Written by: Ate Char, U! Happy Officer
It was an exciting Sunday afternoon as we are in the middle of the holiday season. It was a great visit to JD Salvador. Located in Tondo, the foundation provides programs that benefit children in the community aiming to alleviate poverty. It has educational programs like tutorial sessions for the children after school. The children go to the center for their supplementary academic lessons. The foundation also develops the children’s musical skills by providing daily music classes for the musically inclined children. The kids play instruments like guitar and violin. They have formed a group and get to perform in various events.
The energetic kids welcomed us as we arrived at the center. We started the afternoon by introducing the volunteers to the kids. It was the birthday celebration of Ate Carla and she was joined by her friends and family to celebrate her special day. The volunteers then joined the groups as they got to know the children in their teams. In line with the Christmas season, the kids shared what their Christmas wishes are. Most of them wanted to spend time with their family this holiday season.
We played a couple of games to start of the day. The first game was Shape It Up. Each team was given a long string. We then would specify a shape and the teams had to form them using the strings. For instance if we said star, then teams would have to form a star using the string. The team that finished first got a point Teams were creative as they made the shape as accurately as possible. The second game we played was Save the Sea. Teams were given paper sea creatures, bilao, and fans. The paper sea animals were scattered outside the bilao on the floor. On the go signal teams were to fan the paper creatures into the bilao. The team that finished first got a point. The challenge was to be able to fan them into the bilao without them coming back out. The kids and volunteers had so much fun as they shouted and cheered for one another.
The next activity we had was the Bubble Show. The kids excitedly watch as our Bubble Man started making bubbles. He started from small bubbles and the kids couldn’t help it but reach for the bubbles and pop them. The Bubble Man then worked his way to making bigger and bigger bubbles. He made strings of bubbles and dragged them over the kids. They all watched in delight as there were so much bubbles floating above them. He then made a life-sized bubble which the kids could go into. The volunteers and kids took turns going in the bubble to have their photos taken.
We then had the Art Workshop by Teacher Blanca. She taught the kids how to make a parol. The kids were so excited as they learned the step by step process on how to make a Christmas Parol. They were also excited to bring their art work home and show them to their parents.
After all the fun it was time for the kids to enjoy their meals. We gave prizes to the winners of the group games. As it was Ate Carla’s birthday, we sang a Happy Birthday song for her as she gave out gifts to each of the kids. As we said our goodbyes the kids hugged and thanked their ates and kuyas for spending their time with them.
