Daily TribuneThe project’s specific target beneficiaries are 100 children from poor families aged six months to 12 years showing signs of malnutrition, a special concern of the Rotary Club of Makati
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF RC Makati Rotary Club of Makati and Caritas Manila link hands to feed poor, malnourished children. Photo shows (from left) Damayan program manager of Caritas Manila Gilda Garcia, PDG Sid Garcia, Caritas Manila executive director Fr. Anton C.T. Pascual, RC Makati VP/Dir. Howie Calleja, PP Louie Aseoche and Dir. Neil Makasiar at the signing of the Memorandum Understanding which provides for a P500,000 donation by RC Makati to Caritas Manila's Damayan Nutrition Program to benefit 100 poor malnourished children aged six months to 12 years old living in Santuario de San Vicente Parish and Shrine of the Poor, Tandang Sora, Quezon City. The MoU signing was held last 24 October 2023 at the Escolta, Peninsula Manila, Makati.
The Rotary Club of Makati has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Caritas Manila Inc. to support the latter's Caritas Damayan Nutrition Program.
CMI s the non-profit organization that serves as the lead social service and development ministry of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines.
The MoU, which was signed by Fr. Anton C.T. Pascual, Caritas Manila's executive director and Rotary Club of Makati vice president/director, Atty. Howard Calleja during the last RC Makati meeting at the Escolta, Peninsula Manila in Makati last 24 October 2023, indicates that the Club will donate P500,000 to Caritas Manila's Damayan Nutrition Program.
The Program had been established by CM as its contribution in support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly with regards to reduction of poverty and putting an end to hunger.
Special concern
In pursuit of such objective, CMI approached and requested financial support from the RC Makati which readily agreed particularly since the Program's beneficiaries are poor malnourished children, a special concern of the Club.
Specifically, the nutrition project shall provide daily meals, that is, a meal a day for five days a week to poor malnourished children living in the Santuario de San Vicente de Paul Parish and Shrine for the Poor in Tandang Sora, Quezon City for a total period of six months.
The project's target beneficiaries will be underprivileged children aged between six months to 12 years showing signs of malnutrition who, along with their guardians, are permanent residents of the indicated project site.
The total project cost of P500,000 to be donated by RC Makati covers meal cost of P25 per meal daily for 120 days of feeding or a total cost of P3,000 along with an additional P200 per malnourished child for a personal foodkeeper, tumbler, and utensils for 100 children beneficiaries.
Vegetable growkits
Also included in the RC Makati donation are provisions for 100 vegetable growkits (hydrobox and organicomposter) at a cost of P1,000 per beneficiary. These vegetable growkits are intended for sustainable food and security through home-based urban farming.
CM's counterpart, as indicated in the MoU, will be a hygiene kit per beneficiary at a cost of P500 per kit.
CM will also be responsible for identifying project beneficiaries, implement the supplemental feeding activity including prepping of the ingredients and prompt preparation and distribution of food among the beneficiaries as well as monitoring the feeding sites to ensure smooth project implementation.
Vision of uplifting lives
The feeding staff is also expected to encourage families-beneficiaries of the project to organize themselves into Rotary Community Corps in their respective communities to help expand the Rotary's vision of uplifting the lives of community members through the undertaking of other service projects in collaboration with CM and allowing RC Makati to conduct onboarding sessions with the beneficiary communities for this purpose.
The project commences today, 6 November 2023, Monday and will end on 22 May 2024.
