Health for education: Rebuilding a school in Palawan

According to UNICEF, only half of children from 3 to 4 years old are enrolled in daycare, and only 78 percent complete primary education. Besides the lack of financial resources, many children who live in far-flung areas also have to contend with poor facilities or non-existent school infrastructure.

This is the current situation in Silad, a remote island in Palawan, where over 100 children need adequate learning spaces to complete their basic education.

Santé, a premier natural health and wellness product and service provider, recently extended help by rebuilding classrooms in Silad as part of its commitment to help people live better lives.

Pastor Philip Le Roux, a member of the Santé Barley Tri-Team, has helped the small island with different initiatives and projects through the years. It had long been his desire to see Silad Elementary School get fixed to be able to serve the community better.

"The growing number of families in Silad means more children are not getting access to adequate education. The Silad Elementary School is only made up of bamboo and old wood, which cannot withstand a typhoon-prone area. In fact, every time a small typhoon hits the area, the school has to be rebuilt," Le Roux said.

When Joey Marcelo, chief executive officer of Santé, heard about Silad's unfortunate condition, he saw "an opportunity for the Santé family to create and start change."

The company came up with the "Go the Extra Mile with Santé Daily-C 750mg" campaign. A portion of the sales made between 15 June to 15 July of the Santé Daily-C 750mg would be donated to Silad Elementary School to help replace the classrooms' roof with corrugated iron and the walls with cement and other durable materials that can withstand typhoons.

"Santé takes pride in its line of products, but we chose to do this with our Santé Daily-C 750mg that provides additional Vitamin C. Its extra protection mirrors what we aim to show in this campaign. The children of Silad, and everyone in the world, deserve to live more and do more," Marcelo said.

Santé is one of the leading global manufacturers of products with organic barley grass (certified organic by BioGro) grown and harvested from New Zealand. The company promotes, produces and distributes premier natural health and wellness products and services. The company reminds everyone to buy Santé products only from legitimate business owners and resellers and report counterfeits.