PHILIPPINES: Start Again Project

Source: New City, Philippines 

Start Again Project wants to help rebuild the spirits, lives, and communities of typhoon-struck areas in the Visayan regions.

“Noche Buena” is a Filipino tradition handed down to us from Spain where we celebrate Christmas Eve with a feast of food and camaraderie in the family. Every year, the group Youth for a United World has been gathering pledges and donations for the Noche Buena (Christmas feast) packages for 100 less-fortunate families through the Social Centres of the Focolare, the Bukas Palad Foundation.

Through this project, we aim to bring the true spirit of Christmas to more Filipino families. As we prepared for the last year’s Christmas 2013, little did we know that it would turn out to be something greater than we could have imagined. On November 8, 2014, the strongest typhoon ever recorded in history hit the Philippines, specifically the Visayan region of islands at the center of our archipelago, plunging our country into one of the biggest tragedies we have ever faced as a nation.

Our initial goal to give only 100 packages to a small community in Manila became a grand effort to contribute to the relief efforts of our nation following the tragedies brought about by the super typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan). With only a great trust in the love of God and His providence, The Youth for a United World of the Philippines launched The Noche Buena Project. Truly, every step along the way, we were amazed by the overflowing support and donations we received from all over the world.

Then in December 2013, we went on a 6-day trip to different Visayan regions, and were able to distribute 1,250 packages to 7 different typhoon struck towns, giving away more than a thousand toys as Christmas gifts for children, holding Christmas parties and feasts for many communities, and somehow helping to bring back a little of the Christmas spirit to hundreds of Filipino families.

Coming back from this trip, we knew we couldn’t stop. We had seen the great devastation the typhoon had wrought to many communities. Everything had been destroyed. Houses were in ruins, mass graves had to be dug in every town, and hunger was widespread. We grieved with the families who had lost their loved ones, shared the suffering of every child we hugged, and left a part of our hearts in these towns.

Yet in spite of the destruction we saw, what we remembered most were the resounding laughter of the children we had played with, the repeated greetings of gratitude from the families we handed packages out to, the inspiring tales of courage from many unsung heroes, and the overwhelming sense of resiliency we felt in the Filipino people. What we brought away in our hearts was not really any sense of pride in being able to help others, but the indescribable joy in witnessing that it is never too late to get back up on one’s feet and start over again.

The second phase — the START AGAIN PROJECT!

The Start Again Project aims to help rebuild the spirits, lives, and communities of the typhoon-struck areas in the Visayan regions. Immediately following the typhoon, donations in cash and in kind came pouring in from different parts of the country and the world. And yet we saw that there was a need not only to provide material goods but also to offer help under different aspects.

We wanted not only to give goods that were temporary, but also to offer long-term support to help these people and their communities rebuild their lives. Therefore, we came up with a 7-point plan, focusing our efforts on the most vulnerable: children and students.

Initially, we had decided to focus on just one school, but seeing that there were many others for which help was badly needed, we expanded our project to reach out to these people. Today, we have seven major recipient schools, all of which are located far away from towns and cities, and which seldom receive help, as well as other recipients – individuals or groups.

As of today, we have served more than 28,000 meals, given away almost 2,500 school supply kits, donated 10 brand new computers for a vocational school, distributed a number of potable water systems, as well as constructed a water pump for a community, built 7 roofs and 4 temporary classrooms, and conducted workshops, art therapy, and built relationships with more than 2,500 students.

This has all been made possible through the generosity of many kind individuals and groups, and of course, the aid of Divine Providence that continuously supports us every step of the way.

Karelle Bulan