Odyssey provides skills to poor parents
Close to 2,500 parents have received training under a livelihood project initiated by food company CDO Foodsphere Inc. over the past six years.
Odyssey Foundation Inc. (OFI), the corporate social responsibility arm of CDO Foodsphere, said that as of July 2017, some 2,500 individuals, mostly parents of undernourished children in poor communities, have graduated from a livelihood assistance program called Gabay Hanapbuhay.
OFI president Jerome Ong said Gabay Hanapbuhay was launched in Barangay Maysan, Valenzuela City in August 2011 to promote productivity and develop livelihood skills among selected participants in a chosen community. Parents of undernourished children in Valenzuela City, the headquarters of CDO Foodsphere, were the initial beneficiaries to complement OFI’s supplemental feeding program called Gabay Nutrisyon.
Gabay Hanapbuhay aims to equip parents with entrepreneurial skills so that they can earn additional income for their families. It trains beneficiaries on cosmetology, facial treatment, food processing, fancy jewelry making and dishwashing liquid and soap making.
Other skills trainings in- clude massage therapy, cosmetology, fancy accessories design, beads making, water lily weaving and producing dishwashing liquid, powder detergent and fabric conditioner. OFI also provides started kits to selected participants following assessment and evaluation.
Aside from livelihood enhancement, OFI develops programs concerning children nourishment, child education, environment and other social services.
Twenty-five batches of beneficiaries have completed the training programs under Gabay Hanapbuhay since 2011. OFI partnered with local government units and nongovernment organizations to implement the various training programs in over 25 communities on their subject of interest.
Because of the overwhelming demand from local government units and several NGOs to bring the training program to their localities, OFI decided to expand the type of beneficiaries to include the unemployed and the marginalized member of the community.
Ong said the latest batch of beneficiaries were residents of Barangay Malanday, Valenzuela City. Beneficiaries were trained in making siomai and empanada, skinless longganisa and tocino, embotido and burger patties.
“CDO Foodsphere allocates a certain portion of its corporate profit to fund OFI’s social projects. This is our way of sharing our company blessings,” Ong said.
The founders of CDO-Food- sphere agreed to sustain the operations of OFI to help more people. The foundation is led by CDO-Foodsphere founders Corazon Ong and Joseph Ong as chairwoman and vice chairman, respectively and Joseph Jerome Ong as president.