A Sponsor Child Visited – The Philippines

Clarissa & Stephen Wickens recount the visit to their sponsored children – 15 -16 December 2008

We had decided more than a year ago that we would spend Christmas 2008 and New Year in the Philippines with Clarissa’s family. Since we were going anyway it seemed like a too good an opportunity to miss to visit our sponsored child, Ronald, and by the time we were ready to make plans for the trip we had a second sponsored child in the Philippines – Lea, who had been given to us when a girl we had sponsored in Africa had graduated from her programme.

We contacted Susanna Arnold from TEAR Fund, were sent an info pack on visiting that included forms for a Police check, and a few weeks before we left were given contact details for the Programme Director for each of the programmes our sponsored children are part of. Clarissa was able to contact them by email, and then closer to the visit by phone, to confirm the arrangements. Because Clarissa is a Filipina, communication was easier and rapport was established immediately. We were given the choice of visiting both projects on the same day, or one on 15th and one on 16th of December. Wisely, as it turned out, we chose separate days to minimize time pressure. In preparation for our visit, Clarissa had arranged for her sister Tricia to purchase food and to assemble it in two large plastic buckets, one for each family. Tricia had suggested buckets, rather than baskets, as being more practical.

On Monday 15th, we were met at Clarissa’s mum’s house in Mandaluyong precisely at the agreed time of 10.00am by Susan (Project Director) and Angie (Treasurer) of CCFC Lifestream Ministries Inc., which is associated with the Four Square Jesus Church. The project is huge, with over 500 children being sponsored. CCFC likes to become involved with families from conception so they can assist mothers with healthy choices and ensure babies get a good start. Most of the sponsors in recent years have been Korean Christians! The Project Director hosts about two sponsor visits per month.

We were taken by car to the CCFC office in Project 4, Quezon City, where Ronald and his mother were waiting for us. There we also met by the Social Worker and the Case Worker.

Ronald, who had been allowed off school for the day, was shy at first, but his mother was smiling and laughing as she and Clarissa spoke together in Tagalog like old friends who had known each other for ages. Ronald’s mum proudly showed us some of Ronald’s art work, and a card we had sent through TEAR Fund. She was embarrassed that a rat had eaten about a quarter of the card. We had bought a NZ tee shirt for Ronald, and he seemed pleased with it. Mum teased Ronald that if the tee shirt didn’t fit, she would be happy to wear it. Mum explained that we were welcome to go to her house, but that she was embarrassed that there would be no chairs for us to sit on, nor could she feed us, as she had no food for that day, and the day before she had needed to buy noodles on credit from the local Sari-Sari store so the family could eat. She also apologised that her husband was not available. She explained that he works “on call” as a radiator repairer, and that he needs to work whenever there is work available. We were thankful that we had bought food with us!

The four staff from CCFC then took Clarissa and I, together with Ronald and his mum, on two tricycles (175cc motorcycles with side cars – designed for around 5 passengers each, including driver) along some tight and crowded streets for about 5 minutes or so, until we stopped by a shop. I couldn’t see any houses around, so wondered where we were going. We got off the tricycles, went down a path which took us lower than street level and then walked along a narrow path alongside an open drain, for about 100 metres.

There were people everywhere, but lots of smiles. The CCFC people seemed well known and well liked there. One old chap invited me to share his beer. I politely declined.

We then got to a door in the wall, which turned out to be Ronald’s house. Inside it was less than 2metres x 2 metres, with a similar sized mezzanine above for sleeping. The mother explained that the house had been a little bigger, but the front of it had been cut off when the drain was put through, to minimize flooding. However there were still floods from time to time, and she indicated a mark on the wall about 1 ½ m above floor level to show where the flood would sometimes reach. We sat on the floor and talked for a while. There is no running water, nor is there a bathroom of any kind, but there is a single electric light bulb. The ceiling had also been decorated with a few Christmas glass balls. The mum and dad have lived in the house for 20 years, and pay 1500 pesos a month for rent (about $55 NZ). We are Ronald’s third sponsors. The first, an American, had sponsored Ronald for 10 years, and while the mother was grateful for the support, she showed clear disappointment that he had managed to write only 3 letters to Ronald in those 10 years. We read from TEAR Fund how important the communication from the sponsors is, but it really cemented it in for us how we need to be more faithful in writing regularly. Here was a woman with literally nothing, for whom the highlight of her family’s life was a letter from the person(s) who was helping to raise her son!

The second sponsor was from NZ, but had only managed to keep it going for two months, and then there has been us, for the last year or so (?)

We returned to the CCFC office by tricycle, where we left the social worker and case worker, and Susan drove Ronald, his mum, Angie and us to the Shoe Mart Marikina Mall, (the same mall where the day before the CCFC staff had brought their 500 plus sponsored kids to buy the Christmas gifts from their sponsors – each child with a budget of about $24 each, a discount negotiated with the mall, and four cashiers allocated to the CCFC party!) where we purchased some video arcade tokens so that Ronald could play some games for a while, then ate at McDonalds for lunch. We then passed by Ronald’s house, to drop them off, and Susan brought us back to Clarissa’s Mum’s house in Mandaluyong.

What a sobering experience, and what a smell from the open drain. Its no wonder Ronald suffers from asthma. The mum asked us to pray for Ronald so that he suffers less and doesn’t miss so much school. The profile we have from TEAR Fund understates the level of poverty. Ronald’s profile indicates that he makes beds and helps in the kitchen. We really need to step out of a NZ context to understand what that means. “Beds” comprises a mat on the floor in the mezzanine, and the “kitchen” is a corner of the 2 m x 2m ground floor, with a single cooking ring on a small LPG cylinder, and a plastic bowl for washing the dishes.

On Tuesday 16th, 10.00am came and went, and we wondered if we had been forgotten. But we had a phone number for Carlotta, and called her. She had already sent a text to Clarissa’s mum to explain the lateness, but Mum’s cell phone was in an area of the house with no coverage. They were stuck in traffic, and it took them some two hours from their project in Valenzuela, Bulacan to get to us. Some time after 11am we were picked up by Carlota (former Project Director), Gemma (acting project Director) and Rochelle (case worker who had been a sponsored child, graduated from the programme and now at age 24, was in a position to bless others) from the Wesleyan Caring Hands Project in Valenzuela. They had rented a vehicle from the central office of the Church, and had employed George, father of another sponsored child, on our behalf as driver for the day.

They discussed with us if we would prefer to go to the project office first, or to Lea’s house, where Lea and her mother were waiting for us. The project, based at the local Wesleyan Church is smaller than the CCFC project, having about 250 children, and we were just the second sponsors to visit in 2008. We elected to go to the house first. The staff explained that Lea’s family had only been in their new house for a week. They had been living in a slum area, which was to be bulldozed for a new road, and they had been allocated a new house in a Government housing project a few kilometres away.

The house was luxurious compared with what they had before, being a new concrete block structure, the end unit in one of many rows of such dwellings currently under construction. The double bed in one corner of the room occupied a little less than 25% of the floor area of the living area, while there was a separate bathroom at the rear. There was no running water, but a communal hand operated pump close to the door (convenient location for this family!) provided clean water from a “deep well”. Those requiring water for washing or to flush their toilet “fall in line” with whatever container they have. Tricia’s suggestion of a food “bucket” rather than “basket” had again proven to be a good choice.

There is electricity, but only at night time, when the house is lit by a single fluorescent tube. On the wall of their home was the text “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” Joshua 24:15, to which had been added in felt pen “Manlapaz Family”. The family can eventually own the house. Rent is free for the first year, then for the first five years they pay 200 pesos (less than $10) per month, for year 5 – 25 500 pesos per month, for the following 5 years 1,000 pesos (about $40) per month. They then own the house, and at that time can then build a second storey if they choose.

Lea and her mother were waiting for us, and again Clarissa was able to establish immediate rapport. Lea (14) explained that her father was away working, and that there were five siblings, the two older brothers not living with the family being half-brothers. Lea has a sister Emy Rose, just a year younger than her, (they look like twins) and a 9 year old brother. Both of the younger children were at school when we arrived. I asked if they were also sponsored, but it was explained that the policy is that only one child per family is allowed sponsorship. It was great that we had taken NZ tee shirts for each of the siblings, and with the new information about Lea being the only sponsored child in the family it helped us work out how we would spend the rest of the afternoon.

We asked about the effects of their being uprooted from their previous home, and being transplanted to this new development. The house and facilities were great, but the downside was that the girls had lost all their friends, did not know where they had been sent, and had no way of reestablishing contact. Their old school also had bright pink frock style uniforms, while the new school had canary yellow uniforms of similar style. Because they could not afford new uniforms they had been given a dispensation to wear their pink uniforms. We could only imagine how difficult it must have been to assimilate into a new school for 13 and 14 year old girls who have lost all their friends and who appear so obviously different as the only pink covered girls in a class room with between 50 and 60 yellow covered girls.

We gave the food, and the tee shirts, and it was obvious that Lea’s was too large. Her disappointment was well masked. Shortly afterwards, Emy Rose, resplendent in pink uniform, arrived home from school. She unwrapped her teeshirt, and both girls disappeared. They reappeared a few minutes later, having swapped tee shirts, with Emy Rose preferring the black larger shirt we had labeled for Lea, and Lea preferring Emy Rose’s pink tee. Another Jack Spratt lesson!

Clarissa asked Lea what she would prefer for lunch, and the decision was made – Jollibee. Jollibee is the home grown Philippine equivalent of a mixture of KFC, Wendy’s and McDonalds, where you can buy a burger, fried chicken, grilled marinated bangus (a very tasty fish) and rice, or chips and spaghetti. Jollibee is doing its bit fore the environment – the knives and forks are stainless steel, the plates melamine, and the drinking glasses a heavy plastic. The only utensils not washed and reused that we saw were the sundae cups.

We piled into the wagon, and George drove us to ShoeMart Marilao, Bulacan mall. We made our way to Jollibee, where we placed our orders. I ordered the bangus and rice – it is really tasty, and we sometimes have it at home, bought frozen in the Philippine shop. The Jollibee version did not disappoint. During the car ride to the mall, which was quite lengthy, (the project seems to operate over quite a dispersed area – possibly as the result of the relocations?) Clarissa and I had agreed that while the video arcade had been a suitable treat for Ronald, a girls shopping trip might be more appropriate for Lea and Emy Rose. To minimise shyness Stephen would wait behind with the mother, George and the project staff (except for Gemma, who was required to accompany the girls) while Clarissa would take the girls shopping.

Clarissa and the girls enjoyed shopping as the sisters were very close, they consulted each other what they needed most, which were some undies, an umbrella and a pair of running shoes for Lea. We did not forget Emmanuel, the younger brother and on the advice of the girls, bought him a matching singlet with shorts. The girls were very thankful for the items they received.

After shopping, we headed back to the Manlapaz residence to drop them off, and headed on to the Wesleyan Church, where we were met by their pastor and his wife, and three of the teachers who work in their kindergarten. Clarissa also filled out some forms while Stephen talked to the pastor. We were also given a treat when a 5 year old boy confidently recited the 23rd Psalm to us. The Pastor thanked us for our visit and prayed for us. We were very humbled. Then we were dropped off at the MRT (high speed rail) station (as we had requested earlier in the day to take the train, so that we could have more time with the family and Wesleyan group would not be faced with the 4 hour round trip to take us home). We only had to wait for a few minutes and we managed to sit conveniently in the train despite the rush hour. We got off the train at the Shaw Blvd. station which is just a few minutes walk from Tricia’s shop. We caught up with Tricia, and she gave us a ride home.

God provides for all our needs, He is awesome! During the trip home, we discussed the school uniform dilemma. The next day, we emailed Susanna at TEAR Fund to see if there was any way that we could assist. She replied straight away explaining that we could make a special gift of up to $50 and what the process was. Hopefully, Lea and Emy Rose will be wearing yellow very soon!

If you would like to look into sponsoring a child then call TEAR Fund on 0800 800 777 (24hrs) or click here. If you already sponsor a child and would like to find out how you can visit your child then call 0800 800 777