I initially thought of doing service learning activity at GreenEarth Heritage Foundation, Inc. (GEHFI), a non-profit Philippine organization based at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountain in San Miguel, Bulacan. It is a farm, a burgeoning reforestation site, a sustainable agricultural development, a haven of peace and tranquility, and a promise of a better tomorrow for members of their growing community. The mission of GreenEarth Heritage Foundation is to preserve the environment, to adhere to sound and sustainable agricultural practices and to help in the alleviation of poverty through livelihood and community development. Their vision is to build a model eco-farming community on their land donation, masterplanned to allow for future allocated areas for schools, parks, marketplaces, sports facilities, recreation, and community training center, for the benefit of indigent farming families who have decided to hinge their life’s hopes for a brighter future on their mission and programs.
Ms. Kathryn Anne Ore, my friend and mentor, introduced the GreenEarth Heritage Foundation to me. She is one of the Board of Trustees and the Chief Finance Officer (CFO) at GEHFI and she referred me to Dr. Mylene Matti, the Founder and Executive Director of the said foundation.
I informed some of my classmates about the GreenEarth Heritage Foundation, Inc. (GEHFI), showed them the website and suggested to have our group service learning activity there. My classmates are interested and we agreed to volunteer in GEHFI.
I emailed Dr. Matti three weeks ago and informed her about our intention to volunteer. She is very accommodating. We had a meeting with her last October 12, 2012 at Cityland Herrera Tower in Makati City. She discussed how the foundation started and where they are today to give us a clearer picture of how important our volunteerism is. Currently, the foundation has 150 beneficiaries composed of a whole community of farmers and their children.
GreenEarth Heritage Foundation is battling four I’s--Illegal deforestation, Insurgency, Illiteracy, Idleness. GreenEarth's solutions are four L’s-- Love for the Environment, Livelihood in Organic Agriculture, Literacy for Children and Adults, and last but not least--Living Hope in Christ. As volunteers are needed, the group can aid the foundation in its 4 L’s. In Love for the Environment and Livelihood in Organic Agriculture, the group can work alongside GreenEarth’s farmers in vegetable production, making seed blocks, seeding, and transplanting young plants. The on-site farm manager can teach us how to properly plant a tree. We will also have a short tour on the principles and practice of organic agriculture. It will be a help for the foundation and a learning experience for the group as well.
In Literacy for Children and Adults and Living Hope in Christ, another set of members from the group can help at on-site Library and Learning Center by breaking into groups to handle small classes to conduct a specific lesson plan on English conversational didactics and computer literacy for the farm kids. Everybody is at a different level and so the few workers of GreenEarth’s literacy team can guide us as to what we can tackle with the kids.
GreenEarth’s biggest problem is lack of manpower to do one-on-one and small group discussion. The high school students can also benefit with career counselling for those desiring to go to college. All of us will be dedicated to providing career talks where the group will share their experience in the right preparation needed to be successful in one’s career. Here is where the group, being established professionals and MBA students, can truly be able to influence and create an impact to the community.
The objectives of the project is to reforest the denuded hills, rehabilitate the soil organically and make it productive with numerous types of fruit-bearing trees, vegetables, herbs and other produce that can be sold under fair trade pricing in order to break the chains of poverty afflicting our farmer beneficiaries; Empower men, women, and children to build a transform community where the teachings of the Holy Bible are upheld.
God opened opportunities for us to reach out to others and I believe that our group has tremendous potential given our skill sets to truly make a difference in the lives of our marginalized and unempowered community. We are planning to have our service learning activity on October 26, 2012. We would like it to be a time that not only the beneficiaries will get something out of it, but all who come will be changed forever by giving of their time and skills to our community. Freely we have received the blessings from God and freely we will give and share those blessings to others.
I realized that we are still on a process of learning things as we go on with this service learning activity. I can imagine the endless possibilities that can be accomplished when we, as ordinary people, combine our resources and change our gifts into something that is both meaningful and extraordinary to our ministry here on earth.