Computer Literacy Program at Virlanie (Part 2)

October 15 – the big day for our group.  I honestly got some jitters on the day since I was the one who organized the program, and I feel accountable if it will not turn out the way I wanted it to be.  Then we finally met Mr. Cenen “Mac” Milan, Jr., the Program Development Director.  He gave us an orientation of what Virlanie is and what he does.  Coming from a zero background about Virlanie and Mr. Cenen, our group was in awe as we listen to his stories and testimonials. 

If Virlanie was in a hospitality industry, it can be classified as a five-star hotel.  They had very high standards and high achievements, and yet they stay grounded, and as much as possible, they want to be away from the limelight.  Virlanie was established by Dominique Lemay in 1992, and as of 2014, it had cared for 819 children, 878 individual sponsors, 111 employees, 39 local volunteers and 76 foreign volunteers.  Inspired by the success in the Philippines, Virlanie was also established in other countries such as Belgium, France, USA, Denmark, Canada, Spain and Switzerland. 

One of Virlanie’s core programs was the Residential Programs, which provides various services and programs to empower a child’s life (usually street children, abandoned, or abused) and let him/her live life to the fullest.  Virlanie also have other programs like Family Reunification which helps children reunite with their families; Independent Living Program (ILP) which aims to empower and support young adults to become more sustaining; Balik Probinsya Program, which offers financial support to families so they can earn a living and go back to their province, and also provides a start-up livelihood like sari-sari store, tricycle, etc.; Mobile Unit, which provides non-formal education, educational assistance, medical services, psychosocial and social assistance in Divisoria and other streets in Manila; and other support services and sustainability projects. 

For the Residential Programs, Virlanie has about 7 houses, and I think 6 of them are located in Makati, while the other one is located in Cavite.  Each house, headed by “house parents” and assisted by house aunts/social workers and helpers, caters to a specific cluster based on the child’s age group.  Our group composed of 11 members, were further divided into 4 houses.  Our subgroup was assigned to Babies and Toddlers Home (0-4 years old), and other subgroups were assigned to Marco Polo Care Center (4-6 years old), Ella Yallah Home (male teenagers aged 13-18), and Elizabeth Home for girls who went through difficult situations such as physical and/or sexual abuse. 

Realizing how big and prestigious this foundation is, we were really thankful that our request to conduct our service learning activity was granted.  Mr. Cenen explained that he immediately granted our request, because it is very seldom that they receive proposals to serve and reach out to the house parents.  It is usually the kids who are targeted by the organizations, and not the house parents and social workers.  He also explained that his primary objective was to give a chance for the house parents to interact with other people…new people to talk to other than the kids.  He again emphasized not to dwell too much on the topic, but rather, just interact and talk to the house parents.

I realized at that point that no matter how big an organization is, there is always something that needs to be filled up, and needs to be given more attention.  I am thankful that this CSR activity focused on rendering service rather than just giving donations to the foundations.  Our contribution may not be as big as what Virlanie’s sponsors have given, but it was still valuable to a segment of their organization.   

Other than the success stories of Virlanie, Mr. Cenen shared with us some of his experiences in the Lasallian community.  He started studying in La Salle since gradeschool upto college, worked as a La Salle faculty, and almost joined the La Salle brothers.   Although it was not pushed through, he continued to live by La Salle’s teachings of serving the poor.  He worked at Virlanie to continue his mission and advocacy.  One of his most remarkable stories was when he shared his 17-day 1,500 km run from Davao to Manila, to launch a book-distribution campaign and tree-planting program in Davao.  Because of his advocacy and successfully finishing the 17-day journey, he was able to receive 90,000 books as a donation from a non-profit organization.   

This year, I have started and ran 2 ultramarathons with my husband.  First was Luneta to Tagaytay for 64 km, and our second ultra was Laguna to Tagaytay for 50 km.  My husband and I both struggled finishing this 12-hour and 8-hour journey.  But our experience was dwarfed by Mr. Cenen’s journey.  Our longest distance was only 5% of what he has ran.  Other than that, I came to realize….what am I really running for??? His run generated 90,000 books, but how about us?  Who benefits really when I run?  His story is actually a turning point in my running goals.  I realized that I run just for myself, to set me apart from others, to brag about what I have achieved.  I realized how selfish my goals are.  In my 64 and 50km, I was not able to raise even a single book.  At this point, it’s really a challenge revisiting my life and fitness goals.  I am planning to run an ultramarathon again in January or February, but how can those events benefit other people? Some events may have beneficiaries, but am I really running for them or just for myself? I am also planning to try running in barefoot…but for what cause?   

(to be continued - post program reflection)