Bringing in Hope

Im writing this from the front seat of the van that will take us back to Tubigon Port. We just finished another round of Relief Operations here in Bohol. It's two weeks after the earthquake that killed so many and destroyed so much. The people here is calmer now, this I gathered from the volunteers who have been here before. Its my first time back since I visited Bohol last year.

This is going to be a long post, so please read on.

My cousins, bless them, initiated this whole project. See, my Tita's family is from Loon, which is sitting on the epicenter. It started with a plea to help Bohol to extend help to the people there. They personally went to Loon the first chance they got and they were devastated with what they saw.

This is my Tita's ancestral house in Loon, Bohol which was destroyed by the 7.2 Magnitude earthquake that hit last October 15, 2013. 

The y contacted their friends, the youth orgs that they were a member of, posted in Facebook. The word spread out and they received donations after donations in sacks and boxes and dozens of food, clothes and water. This is how they started and I thought it will all take one trip, but they've already made more than 4 shipments from Cebu and close to 10 relief operations to the remotest parts of the most affected areas. And they're not yet done.

 Last Saturday, I wasn’t able to sleep and my other cousin said we should go over to my Tito's place to help repack relief goods. Better be productive! We ended up shopping for more goods to donate, then repacking it then going there to personally give them off! How cool is that? 

We didnt get there in Business class, it was pure labor of love. This is one of our rides to the Port. My fellow volunteers sitting on the goods to secure them. 

I tell you, it wasn’t an easy ride. One of my cousins went to Ouano Warf ahead to get us all tickets for the 12AM ride to Tubigon. We unloaded and waited for the rest of the cargo to be loaded in to the Barge. Unfortunately we weren’t able to get passage because they were fully loaded. After much commotion, arguments and pleading we reloaded our own cargo and headed to Pier 3 and waited till morning. We literally slept on the road on the cartons of the donated water.

This is us by 4 am. We weren’t allowed to enter the terminal itself so we spent the rest of the night on the street. The next trip was 5:30AM. There were 20 volunteers and we had to shoulder our transportation expenses since the donations that we got were mostly in kind. 

This is our ride for the rest of the day. The owner of the truck is a Baranggay Councilor but he never used any part of our project to his advantage. We didn’t pay for the use of the truck, nor for his time in driving us around. He only asked for gas money. Kudos to him and to his son who was with us the whole day. The elder couple in stripes hitched a ride with us. We were in the ferry with them and my cousin decided to just let them ride with us. We gave them a box of relief goods to give to their neighbors who were also very affected.  

Its my first time to volunteer and my heart really goes out to the victims of the earthquake. The damage is evident and it’s really heart breaking. In case you cant read it properly, the sign says "WE NEED HELP PLS" there were more signs on other parts of the island. Some asking for water, others for help and there were also other signs saying thank you.

The churches, the houses the buildings, they weren’t done overnight but they were destroyed in mere minutes. Makes you realize that we are really helpless against calamities. Below are random pictures that I was able to snap away while we were travelling. 

 This is one of the many churches that were destroyed. 

 This is a Barangay Hall 

 This is a Barangay another Hall 

This is somewhere near the Tubigon Port

 This used to be the kitchen of the house that we were staying. The family that owns this house is still staying outside, in a make shift tent, for fear that that the whole house will collapse. 

The roads were better now. They have filled most cracks by now but it’s still a bumpy ride.

 But you can still see the damage left by the quake. 

The road broke into parts and some areas lifted several inches. 

 Amidst scenes of destruction, people are rebuilding not just their homes, but also their lives. It is hard, but they have risen through the challenge and they will need all the help they can get. 

Volunteering for this wasn’t easy. It was the most physically exhausting thing that I have done in recent years. We slept in the street; we’ve packed and unpacked, loaded and unloaded, lifted and carried water, rice, clothes, medicine, food and anything that may be of use.   

All the bruises, body ache, hunger, thirst and heat that we had to endure was simply nothing compared to their struggles. None of us complained. The smiles on their faces and their thank you’s is enough to buoy our hearts.

We had to walk what felt like 1 kilometer before we reached this place. I will never forget the look on this Lola’s face. I was introducing ourselves(since a lot of them are asking what company we are affiliated with, and also to clarify that we are not associated with any politician) and I broke off in the middle of my speech when I saw the tears in her eyes. Priceless! I won’t trade that moment, not even for a night in Paris.  

 Here’s to my cousins Marie Ann, Ate Eireen and Ate Mimi who initiated this whole project. Thank you for giving us this opportunity to help out.

 This is Ate Eireen, in her throne, on top of the truck with her wing men. Oh yes, we found reasons to laugh and smile despite the tiredness.  

These are my fellow volunteers, smiling and all. 

 I didn’t know this people, yet we were united for one purpose. I love this picture, it’s a candid picture of hands trying to hold on because of the bumpy ride.

 Kudos to the 20 able mind and bodies who willingly and gladly volunteered and a big thank you to all the other gallant people behind this little project

  

I’d like to give a big shout out to this guapong little guy. They own the truck that we used and he knows the roads of Bohol like the back of his hand. His dad even consults with him on which road to take. He’s very shy but very helpful. He helped us carry things and stood in the sun with us. Thank you Baby Boy! 

 This has been a humbling experience and good reality check for me. I believe that the spirit of volunteerism and reaching out is always a beacon of hope.

 Bangon Bohol!