My friends Chito and Atong together with their mountaineering friends from Pilipinas Sierra are going on an “outreach climb” to Sitio Patyay, Brgy. Magulon, Mayaoyao, Ifugao province on May 22-24, 2009. Their mission: to bring school supplies and educational materials to schoolchildren in the community.
When the group dropped by Patyay at one of their climbs last year, one of the barangay officials asked for any assistance that could be extended to their school. Sitio Patyay (one of the rice terraces communities) is the farthest community of Mayaoyao town, which takes the locals 4 hours to reach on foot. There are no means of transportation as well as electricity in the area. The town of Mayaoyao itself is at least a 4-hour drive from Santiago City, Isabela. There’s a day care center (with 20 students) and a primary school (with 29 students) in the sitio. The school building has only 2 classrooms and 2 teachers – one for the day care and one for grades 1 to 3.
In preparation for the school year opening in June, the group is planning to give each student a complete set of school supplies worth approximately P300. The package includes a backpack, raincoat, notebooks, pencils, erasers, sharpener, crayons, scissors, writing pads, rulers, and plastic envelopes.
Other supplies that will be bought for the use of both teachers and students are pentel pens, ballpens, manila papers, chalks, board erasers, assorted papers, punchers, fasteners, staplers, envelopes, illustration materials, educational posters and toys.
Kind-hearted people who are reading this might want to make this school year a little better for the children in Sitio Patyay. Please donate in cash or in kind to Chito Atienza (#981-2203). Aside from school supplies, you may also donate old (and new) textbooks, story books, coloring books, and reference books like dictionaries and encyclopedia.
It’s always nice to give to small groups’ outreach activities because I know that my donation will surely reach the intended beneficiaries. Siguradong walang balasubas. I’m personally vouching for this group. I’ve had the pleasure of joining Chito, Atong, and friends in a fun camping trip / trek in Coto, Zambales last March. This time, the climb in Sitio Patyay would be for a cause. I hope they’d continue to hold more outreach climbs. I’m also hoping and praying that I’d be able to join the climb next time. (In the mean time . . . Batanes, here I come.)
