At Lacaron Elementary School

Lacaron Elementary School

Continuing with our school distribution program, we went to Lacaron Elementary School in Dao, Capiz last July and reached out to approximately 240 children. The last time we were in Lacaron was in December 2011. It was really nice to be able to revisit Lacaron this year. 

Typical of July weather, it was a hot and humid day and we stayed outdoors under the UNICEF donated tent classroom. With the school principal, Milagros Jore Derayo, we gave each of the children notebooks, pens and pencils. Some kids took home prizes like crayons, toys, pencil cases, coloring books and more school supplies for giving the correct answer to our math, spelling and history questions. Here are the young students raising their hands to answer a particular question we posed to them.

The little ones are sometimes shy but generally eager to answer our questions. They are always excited to receive a prize. Everyone gets involved including teachers and parents who prod their children along to raise their hand and answer our questions.

Balay ni Charie is now on its 9th year and we are really excited as we get closer to our 10th year. A milestone for us! We hope to reach many more schools in the province of Capiz between now and 2015.

We thank our generous donors - Bock Loo, Nieva Burdick, Leda Albar, Monike Alberjeun, Ray Wong, Deborah Bartens, Rose Driscoll and many others who have helped us since our early years. We hope there will be more people who will join us in giving the children the tools they need to succed in school.

I am encouraged by the word inscribed on the t-shirt of the boy in the center of the photo. It says: NEVER GIVE UP. That about sums it all up. 

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Images by TravelswithCharie

At Lacaron Elementary School in Dao, Capiz

It took a week for the floodwaters to subside so we could get to Lacaron Elementary School in Dao. The roads were muddy and slippery in some areas and thanks to our driver we got there safely.

The children were well behaved and quiet. They each received a notebook and pens from Balay ni Charie. They were a little shy raising their hands when I asked them to spell some words and write them on the blackboard. But they were all delighted with the prizes for each correct spelling - crayons, scissors, sharpeners, pencil cases with pens, pencils, erasers, and rulers. First graders were asked to spell boy, girl, cat and jam. Third graders were asked to spell family, friends and school. Fifth and sixth graders were asked to spell Philippines or Republic of the Philippines.  It was delightful to see the focus every child gave to the word they were asked to spell.

Teachers and staff at Lacaron Elementary School

The teachers treated us to early lunch with adobo, soup, balut and kutshinta (a Pilipino "kakanin" and a specialty of Lacaron). We were famished after distributing school supplies to about 250 children. But it went smoothly, thanks to the principal and teachers for facilitating the event.

I am grateful to all the people who donated school supplies and who continue to support Balay ni Charie including Diana Acas and her family and friends, Rosemary Driscoll, Leda Albar, Ditas Fuentes, Ray Wong and Bock Loo.

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Images by Charie