Joyful Caroling!
The staff and volunteers of He Cares along with five of the street children did some caroling last December.  They practiced songs with the help of Bro. Ben and Melanie and visited 10 homes (they even visited kind actress Beth Tamayo's!). 

In each home, the brought a belen and placed it before the family's altar.  They lighted a candle and prayed for the spirit of love, joy and peace to be always in that home.  

Along with their heartfelt singing, Bro. Joe Dean gave an overview of the foundation and then one of the street children gave a sharing of his life and his experiences with the foundation.

These generous families they visited donated P13,000 in all and this will go to the funding of the mini-library much needed for the Balik-Aral scholars!  From the He Cares kids and staff, a big THANK YOU!

A Star for the Street Kids!
What a great time the kids had at Star City last December 21 when 32 kids plus five volunteers trooped there through the sponsorship of  Kultura Filipina company.   They gave P250 per child for food, games and rides!  This was a wonderful opportunity for the children to just be carefree and be... children! 

Sneak Peak at Disney on Ice!
The kids were able to see the final dress rehearsal of Disney on Ice last December 21!  All 30 kids rode the MRT and it was their first time to be inside the Araneta Coliseum.  They were so amazed by its size!  They all had so much fun!   Thank you for the kindheartedness of Shirley and friend who made it all possible!

Parties and Surprises for the Kids!
The Rotary Club of Greenbelt headed by Pres. Wally Cervantes held a Christmas Party for 180 of the children complete with brand new toys and cash raffles!  They had special food for the children donated by 5-star hotels packed in styrofoam packs.   Each hotel gave 20 packs!  Truly it was a season of giving!  We should also mention that last May 2001, this same club donated a pingpong table that provides a good alternative to the call of the streets!  Thank you Rotary Club of Greenbelt!  

Noche Buena!
On December 22, the Accenture group gave 180 of the kids a Christmas party they all enjoyed!

The story of He Cares continues.  The story of a foundation that not only relies on people who care but most of all a God who really does care for these children.  It is ultimately His love that will save these children and our hands that will bring this love to them. 

We invite you to come to the foundation and get to meet the kids themselves.  The caring center has undergone a lot of changes in the past year - it now has the roof and benches which have been in the works for a long time already and the donation of books for the mini-library of the Balik Aral scholars is growing steadily.   Please share with us the joy of serving God through loving these children.

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2001, The Year that Was

Many wonderful blessings surround the past year despite the numerous challenges that faced the He Cares kids. 

Sponsorship of General Assemblies (Saturday feeding of all children at the foundation) were a big blessing this 2001.  Starting January, the Lord's Beloved Community took care of the food for the kids for every 2nd General Assembly of the month!  Their community raised P2,000 for these feeding days. 

And come September, the Marriage Encounter group headed by Grace Lumawig and her husband started sponsoring every 1st General Assembly of the month.   

Lingkod ng Panginoon, a Catholic Community for Singles has also been giving active support during the third Saturdays of the month, giving fun and meaningful activities for the spiritual formation of the children.

Along with this, Bro. Joe Dean with wife Ardis and their caring group hold prayer meetings with the adult streetkids every Wednesday evenings.

In July, the Accenture Group led by Avic Gaborni, came up with a pool of 30 volunteer tutors and they provide 4-5 tutors every Saturday to help the Balik Aral students with their studies.  Their company is formally sponsoring  Elnar, Grade 2 and Ian, Grade 5, including giving them their daily allowances. 

August 12th marked the 5th anniversary of the foundation and it was a thanksgiving celebration held at Kowloon restaurant.  For more on the anniversary, click here.

By the third quarter of the year, eight of the Balik Aral scholars were being given transportation and food allowance.  By October, the Alay Foundation sponsored three children and have plans to help more kids out in the future.

The Balik-Hanapbuhay program was blessed with three sewing machines and cloth materials last November.  These would benefit the "street mothers" with no decent means of sustaining their children.  Basic training was conducted by Lily Sevilla, coordinator for the Balik Hanapbuhay program.  One of the He Cares supporters, Michelle, also taught the children how to silk screen and has plans to conduct various other skills training programs for them in the future.

Last November 12, ten of the He Cares kids were baptized, each with one Ninong and Ninang.  In lieu of gifts, the Godparents were asked for contributions for the livelihood of the parents of each child.

Many people visited the foundation just to find out what we do and how we do it.  YMPACT group of the Light of Jesus Catholic Community held an exposure trip with us last November 30.

The year also posed some very difficult and even tragic events.

Six of the children developed primary complex and were sustained for six months with the help of a Dr. Arlene, a kindhearted doctor from Lingkod ng Panginoon Singles.

Alvin, 7 years old was run over by a jeep and despite the severity of his head injuries and having a 50-50 chance of survival, fully recovered after two weeks in the hospital.

10-month-old Pawe contracted Broncho Pneumonia and stayed a week at the charity ward of Fe Del Mundo hospital.  This child was saved in time due the insistence of Sis. Ardis for him to have medical care.  After a week in the hospital, the child was able to recover.

Minda, 19 years old, one the "street mothers" gave birth to her 2nd child and that child is now the youngest member of the foundation.

Most tragic of all is the story of Roy who, at the age of 21, died this past June from an overdose of shabu. 

He came to be a child of the streets since he ran away from home early on in his life.  Home to him was with an aunt who, according to him, whenever she saw it fit to discipline him, would tie him in a sack and hang it upside down for a period of time.  His mother was in the U.S. and would send him money but then he said his aunt would just spend it as she wished and not really for him and his older brother Marvin.  All of these events forced him to turn to the harsh life on the streets.

Roy then met Bro. Joe Dean and the He Cares volunteers.   He had been coming to the foundation for the past three years.  He was the joker type, a buddy to the He Cares volunteers, active and easily followed instructions for He Cares activities.  One He Cares Volunteer recalls how Roy was always the one with them and one time he was asking for them to look for his mother over the internet.

A swift change of behaviour came about when he got to meet a group of older men who were loitering about in the streets.  His friends related how they did not see his fast declining health as he separated himself from their group at night and would oftentimes be seen huddled alone in a corner.  Despite the many times he was urged to take x-rays or medicine, he declined. 

One night he vomitted a huge quantity of blood and collapsed on the pavement.  His friends from He Cares called Bro. Joe Dean right away.   They rushed him to the hospital and tried to revive him for 20 minutes but he did not survive.  His uncle was very sad at his death and was glad that they were able to bring his Roy's brother Marvin back home. 

Roy's story is not uncommon to many of the street children at He Cares.  This is why urgent action is of the essence in helping them and bringing much needed hope.  It is our privilege that we have known Roy and served him even in small ways.  May all that he has received from us, specifically the spiritual nourishment, bring him joyfully to the Father.

The story of He Cares continues.  The story of a foundation that not only relies on people who care but most of all a God who really does care for these children.  It is ultimately His love that will save these children and our hands that will bring this love to them. 

We invite you to come to the foundation and get to meet the kids themselves.  The caring center has undergone a lot of changes in the past year - it now has the roof and benches which have been in the works for a long time already and the donation of books for the mini-library of the Balik Aral scholars is growing steadily.   Please share with us the joy of serving God through loving these children.

May He who is the God of caring bless this year 2002 for all of us!

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