⌛ missing Dumaguete City

My cousin used to work at LCP back in 1997. It was during a time that they hit a rough spot and could only pay her 1 peso per hour. She still stayed because she enjoyed helping with what she could, but eventually she moved to Ohio and got married.

 

are you an american? may i ask? i seldom see volunteers in dumaguete or maybe i am just wasnt aware of it and also i thought that most of these volunteers are from philippines also. these i was not aware maybe because maybe there is no information drive.

 

I don't think there's any fee to enroll in public schools up to secondary level.But parents have to handle additional fees like for instance the PTA's ,just various small fees which will add up.For hardpressed parents these fees count a lot,esp having 6 to 7 or 10 children and only having very little income coming in ,must be living nightmare for the parents. Another thing is,public government schools are not equipped with good libraries and adequate fascilities to enhance learning ,I am talking about public schools outside the capital city or in the mountains .

 

I am an American and all the volunteers at LCP were foreigners although one or two had a filipino mother that married a foreigner and wanted to experience the culture in the Philippines. I have met volunteers from France, Italy and Ireland. The headquarters is in America so there are many that come from America too.

The Taclobo boys dorm had to be repaired and some Cebu filipinos joined with American volunteers to come and fix it up but that is the only instance that I know of that were filipino. Also, Silliman students helped tutor to earn part of their teaching certificate. I am certain there were other people that did help in other ways.

 

It sounds like volunteering is rare for filipinos?? Or am I understanding/reading it wrong? I'm just curious is all because I thought the church was still pretty dominate in the Philippines and I would think volunteering and church would go hand in hand and be a common occurance in the Philippines?

 

Volunteers are people who have time to expend and motivated by different intensions ,they are in good or in an adequate financial disposition ,money is no problem , life in general is better .Like students doing the gap year before going to universities.Some do travel for pleasure and travel experience of their own ,whilst some do voluntary work in some charitable institutions abroad ,or like animal sanctuaries .I have friend here who has a son who will be taking on to study medicine ,now went to Ghana to do some voluntary work for ew months with the orphaned children.

Some view volunteering as credit to top up for their CV’s,or for experience that might land them into jobs .Volunteers aren't paid ,but some do with flat honorarium ...bit of little money at the end ,like that o the USPCV's or VSO's the british counterpart .Some retired people do voluntary works . Like my mother in law ,used to be a teacher but quits her job when having her kids and all her life did voluntary work ,right now is an active volunteer of OXFAM ,she’s a lot better of ; my father inlaw did some voluntary work alongside his working time .When he retired few years ago he engaged in 2 more additional voluntary works .Some do it just to keep their minds busy ,or expand their social sphere ,meet new people . But let’s face it , the conditions of the Philippines is different. People aren’t motivated with giving away their time as volunteers , because it’s a country swallowed by poverty ,where basic resources is scant ;while procuring them and having ends meet is the main hurdle in life,we can’t expect many of those people to come out …and volunteer ? Volunteering is giving away the element of time for free .One can’t volunteer for nothing ,while starving and living a hard life, with few more hungry stomachs to feed .That makes the difference between what we see in the west and in a 3rd world countries like the Philippines.If people gets better off economically, resources are abundant ,basic needs are fulfilled ,then perhaps we’ll see an increase in the number of Filipino volunteers coming out in the open .For now they are rarely seen and only the better off ones do.

 

volunteering

I am only mentioning the one organization. There are many organizations out there but I am unfamiliar with how they operate. The church plays a BIG part in the filipino lifestyle. I do know that my filipino friends are always going to Bible Studies, special church events and volunteering in their church. LCP does require a minimal amount of hours to work in the organization to be able to keep their college scholarship and/or sponsorship (about 10 hrs/month or less). Many of the Preschool teachers do an excellent job with minimal pay. You must keep in mind that I am only talking about one organization and also some of the items mentioned above doesn't begin to cover it all. I have seen my friend go above and beyond the call of duty while performing her role in the organization and she could be paid more somewhere else. I was only referring before to those who aren't paid that volunteer but there are others that do an impressive job for less. I could also mention many filipinos that I have met throughout the years that have had (relatives) kids DUMPED on them by irresponsible parents yet they took on this burden that wasn't theirs and they didn't have enough food/money for their own kids. There are a lot of GREAT people out there doing some GREAT things but they don't get the credit for it! I am blessed and inspired to have worked with an organization that has led me to them and to get to know their hardships in life and ability to overcome it. I hope this helps explain the misunderstanding.

 

pickled_newt,

Thanks! Your explanation was very well put and makes perfect sense! I do believe that many of my filipinos would do so much more because of their good hearts but how can they when there isn't enough for their schooling or their own needs nor the needs of so many of their family members. We have no concept of that in the developing world countries! I remember so many times bringing items for the kids (just basics like book bags, shoes, pencils, clothes) knowing that they had none of these things. Yet I would return to their home to see that they gave it to a younger sibling and just did without. It never failed to amaze me at how generous they were. I gave from my abundance yet they gave to do without! THAT is simply heroic!!! I am constantly challenged by the kids there to be more than what I am which is why I keep returning to volunteer. I have so much more to learn in this life!