Heroes of Hope - Part 7

There are many people to thank and honor... the carpenters who worked regardless of the rain and lack of raincoats in the first weeks... and who gave up their New Year with their families. 

The volunteers who were not individually named... for their thoughtful deeds and cheerful demeanor at all times. Thank you.

In total, the mission assisted 89 houses. It's funny how some people seem to expect you to do more. I believe it's about doing what you can, even in the face of what seems insurmountable. 

The mission has concluded and everyone is in their respective homes where they ought to be. Right now, useful relief goods would include candles and matches. If someone reading this blog wants to replicate what Fazenda has done, one of the first things to consider would be where to stay while in the mission field. The Fazenda team hired carpenters from their area and invited volunteers for support. The professional carpenters did the essential roofing work while volunteers did what they could to hep out. And the community from Brazil raised funds to buy the necessary materials. Everything came together. 

Thank you, Lord, for all the blessings. Thank you for allowing us to participate in this mission. Please continue using our five loaves and two fish. Please continue providing for those in need. This we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.

Heroes of Hope - Fr. John

Just picked up from the airport, Fr. John is still in his traveling clothes.

I know a lot of good priests and see them in action everyday but I don't take their pictures while they're doing it. Still, it would be good to honor one. It's always a delight to see a good and holy priest in action outside of the liturgical celebration.

Fr. John arrived a day before our last working day in Tacloban. However briefly, it was nice to meet him.

Thank you, Fr. John, for your presence, the spiritual support and words of wisdom during and outside of mass, especially for allaying our doubts about how insignificant our participation was. Thank you also for the raincoats. May God continue using you as a shepherd of his people. God bless and keep you always!

Heroes of Hope - Ramon, the Key to Tacloban

Ramon is a native of Tacloban but has been a volunteer at Fazenda da Esperanca for six years. Yolanda claimed the life of his brother. 

In a way, Ramon was the key for the Fazenda team to come to Tacloban and help out. Fazenda's initial visit was to check on his family and find out the best way to help. 

During the mission, the male volunteers stayed in a house that belonged to one of Ramon's relatives, while the female volunteers initially stayed in his sister's house, Sr. Angeline, before moving to a friendly neighbor's house across from where the boys were staying.

On my last day in Tacloban, Ramon helped me locate a friend's family so we could request for Fazenda's help. Even though I was not there physically, I was happy to know that the Fazenda family delivered coco lumber and GI sheets to my friend's family on the day of our flight back to Manila.

Thank you, Fazenda.

Thank you, Ramon, for continuing to serve despite everything. May God continue to console you and your family at this time. May you continue to shine your light in the darkness. 

Heroes of Hope - Banban, Cook

Adding cooking and musical skills to the mix, Banban is an all-around invaluable member of the mission who will continue his volunteering at Masbate after the outreach in Tacloban is over. 

A graduate of Fazenda, Banban continues to live out the gospel with an ever-ready hand to help in anything--whether it be mixing paint to get the right color, loading or unloading coco lumber or iron sheets, or creatively using left-over corned beef with pork and beans for dinner.  

He will also ask if you want to accompany him on an errand when he knows you've just experienced a moment of disillusionment and are feeling heavy at heart. And when you're back at the house with a lighter heart but empty hands (after vainly searching the nearby stores for dahon ng sibuyas), he'll disappear only to come back a few moments later with the necessary ingredient requested by Sr. Angeline, sourced from a neighbor's potted onions. 

Thank you, Banban, for the quirky humor, the yummy cooking, uplifting guitar playing, and the sensitive initiative you take to meet the different needs around you. May God bless you with a very fruitful year of volunteering at the farm! 

Heroes of Hope - Edward, Navigator

Edward has struggled with addiction for many years but with each new day in Christ, he adds another day of victory, another day of loving those around him.

After graduating from Fazenda da Esperanca, he now heads the Family of Living Hope in Cebu. 

At Fazenda's mission in Tacloban, Edward was the right-hand man who assisted in coordinating everything: contacting people they needed to get to, asking for directions on how to get to their homes, listing the things that had to be bought and delivered, helping keep track of the finances and receipts, and making sure everyone on the team was okay.

Edward was a navigator; he advised on where to park, where the next house was, etc. He also helped direct people like me whenever I would feel a bit on the useless side of things... he encouraged me to try my hand at building a door. 

Thank you, Edward, for the friendly welcome, willing assistance, encouragement, and bravery to share your story. May God continue to bless you and your family as you run the race with eyes fixed on the crown of life, as you keep running towards Jesus.  

Check out Fazenda's diary of the Tacloban mission.

  

Heroes of Hope - Roland, Driver

"Driver lang ako," this 35-year-old missionary would say. Indeed, he is the only one who drives the Fazenda da Esperanca's truck as it goes around Tacloban to bear the sheets of galvanized iron, coco lumber and human labor intended to bring relief to a few residents from the month-long rain they have been experiencing due to a low pressure area.

Roland is a driver alright--like the driving force behind Fazenda da Esperanca's mission in Tacloban. Christ is really the ultimate driving force behind everything; Roland is his alter ego.

The missionary has been based in Masbate for the past ten years and is fluent in Tagalog, Portuguese, as well as his native German. In meals where there are Brazilian and Filipino brothers and sisters of Fazenda, Roland is at the hub who can understand the entire conversation and be the bridge for translation where needed.

For him, the most difficult thing about the mission in Tacloban is deciding who to help. Everything else is a minor disturbance--the incessant rain, people who could be demanding or annoying, and maybe even the need to eat--he will forget about lunch when focusing on the growing list of things to do. 

No task is too small. And he can be thoughtful beyond expectation. When injured, he will shrug off tetanus shots for himself as an inconvenience to do away with, but he will give this volunteer a lavish supply of chocolates because he remembers her half-joking comment from years before about "no longer volunteering for the farm because there is no chocolate at Fazenda." 

Sadly, he will be reassigned soon but his time here was well spent in loving as Christ loved. Thank you, Roland, for giving of yourself, your time and your talents. God bless you wherever you go!

Heroes of Hope - Mando, Carpenter

I was privileged to join Fazenda da Esperanca for a week in their month-long mission in Tacloban. The mission consisted of the repair of roofs, painting where possible, or giving building materials since the time and availability of labor was not enough for the needs of the people. Though I feel my contribution was small and insignificant, I offer my five loaves and two fish as my participation in the love of Christ for our brothers and sisters affected by Yolanda. 

In participating in this mission, I encountered inspiring people, some of whom I would like to honor in this blog.

Kuya Mando is the head carpenter from Masbate who agreed to join the Fazenda team in Tacloban. As head carpenter, his team of carpenters follow his lead--none would have joined the Tacloban mission without him. 

In joining the mission, Kuya Mando was absent at the pamamanhikan for his daughter scheduled in January. Pamamanhikan is the Filipino custom of getting engaged. The man's family goes to the woman's family to ask formally for the woman's hand in marriage; it is a significant event especially since Kuya Mando is the father of the bride-to-be, the one who would give his blessing to the man asking for his daughter's hand in marriage. 

The original plan was to go home for the pamamanhikan, and then come back to Tacloban afterward. But due to a storm, Kuya Mando had to stay in Tacloban and continue the carpentry work essential to restoring a roof over the heads of people. Thankfully, he had a man-to-man talk with his future son-in-law beforehand; on the actual day of the pamamanhikan, they called him over the phone. Not quite traditional but very touching nonetheless. 

Thank you, Kuya Mando, for saying yes... for working under the rain without complaint... and not watching the clock but working to get as many roofs done as humanly possible.

Blessing in Boots

I decided to take the leap and join the Fazenda group in their outreach in Tacloban.

One blessing I did receive was the timing because I hoped my monthly visitor would have left by the time I was set to go. And thank God, He granted my request. It is such a blessing not to have to worry about that. 

Another blessing was a last-minute purchase: fold-able boots to protect one from the rain. 

Portable and affordable (P129). 

I hope my participation in this mission will bear good fruit.

Father, please let all things work out for the best, especially for J and her family. Bless those most affected by Yolanda who continue to struggle. Grant them a way through the difficulties and a fresh start... this we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.