Written by: Ate Charmain Tan, Vice President – External
We were welcomed by the adorable toddlers and preschoolers of Hospicio de San Jose. Established in 1810, it is the first social welfare agency in the country and can only be accessible via Ayala Bridge. Located in the center of Pasig River, it provides a home for the orphans, abandoned, and the elderly. As we frequently visit the place, I would also visit the Catholic church located inside the institution.
Today’s event was created by Ingram Micro Philippines, a wholesaler of information technology (IT) products and services. The volunteers for the day were from the tech support department of the company, with its office located in Taguig. The company gives recognition to “Champs”, employees who perform well in the company. This year, instead of using the funds to celebrate, they chose to give back by sharing their blessings with the children of Hospicio de San Jose. Headed by Kuya Arthur, the head of the department, all the volunteers came in costumes. They came in catwoman, spiderman, minions, Minnie Mouse, and many others. They also brought superhero masks which the kids as so much playing with.
As the children arrived at the Sacred Heart Hall all the volunteers were smiling as the kids were so adorable. They eagerly played with the kids, gave them hugs and carried them around. They brought out the masks and other toys they brought as the kids ran around with them. In line with the superhero theme our face paint artist did a great job painting the kids with their favorite superheroes. They had superhero logos painted on their faces and their hands. We then partnered the kids with the volunteers to play a short game. Everyone formed a circle with their partner kid. We passed around 3 balls as the music played. When the music stopped, the pair holding the balls were eliminated from the game. The volunteers hurriedly passed the balls around as they did not want to end up holding the ball. The kids also has fun throwing the balls around. Pairs kept getting eliminated and the circle kept getting smaller. When there were only a few pairs left, we changed the rule for the final round. When the music stopped, the three pairs holding the balls would be the winners. Where previously they were passing the balls fast, this time the volunteers were trying to hold on to the balls as long as they could. In the end three pairs came out as winners and their partner children got prizes.
After that fun activity we watched the spectacular magic show by Kuya Koby. Polkadot umbrellas popped out and he lit several candlesticks at the same time. Doves flew out from everywhere and the kids laughed as they tried catching the birds. There was a cute bunny that popped out of a platter and all the kids shouted that they wanted to keep it. Kuya Koby also called on one of the kids to assist him in his tricks. As he handed the child a magic wand, the wand seemed to keep breaking. The other kids laughed at their friend in front as it kept breaking in half. For his final trick he made a table magically fly above and over the children.
If the fun was not enough we also got to watch the bubble show by Kuya Allan. He did a great performance, starting out with making small bubbles. He then worked his way to making lots of bubbles connected together and dragging them across the children. The kids couldn’t help it but to reach out and pop the bubbles. He then made really big bubbles and even life-sized ones. The kids and volunteers got to try going in the huge bubble and have their photos taken.
After all the activities we got to enjoy the carbonara and chicken snacks. As the kids were young the ates and kuyas helped them finish their food. Some of the kids were small but they were able to eat a lot. They kept asking for more chicken. The team of Ingram also gave away school suppliers to all the children. They happily held on to their gifts as we all gathered together and had the group photos. As we said our goodbyes to the children some of them held on to their ates and kuyas not wanting to let go. As Kuya Arthur thanked his team for this wonderful event, we look forward to partnering with them again in the future.
