Building houses, building people and building character

THE Philippine Red Cross ( PRC) is not into the housing business, but it has been giving shelters for free to our disaster- stricken populace for decades. But through the years, it has been unfairly given less publicity than government agencies that use our taxes amid trumpets and drum rolls.

Quietly, it gets the job done with monies from sympathetic partners and donors that have trusted this private organization for decades. They know that PRC delivers on its promises diligently in lightning speed, ignited by the baton of its dedicated conductor — Sen. Richard Gordon. Here is a recent sampler: PRC’s chairman and chief executive officer led last Friday the turnover of houses to some 244 families in the towns of Amulung, Gattaran and Alcala, among others, in Cagayan.

Still fresh in our mind, Typhoon “Ompong ” ( international name: “Mangkhut”), made landfall in Baggao, Cagayan on Sept. 15, 2018, affecting more than 2.5 million people when it hit Regions 1 ( Ilocos) and 2 ( Cagayan Valley).

Gordon said: “Like what the Red Cross Hymn says, ‘When the world no longer watches, we do what must be done.’ We don’t take people for granted, especially those who are suffering. That is why we are here today. This time, we want to ensure that the families affected by Typhoon Ompong are able to recover. We want them to get back on their feet again with dignity because our mission in the Red Cross is to alleviate human suffering and to uplift human dignity.”

These encouraging words are not just publicity blurbs but are more like biblical phrases being followed by hundreds of thousands of courageous PRC volunteers. During the onslaught, the PRC, upon instructions of its chairman, immediately extended assistance. The country’s foremost humanitarian organization served 17,778 individuals with hot meals; provided 3,700 families with food items consisting of two to three days of ration and assorted packs; and rescued 53 individuals, among others.

Not too long ago and true to form, we have seen the PRC build a total of 80,207 houses in Leyte, including in Ormoc City; Western and Eastern Samar; Cebu; Capiz; Aklan; Antique; Iloilo; and Palawan.

This is why PRC is given that trust: the 80,207 houses that were built were properly accounted for and donors can see where their houses are and who lives in there.

And you think that PRC will stop just by building houses?

Wrong. Cash livelihood assistance was granted to 62,676 households, while livelihood training was provided to 15,985 individuals. Based on the data of the humanitarian organization, 90,779 families were given cash assistance in the early recovery program and a total of

P281,529, 400 was distributed from December 2013 to March 2014.

Since Nov. 8, 2013 until March 30, 2014, PRC provided food items to 390,399 families or 1,951,995 individuals.

During Super Typhoon “Yolanda” (“Haiyan”), PRC demonstrated that it could gather aid from almost all the Red Cross and Red Crescent societies worldwide and distribute this into different provinces.

No wonder it is called a “go-to organization” and the preferred partner of choice. But all these accolades were not earned in a single day.

Under Gordon, it was a total reset. The “blood” image metamorphosed into something more. It is now associated with “life” and the character to live that life with dignity.

PRC is now into strategizing its plans; prides itself with its own digital and real- time operations center; has designated emergency hotlines, automatic mode of search, rescue and rehabilitation, and a welfare desk; and post event monitoring services. Add to these the recent partnership with a drone company to deliver blood on time especially in inaccessible areas.

I still remember that PRC was first on the ground to instil order in the chaotic rescue effort and recovery of bodies at the 2006 Ultra Stampede during the “Wowowee” anniversary show.

It was also the first to initiate relief and rehabilitation efforts for the 8,000 families affected by Typhoon “Milenyo” (Xangsane”) in the Southern Tagalog and Bicol regions, especially in Sorsogon, which received scant attention as the media focused on billboard incidents in Metro Manila.

Remember Project 143? “I Love You Red Cross” was established to saturate the country with volunteers who will be trained to know what to do in times of disasters. These volunteers, the backbone of the PRC, would act as the “eyes and ears” of the organization in times of disasters.

The PRC has eternally set its crosshair way beyond. Vision and track record describe this organization as it relentlessly pursues its destiny in the Philippine humanitarian space. Its chairman does not believe in luck but pure hard work.

His sensitivities are clearly marked in the minds and hearts of PRC’s workers. I had shared years of friendship with this man and his philosophies are somewhat contagious. He told me that helping people is never enough. He laments that our citizens needs a paradigm shift to a higher dimensional state to be able to determine how our country should be led. He pinpointed transactional politics as the biggest burden in our shoulders today and the biggest obstruction to progress. Getting elected is generally based on the treasure chests of aspirants. Vision, sincerity and track record are totally dumped or neglected I definitely agree.

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Good work, good deeds and good faith to all.