Outreach at Batang Pinangga Foundation, Inc.
On a beautiful Saturday morning, my Industrial Engineering batch (USC BSIE Batch 2011) had an outreach activity at an orphanage far from the city — the Batang Pinangga Foundation, Inc. in Carmen, Cebu. 
This was supposed to be our Christmas activity, but I think there was a lack of time, so it had to be postponed. It pushed through yesterday, January 8, 2011. 
I actually did not plan on joining this gift giving activity. (Already living up to my previous post, huh?) Hehe. 
But really, I didn’t know the full details yet. I just gave my cash donation earlier. 
But when Nonah and I were texting about the in-kind donation, I decided to give some and then join the activity because I did not have anything to do after all. So I was there as a documentation volunteer. 
Before going to the venue, the organizers were busy preparing the gifts and snacks for the 30 children of Batang Pinangga. When we reached the place after an hour or two, we felt immediately welcomed because of the writings on their blackboard (and of course, the welcome message of Sir Butch Carpintero and the rest of the Batang Pinangga staff/volunteers). 
We realized we couldn’t just be there to give our donations, so a program was outlined spontaneously! 
After the introduction of each volunteer, it was time for the children to introduce themselves. And because there were around 30 of them, I could only remember Junnel gwapo at that time. 
The children and some of the volunteers were grouped into five, and the games started. The first game was Paint Me a Picture. I loved this one because the children were so participative and creative! 
Clockwise from left: pregnant woman giving birth, the Belen, Pacquiao vs. someone, lotto grand prize winner.
We figured the children were already hungry after all the shouting and acting, so next up was snack time! Then a volunteer, Nina, serenaded the snacking children. 
Sandwich and juice.
After that, it was their turn to show us their talents. Their first presentation was a dance number (Tik Tok by Kesha), and the next was a song number (One Time by Justin Bieber). 
They were amazing! I especially loved the song number because Elezar, the singer, was cool! Check out these videos: 
There was another game after the presentations — The Boat is Sinking. We really saw that the children were trying their very best to be in a group just so they wouldn’t be out of the game, they even pushed, pulled, and hugged one another! 
The gift giving followed. Actually, it’s not just a random gift giving. We were given a copy of each of the children’s wish list, and our batch mates fulfilled them. 
The gifts.
The children with the gifts they received.
Junnel (gwapo!) playing with his toy car.
The smiles of the children after receiving the gifts were very heartwarming! It makes me remember our Computer Literacy Program in Pinamungajan, Cebu last year. I was glad that I joined this activity after all. 
Sir Butch also gave us a gratifying message in the end, and as a token, they gave each of us a clay accessory of AYAW — a movement to respect child’s rights and stop child abuse (please visit the page for more information). We left the place with a happy heart, knowing that in our little ways, we made 30 children happy. 
The three people I couldn’t and wouldn’t forget: Sir Butch Carpintero (Batang Pinangga Director), Junnel Abendan (who insisted in calling himself gwapo!), and Elezar Rafols (Batang Pinangga’s Justin Bieber!)
The Participants
Project Organizers: Jugan and Nonah
Program: Cherry Jane and Leo
Wish List: Gina and Cecille
Food and Drinks: Aires
Documentation: Enciot and me
Presenter: Nina
Games: Ryanne, Chamuel, Ireen, Lai, Eric, Lester, and Chad
More pics of the activity can be found here.
If you would like to donate and spend some time with the children of Batang Pinangga, below is the foundation’s information.
Batang Pinangga Foundation, Inc.
Building Caring Communities. Finding Home for the Abandoned, Abused, and Neglected Children.
Address: Brgy. Triumfo, Carmen, Cebu
E-mail: batangpinangga@yahoo.com
Website: http://batangpinangga.org
Pinalanggang bata. Hihihi.
Category: Photos, Rants and Raves, Videos. Comments: 12 Comments. RSS
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nalingaw ko sa imu caption sa last :)) ahahaha :))
there’s the magic of being selfless. it’s purely fulfilling
i’m happy you did join. but i wouldn’t dwell on it long nalang kay basin mag-mahay ko nga wala nikuyog.. LOLs
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Hihihi. Gisungog ko nga kauban ra daw ko sa mga bata. Aw actually kaming Aires. Hehe. Anyway, btaw, nakakataba ng puso. Join nya ta’g mga in.ani next time Aimz! Hehehe.
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sure bah :))
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hehe.. i miss those kids already. they really did make us happy. ^^
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Uu. Daghan bya jd ka fans ato Ryanne. Hahaha.
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That’s really sweet! Those kids are so adorable. ^_^ I love doing things like this. I makes me feel good when I can make someone happy.
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I love doing outreach activities, too! Making people happy is priceless.
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I move to include this image in this blog post — http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1391729172473&set=at.1390806589409.48324.1809473384.1345374225
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Hahaha adik ka? Nkit.an pa jd.
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wow, your documentation is super inspiring. Thank you all for making Batang Pinangga part of your destination… good luck to your career, so much awaits all of you. Drop by again, anytime…
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Hala you’re here Sir Butch! Hehe. Thanks for dropping by Sir! We’ll surely go back to Batang Pinangga one of these days.
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