ABUCAY, Bataan – The Gawad Kalinga and the local government held on Saturday and Sunday a Builders Camp at the1.7-hectare model GK village here.
Youth volunteers from other GK villages in Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Zambales, Manila and Bataan as well as members of the Sangguniang Kabataan Federation, civic organizations and the LGU in Abucay joined the two-day activity.
Youth volunteers undertook feeding program for the children of 25 families who became beneficiaries of the housing units built in 2007. The residents were relocated from the cemetery and other depressed areas in Abucay.
Two of the 27 housing units in the upland area serve as guest house.
Adult volunteers led by Abucay Mayor Ana Santiago repainted the houses with an area of 30 square meters each. Operation clean-up was also conducted in the village for the planting of vegetables.
The local government under Santiago purchased the 1.7-hectare land and turned it over to GK.
“Sa tulong ng aming mga kaibigan, ilang kakilala sa abroad at ng aming kumpanya ay naipatayo ang mga housing units. Sana dagdagan pa natin ang panalangin upang madagdagan pa ang mga bahay dito,” the mayor said.
She targets 130 families to be housed in the GK village. “Sana pagandahin pa natin ito at maging pilot project bilang modelo ng GK village,” she said.
Santiago said that soon to rise in the village are a daycare center, an elementary school, a chapel and water system.
Roda Jurado, one of the residents, said she and her husband who works as mason have been living in the village with their four children for already four years. “Maganda lagay namin dito,” she said.
Juluis Caubat, one of the area coordinating council members of GK-Central Luzon, said Gawad Kalinga serves as caretaker team and facilitates various programs and sustain what the LGU has shared.
“We undertake child development programs through spiritual and values formation,” he said.
Raffy Rodriguez and George Roxas, also GK coordinating council members, said GK continuously train the youth to become leaders who will replace them someday. “Ang mga benefactors naman o ang mga kapitbahayan ay target nating maging middle class lahat by 2024,” Roxas said.
