Mothers in remote farming town get a dose of love from CARD MRI
There are countless ways we can show love for our mothers. From the perennial gift of gifts and treating them to a day of pampering or vacation, to doing chores for them and spending quality bonding time with them — the list goes on.
Another priceless present we can give to our mothers is the gift of health.
This is the gift that rural microfinance company, CARD Mutually Reinforcing Institutions (CARD MRI), gave to mothers, children and other residents in the remote town of Diffun in Quirino Province when it recently conducted its first Kaunlaran Caravan for 2018.
The largely agricultural town lies in the foothills of the Sierra Madre mountain range. Its residents, mostly living below the poverty line, rely on rice and corn cultivation for their livelihood. Its residents seldom receive basic services from the government. To receive proper medical aid or avail themselves of government services such as social security, residents have to travel an hour and a half to the nearest city of Santiago in Isabela.
CARD MRI, along with the institutions under its wing, provided its members and non-members a wide range of basic services such health-care services, financial literacy for the members’ children, SSS orientation, family planning seminar, livelihood training and insurance awareness seminar during the one-day caravan held at the town’s gymnasium.
“We are driven by our passion to help the marginalized sectors. It is our thrust to provide products, programs and services that will assist the socio-economically challenged families to rise above poverty,” said CARD MRI managing director Flordeliza Sarmiento.
Part of the Caravan is the Community Health Day (CHD), which benefitted almost 500 residents, mostly mothers, the elderly, and children of Diffun and neighboring towns. Volunteer doctors and dentists provided free medical checkups and dental services such as tooth extraction and cleaning. CARD MRI also set up a small pharmacy where people could buy generic medicines. CARD MRI members received 30-percent discount for medicines they bought at the booth, while non-members get 25-percent discount. Diffun’s population is gradually increasing over the years. The town only has a small district hospital, so some residents travel as far as Cauayan City in Isabela to receive decent prenatal and childbirth services. As it was Women’s Month when the caravan was held, pregnant CARD MRI members received a family planning lecture from the local Population Commission (POPCOM) representative as well as a free prenatal checkup and pampering kits in preparation for their childbirth.
CARD MRI and the government’s Social Security System (SSS) have always been good partners for many years, with many CARD clients receiving coverage from the social security service. As such, SSS was also part of this year’s caravan. Local SSS personnel gave residents an orientation on the advantages of getting social security coverage. Most of the orientation attendees were mothers who want to avail themselves of the insurance system to cover their medical and domestic expenses.
Rizal Bank Inc., one of the financial institutions within CARD MRI, also conducted a financial literacy seminar for the members’ children and relatives. Being a rural microfinance company, CARD MRI encourages its members and their relatives to be financially literate so they can learn the value of money, manage their income well, develop the habit of saving, and achieve a better quality of life.
“CARD MRI has been in the business of poverty eradication for 31 years, where building a stronger future for every Filipino family has been its endeavor. We provide an all-inclusive approach to the development of our members, considering their different needs to uplift their way of living,” said Sarmiento.
CARD MRI will conduct its Kaunlaran Caravan to communities in Visayas and Mindanao later this year. While the caravan was the first to be held in town in years, the gift of health it imparted to its residents is something they’ll value for years to come — a priceless gift that no other present can match.