2019 October Project
This year we worked on two projects. The first was finishing a four stall bathroom in an elementary school that was started in 2018. The "CR" was not yet operational due to the lack of doors for privacy. This year we finished the doors and painted the inside and outside of the "CR" to match the school. Our hope is that the kids will now be able to use the "CR" as they are playing around the school grounds. In addition, we brought treats, basketballs and frisbees for the kids to enjoy. We enjoyed the work but always enjoy playing and making jokes with the kids.
The second project was a home for a family in desperate need of additional shelter. In the Philippines there are two seasons, hot season and rainy season. Families with subpar housing are not able to stay dry with all the rain that continually falls each day during rainy season. In additional, there are typhoons that often drench parts of the Philippines for days at a time. This family has struggled to keep the floor in the inside of their house dry especially during the rainy season. To help with that, we were able to assist them with new materials for the roof, walls, and install an elevated concrete floor. These additions will make it so that when it rains they will have a place to escape the wetness they have not been able to avoid.
We were able to work very efficiently on this project. We hauled in loads of dirt to elevate the floor prior to hand mixing concrete and packing in bucket after bucket of concrete for the new floor. The foreman on the job was Rudy, a local who helps us each year. His assistant was one of the beneficiaries of the project who worked so hard while we were there. He has a name but goes by "Calbo" which means bald in Tagalog. As volunteers the task was not easy. There wasn't any running water or a water pump on the property or near by so Joe one of the volunteers waded through a foot of water and mud to a water well where he threw down a bucket, let it fill up, and pulled it up with a rope. He then repeated this several times to fill a few 5 gallon buckets. He would then wade back through the mud and water to the project site where we used the water to mix concrete. Thanks Joe for your willingness to do this. It was a dirty job and Joe did it with happiness and did not complain once. He said about the job "If the people here have to go there to get water, I can certainly do it as well."
Everyone worked hard. The men were outworked by Laila and Hailee. Thank heavens for them and their hard work otherwise the job would have taken much longer than it did. Lance, Matt, and Neil put forth a strong effort too along with Noel and many others. We hope that this structure will provided the needed comfort for this family in the future years and at some point be converter to a hollow block home.
Aside from the manual labor we were also able to bring additional basketballs and frizbees to give away to people along our way. These giveaways are always a hit. Its fun to see the enjoyment of the receiver for something as small as a basketball.
We also brought with us bags of clothes to give to those in need. We donated lots of clothes to the families near the project site. We also drove around Laoag and looked for individuals and families that we thought were in need and stopped at random to give them some clothes. One particular stop was for a family spotted in a tricycle. Hailee and Laila spotted them and started giving them clothes. After a few trips back and forth Hailee was able to snap this picture with the mom and kids. This was a very touching moment not only for us but also for them. As we backed away in the Hiace Van we noticed the dad's eyes water up with tears of gratitude for the kindness bestowed on his family. It's moments like these that makes the trip all worth it. Not only the time away but also the expense that is born by the volunteers.
Action Humanitarian is a 501c(3) – non-profit organization. We need your support. Your donation will go directly to rebuilding efforts for the thousands of families in the Philippines devastated by the recent typhoons or are in real need of structurally sound housing to protect them from future typhoons. Please help us restore hope, livelihoods, and basic living structures for so many Filipinos in need.
MAILING ADDRESS:
Action Humanitarian
Please Contact Us for Mailing Address
If you have any questions please call J. Brody Orton 801-369-2893
or Jared L Richards 801-380-4672
Thank you for your generosity!