Serve the People

by Miguel Ricardo “Mao” Leung

The typhoons our nation has recently experienced – Ondoy and Pepeng – have definitely left their mark on the Filipino people.

Ondoy left its mark in the National Capital Region and surrounding provinces, while Pepeng stamped its foot in the Cordilleras by wreaking
havoc on ancestral homes, killing approximately 200 people, causing nearly 20 landslides, and displacing countless families.

Classes were suspended for a total of 6 days in Baguio City, and students were left with supposedly nothing to do.

Nothing to do, that is, but help.

‘Helping hands’

On October 11, I decided to step out of the house and do some good for once (with a little prodding from my mother of course).

My sister and I spent the day with the “Serve the People Brigade” of the Cordillera Peoples’ Alliance, packing and distributing relief goods
to the families of Purok 9 Pinsao and Purok 7 FairView.

We were with many other volunteers from the Serve the People Brigade mobilized by the Cordillera Peoples Alliance and Center for Development Programs in the Cordilleras.

Volunteers included medical students from the Saint Louis University College of Medicine and the staff of the health NGO CHESTCORE (Community Health Education, Services and Training in the Cordillera Region).

The morning started out with the packing of relief goods. We had to
pack rice, sardines, and noodles, along with clothing for the victims
of the typhoon.

Immediately, there was a sense of fulfillment, for even through the simple task of shoving things into a plastic bag isn’t much, it’s doing something
nonetheless.

And in our society, where people would much rather sit down and watch the television instead of actually getting up and helping, being proactive is key.

‘A proud people’

After a modest lunch of egg and tuyo, we set out to distribute the packed goods.

The Cordillerans are a proud people, and it must be hard for them to get to the point where accepting help is no longer an option, it’s a must.

This was evident when, whenever a person or a family would reach out to get their relief goods, they would turn away before I could get a picture.

But it wasn’t whether or not they thanked us verbally. The true sense of appreciation came from the smiles of the people around us, that, even in the
smallest possible way, we did something to help.

We then decided to take a look around at the devastation of the locality we were in.

No houses were spared. Some were totally destroyed. But the people’s spirits were not dampened.

They constantly smiled, and even laughed, at and with us – a perfect manifestation of the indestructibility of the human spirit.

Volunteerism

Seeing all the damaged homes made me wonder: “Now that their
houses are gone, will the people still build in the same place?”

For a moment, I considered that maybe they would relocate to safer place. Then I realized that they have no choice.

They had to build in such precarious places in the first place because of their life status.

Most of the people in those areas were of the urban poor class, with
already very little to their names.

The devastation wrought by the typhoon left them with nothing
but each other. (Some don’t even have each other anymore.)

I now realize that even though you cannot donate 5 cavans of rice, or 10 sacks of used clothes, you can help through volunteerism.

The storm victims need one thing above all others, above food, above clothing, above shelter.

They need to know that people care about them and that we, their brothers and sisters, are with them in times of need.

Serve the people.

Note: In the past few days since Typhoon Pepeng, we have been witness to the many mays volunteers are truly serving the people — packing thousands of relief bags, going from house to house to collect donations, letting the world know about what happened through the internet and text messages, etc.

Much more needs to be done as we wait for roads to be cleared so that relief workers can get through to the other Cordillera provinces.

The bigger work of rebuilding homes has barely even begun.

Old clothes are plentiful, food is relatively adequate too. Especially for those in distant places, the most practical help you can send is CASH we can use to purchase relief goods targeting specific needs of particular groups.

We have received requests as varied as flashlights, cooking utensils, toothbrushes and GI sheets.

Please continue to send your donations to: CORDILLERA PEOPLES ALLIANCE Savings Account 1-326-72354-8 (RCBC Baguio Peso Account)