Our Last Day

Today is our last day here in Manila and what better way to spend it than see for ourselves an actual GK Village through the guidance of our friends Junie Romero and Carlo Cecilio. Junie moved here from California as a full-time volunteer for Singles for Christ.

GK or Gawad Kalinga means to give care. Here's a more detailed info from Wiki:
Gawad Kalinga

We met up with Carlo and Junie in Taguig (almost just on the other side of Market, Market near the C-5) where about 5 GK villages now stand. First was the Poveda GK Village - a small but neatly-built apartment-type units.





We were first shown a Sibol classroom. As soon as the kids saw us, they each came up to take our hand and placed in their forehead - a Filipino tradition as a means to show respect to their elders.


We were shown a model unit designed by Carmi Martin (a well-known Filipina actress). We were really impressed with how the space was maximized.




A short walk from the Poveda GK Village was the Phil-Am Friendship GK Village - a slightly bigger lot with more units.


Next stop was the GK Taguig Multi-purpose hall. It is a newly-constructed building that will house a GK Sibol Classroom and where various GK Village events can be conducted.




The sibol classroom in the multi-purpose hall


Angel with our host Junie


A 5-minute walk from the multi-purpose hall was the Jack 'n Jill GK Village - named after the popular snack Jack n Jill.


We caught some kids playing in the village and they gladly posed for some photos




Here's a photo I took of the Jack n Jill village from the main road. You could see the stark contrast between the GK Village and the non-GK Village on the right (though the jeepney is partly covering it).


Last stop was the GK Zonta International Village which is still under construction.


Lina, one of the beneficaries helped show Jack n Jill village and the Zonta Int'l Village.


The lead-builders posed for a photo with us. The guy on my left works as a Security Guard at night and during the day, helps build the Zonta village.


Overall, it was an eye-opener for us who for years only saw photos of villages but today we were actually able to speak with the beneficiaries and you could almost feel the pride in them for having their own home.

Just as we said our goodbyes, Lina said: "Huwag po kayong magsasawa".