserve Command, he was able to pass freely and deliver the bamboo to the indigent Aeta tribe at Brgy. Banoyo in San Luis. The LGU in San Luis had also given him permission to deliver the bamboo provided it is unloaded without talking and that after unloading he and the delivery truck driver return immediately. The LGU has to protect the indigenous Aeta tribe from being exposed to and becoming infected with Covid-19 due to their small population.

Scholarships

RIMM’s RY2020-2021 Scholarship program focused on finding out the needs and interviewing senior high school and college-bound students in the three indigent camps (Camp Hope, Usting 1, Usting 2) it was supporting as well those at the new AETA village project. As the number of deserving applicants grew to 32 students, RIMM’s initial P100,000 earmarked for the project was matched with another P100,000 in personal funds by Rotary District Governor Liza. The number of students was subsequently reduced to 30 because of personal circumstances of two of the students. Raymond Orio of Usting 2 whose parents preferred him to stay in Samar due to the fear of the high Covid-19 infection rate in Cavite and Lhea de la Luna of Aeta who is suffering from a curved spine due to Tuberculosis (TB) bone disease were removed from the scholarship list and are being provided with financial support instead. Lhea is being assisted with her medical needs and Raymond’s family with roofing sheets for their Samar mountain nipa hut home.
Because of the Covid-19 lockdown and on-line classes, it was suggested by incoming Pres. Manilito Mondejar and supportive teachers that providing computer tablets would be the best competitive learning environment for the students. After exhaustive research that included making sure that all sites were internet accessible, receiving feedback from each student, and searching the market for the best computer tablets at a reasonable price, it was decided to purchase 22 Samsung 2019 tablets and provide them to students as an initial loan to make sure that the students diligently pursue their studies, to be finalized as a gift a year later.
Another eight students preferred financial assistance which will be P2,000 per semester or P4,000/school year depending on needs. A minimum of P32,000 has therefore been set aside from the Scholarship fund for the financial assistance of the said 8 students. Also, of the eight AETA Scholarship recipients (six in senior high school and two in college) five preferred tablets while three, inclusive of Lhea, preferred financial assistance.

The above photo of six of the eight AETA scholarship recipients was provided to RIMM on July 31, 2020, for inclusion in this report. It shows the students standing in front of the AETA mountain village tribal meeting hall being completed. Two additional students are not shown in the photo as they were working.

On July 31 RIMM also wired another P15,000 to the AETA secretary for the purchase of rice for all the families as they were running out of food during the continued lockdown despite many of the men working.

1. 1 unit of agricultural sprayer & liquid bleach 
2. 24 packs of sandwich loaf bread
3. 80 boxes of calcium supplement (100 tablets/box)
4. 300 sachet of “Ready-to-Use Supplement Soy-Based Food” for moderately malnourished children aged 6 months & older.

On May 7, 2020, 300 boxes of Calcium supplement and 150 packs of soybean instant food supplement were donated to DSWD Alfonso through the Mayor’s office. DSWD will distribute the food supplement to malnourished children and calcium supplement to senior citizens.

On May 8, 2020, the agricultural sprayer and disinfectant liquid for the use in Barangay Sicat. The barangay (village) will use the sprayer to disinfect the areas in the barangay during the covid pandemic as safety for the residents is their priority. 

On May 8, 2020, 24 packs of loaf breads and 149 packs of of soybean-based instant food supplement are distributed to over 100 children living in the 3 indigent camps in Alfonso that RIMM has been supporting over the years.

The camp leaders stated that the food made the children happy in the middle of the said pandemic.

There are over 50 indigenous families in the 3 camps. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, they became unable to go out and sell taho (tofu with brown sugar syrup) or balut (boiled duck egg) which brings their regular livelihood income.

The local government started to distribute rice and staple items, while RIMM continues to supply them canned food, additional rice, hygiene kits, water drums, etc. that are not provided by the government.

More than 42 children of Usting 2 lined up for the P20 bill given to them by Pres. Henry. The children hugged us with joy.

Updates on April 8, 2020

On April 8, 2020 Pres. Henry and IPP Raymund distributed canned sardines, noodles and laundry soaps to 51 indigent families in 3 camps located in Brgy. Luksuhin Ibaba and Brgy. Sicat in Alfonso, Cavite.

Because of the quarantine procedure in Covid-19 pandemic, RIMM quickly dropped the provisions and the camp residents picked them up.

The 3 indigent camps are receiving 5 kgs. of rice from DSWD each week.

The Enhanced Community Quarantine is extended to April 30. 2020.

Updates on 4/20/20

On April 20, 2020 RIMM made another delivery of canned sardines, noodles, germicidal body soaps and laundry bars to three indigent camp locations.

The 51 families whose income rely on selling ballot and taho appreciated this provision since their livelihood was adversely affected during this Covid-19 pandemic period. They said the germicidal body soaps are useful for their children’s hygiene since they cannot afford to buy it anymore. Observation of proper hygiene for these 3 camps is important to prevent the spread of Corona virus in the community.

RIMM is hoping for the release of government’s financial assistance program for the “poorest of the poor” who were adversely affected by the said pandemic through DSWD.

At the moment the 3 camps are receiving a ration of 5 kilos of rice and a pack of hot dog or a kilo of chicken from DSWD each week.

RIMM has been giving its weekly ration from DSWD to families having 9 or more children residing at one of the camps.