Jake, 7 years old, has been singing with Glenda, 8, and his younger brothers, as they looked out the window of a 2 x 2 meters bedroom, half of it, a bamboo bed lantay where the four of them lump up and cuddle to sleep in the night, oftentimes with only their warmth as a blanket.
When unlucky and an older kid is already in bed when sleeping time comes, they would have to take on the living room floor, padded only by thin refused cardboard box, a buri mat and making sure they lie in between other siblings for the warmth.
Orphaned kids of the Canillos, Jake, also known as Digong in the family and by the neighbors, is the 5th among 10 siblings of Glowelinda Sarco and “Tagalog”.
Tagalog has since died of tuberculosis a year ago.
They are in fact, members of the many Christian churches that sprout in the pockets of poverty in rural Bohol.
Food is hard to come by.
Glowelinda, or Winnie, who is born in Cambangay Norte, an Miguel still has Exequiel, 7 months old whom she keeps in a blanket slung across her front when she help harvest rice so they can have something to eat.
“We see that life for them is hard, and the parents in fact can hardly keep tabs of the kids, much more of their food,” says Cambangay Norte Chairman Roger Ibaoc.
We sometimes bring in a few groceries, or rice, just to make sure they get the food that they would need to survive, but we obviously cant do that all the time, he candidly picked on.
Ibaoc and his barangay council have been on to the Canillos, seeing that this problem would soon barge into the town peace and order situation.
If not probably for the faith and their attendance to their weekly worship sessions, they would have nothing to sing about.
CANDY RIDES
It was last December 27, when on an annual candy ride, mountainbikers on the Christmas candy giving ride personally witnessed the Canilo’s sad plight.
It was raining at that time, and bikers have to walk through half a kilometer of paddies to get to the Canillo kids.
That was when they saw the house needing immediate repair and possible extension for a bedroom and an elevated living room, to keep the kids above the muck, for health considerations.
The family, which now terribly misses their father, gathers their kitchen water from a nearby well, then overflowing to the muddy house yard, due to the rains.
Seeing the opportunity for help, bikers worked a plan to generate the materials needed to fix the house, build an extension room and elevate the living room.
A two plastic drum rain water collector system also needs to be put up to assure the family of potable drinking and kitchen water.
KASIMBAYANAN
As the materials were soon purchased, bikers lugged them from the city to Cambangay Norte, even as local bikers coordinated with the local barangay officials and the Philippine National Police for possible volunteers.
Despite the rains that slowed the delivery of materials, the bikers and the San Miguel Police Station under Police Lieutenant Ponciano Entroliso Jr., sent in Police Executive Master Sergeant Manuel Tupos, Police Chief Master Sergeant Philip Polinar and Police Master Sergeant Michael Guimarangan along with Barangay Cahirman Ibaoc and barangay councilor carpenters to start the repair.
At the hammering of the tin roof, Jake belts out that Christian worship song, and everyone pitches in laughter.
The kids, upon seeing the police officers walking the paddies, scampered to their room, only peeking at the slatted windows.
Parents in his part of town often scare their kids into doing good, using the police as a threat.
“Kamo diay to kuya?” Mariane, one of the kids asked the police volunteers, “nanagan mi kay hadlok mi,” she continued.
“Dili man mi mang-unsa, migo man ming pulis sa mga tawo, basta lang walay dautang buhat, amigo mi nila,” chimes in PCMS Polinar told her.
Through a community oriented policing program in revitalized Kasimbayanan, police are coming out to communities to highlight everyone’s cooperation key role in attaining sustainable peace and lasting development.
With Kapulisan, simbahan at pamayanan all joined in attaining a goal, everything is attainable, PLt Entroliso said.
That day, aside from aligning the posts and putting up the rafter and purlins, the volunteer group completed putting up half of the tin roof, with the promise to return the next week to complete the build.
February 4, 2023, the volunteers walked through the paddies again to the Canillo house to complete the build.
By 5:00 PM, the extension has been completely roofed, the new bedroom now with bamboo slatted floor, amakan and plywood double walls and the a quick photo op with the family, and the second day of volunteer work ended.
The next day, local volunteers again put up the elevated living room and rainwater collector, so the family can have safe water.
Now with a safer house, a decent sleeping space and decent shelter from rains and the heat, Canillos can tick one off from their list of worries.
To the fading lyrics of Kung ikaw malipayon, mopakpak ka, the Candyride volunteers ride off to yet another mission of giving joy to kids and their families, one day at a time. (PIA-7/Bohol)
BEFORE AND AFTER. First picture shows Canillo residence when the Kasimbayanan volunteers arrived and then the Canillo house after three days of volunteer work. The joint efforts of the church, police and community facilitated the repair and building of the house extension. (PIABohol)
HOUSE ON PADDIES. With the house sitting on the paddies, the volunteer group decided to put up an extension where the rooms have to be elevated to keep the kids from sleeping on the cement floor. Volunteer barangay officials and police pitched efforts to put up the tin roof. (PIABohol)
BAMBOO FLOOR. As kids sleep on the cement floor of the house with only a thin cardboard and mats, an elevated floor bedroom and a small elevated dining room was put up from material donations from charitable people. (PIABohol)
CELEBRATING SMALL WINS. After work of day 2, volunteers took a picture of the volunteer carpenters and bikers who facilitated the Kasimbayanan housebuild and fix. (PIABohol)
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