"Awesomeness happens when thick — real, meaningful — value is created by people who love what they do, added to insanely great stuff, and multiplied by communities who are delighted and inspired because they are authentically better off. In an interdependent world, obsolescence is what’s obsolete." - (JP)
Inspired by The First Million Dollar Steemit Post $1,000,000 SBD written by 
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Oriental Mindoro has a total population of 785,602 based on the National Statistics Office (NSO) survey of 2010. Ten percent of that number constitutes the mangyans, who are distributed all over the island, namely: Alangan, Iraya, Tadyawan, Tau-Buid, Buhid, Hanunuo, Ratagnon, and Bangon. (Valenton, 2014) The word mangyan is a collective term for the eight indigenous groups in the province.
Every start of the school year we highlight public school system’s lack of classrooms, books and toilets and more often we miss out the plight of our indigenous children. For Mangyan kids, school opening is a heart breaking reality — they do not have schools nearby and if they did have a school, it lacked the necessary support to make it conducive to learning. More often these children due to extreme poverty are deprived of the education that results to a worsening illiteracy incidence in Mangyan communities that further leads to marginalization.
I have personally witnessed this in my brief stay at the island for two years and did little steps to help out from raising awareness to helping to support projects that uplift their well being. I have also participated in outreach programs for them and this is how i came to know a dear friend who spent all his life helping these communities.
My friend sacrificed his opportunity for a greener pasture abroad and devoted his time to nurture these children and help them secure better future. He was already a nurse working at Ahmed Al Jassmi Properties -Dubai and a research analyst at Center for Advanced Research and Technology when he decided to come home and give back. He is Shernan Fahutnao Gamol, a passionate and visionary youth leader that steered volunteer youth groups to helping out impoverished Mangyan communities.
He organized youth volunteers to form Mindoro's keep hope alive youth organization.
“KHA” (Keep Hope Alive) is a simple youth organization in Mansalay that provides support beyond their capability in helping people especially our brothers and sister that lives in mountains or the indigenous people. It is a youth volunteer organization that contributes community development and youth empowerment through volunteerism and community outreach works. Volunteerism and passion to serve others are their powerful means of engaging young people and stakeholders in tackling development challenges in their adopted communities. Their projects and activities benefit both community and the individual volunteer by strengthening trust, solidarity and reciprocity and by purposefully creating opportunities for participation that address the issues on education, health, environment, culture and youth.
Shernan led this group of young leaders to create a lasting impact on the Mangyans. Among their succesfull initiatives were:
- Balik -Eskwela Caravan ( providing school kits to school children annually)
- Bantay Kalusugan Project (health watch project)
- Healthy Teeth Campaign for Mangyan Kids
- Adopt a Mangyan Child for a Day ( an Award winning project for luzon TAYO 2012)
- Kultura Mangyan Preservation Campaign (cultural preservation for Mangyan)
- Save Mindoro Pine Tree Campaign
- Mansalay Youth Leadership Mentoring Program
- Fight 4 Five Project (inspired by Denver's 5by5 Project for Shool Children)
- The Ideas Project ( A community Library Project to improve literacy among Mangyans)
Balik -Eskwela Caravan
The mission of Balik Eskwela 2014 is to aid school children in recieving quality education. The program aims to provide set of new school supplies to our indigent and less fortunate students located in the farthest and remote areas of Oriental Mindoro. Armed with these tools, Mangyan beneficiaries would surely be more motivated to do well in their studies.https://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10206181508928984.1073741985.1601960402&type=3
Schools Solar Electrification Program
This School Electrification Program has been helping communities and students in far-flung areas in the Philippines through the use of renewable energy-powered multimedia technology; both teachers and students experience better teaching and learning conditions. With electricity and computers we are hoping to bridge digital divide in these areas.https://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10202177369267995.1073741863.1601960402&type=3
Bantay Kalusugan Project (health watch project)
The program of "Keep Hope Alive" seeks to provide basic health care among the indigenous families and their children to keep them fit and healthy. Free Health Check-up/Assessment and Free Medicines are given to remote and under served communities of Mansalay. Volunteers and Health Workers involved in this program believe that a Healthy Community can be achieved through basic and preventive care. One beneficiary said, "It has been many years since I have had a health check-up, I am presently unemployed and I felt like I needed to take advantage of this."https://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10202587511321290.1073741875.1601960402&type=3
Healthy Teeth Campaign for Mangyan Kids
Healthy Teeth Campaign target parents and youngsters through a comprehensive literacy campaign utilizing outreach to provide information and practical demo to drive awareness for critical stages of pediatric oral health care. These activities include free medicines and free toothbrush & toothpaste.https://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10203978400852659.1073741901.1601960402&type=3
Adopt a Mangyan Child for a Day ( an Award winning project for luzon TAYO 2012)
Volunteers are in charge of children's Grooming & Hygiene, Feeding Program & School Lessons for the day) - the community can be reached by 9 hours of walking, crossing rivers & climbing mountains. This outreach event has reached approximately 300 mangyan children who might not otherwise have had the opportunity to experience a day with a one-on-one foster youth parent. “This program not only impacts the children, but also the volunteer mentors, who help promote the foundations’ mission of positive attitudes, health, well-being and hope.https://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10203698432053614.1073741896.1601960402&type=3
Kultura Mangyan Preservation Campaign (Cultural Preservation for Mangyan)
This is a KHA project for promotion and preservation of cultural heritage of the Mangyan tribes in Mindoro.
https://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10202134652320098.1073741860.1601960402&type=3
Save Mindoro Pine Tree Campaign
Mindoro Pine is a tree that used to grow abundantly only in Mindoro Island particularly in the mountain ranges of Mansalay. KHA encourages the people of Mindoro to take part in conserving, protecting and restoring the native Mindoro pine in its natural forest. Several years ago, Mindoro pine thrived sporadically in the mountain ranges of Occidental & Oriental Mindoro. It used to cover 5,000 ha. But the latest Philippine Forestry Statistics revealed that only 695 hectares remain. And it continues to diminish due to grass fires used in Kaingin and Coal mining or “Pag-uuling”. (DENR)Mansalay Youth Leadership Mentoring Program
Leadership mentoring program is designed to gather the emerging youth leaders from Mindoro for collaboration, leadership development and exposure to the most innovative experiential learning and advocacies in the country. Aside from sharing leadership stories, participants hone their leadership values and skills by learning from the sharing of youth champion in various fields of endeavorshttps://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10203678713120653.1073741895.1601960402&type=3
Fight 4 Five Project
Five for Five Project is KHA mobile outreach programme delivering school/home based health care, educational drive, peer education, social & cultural activities and environmental awareness services as well as programs that aimed to alleviate poverty and promote economic sustainability to indigent families. The need for mobile outreach services was, and continues to be critical since most families in Mangyan Communities live in very rural, isolated settings.As volunteers, they spend time educating community people on the prevention of epidemic in communities, visit schools in geographically isolated areas to talk to school children about hygiene & nutrition. They also assist with local workshops; participate in medical missions, health & environmental awareness program and support sessions.
https://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10206639530979249.1073741994.1601960402&type=3
The Ideas Project
This project started in collaboration with youth volunteers, stakeholders and donors to improve literacy, increase access to quality education for all ages, and self-empowerment in our community. KHA worked together with partner organizations in the community, Barangay officilas, Phil. Army, volunteers, School staff, 4P's and Non-Governmental Organizations to realize this project. KHA believes that the simple act of establishing libraries with gently used books would have a profound effect in increasing literacy. They will work closely with local teachers and community leaders to sustain this project.https://www.facebook.com/sfgamol/media_set?set=a.10204883314474934.1073741948.1601960402&type=3
For KHA, going out of your comfort zone in order to help someone is the most rewarding feeling. This youth group would have to trek mountains and cross rivers for days bringing along with them some provisions just to reach the communities they serve. With these efforts, Keep Hope Alive was named the 2016 National Winner in the Ten Accomplished Youth Organization (TAYO) for their community based healthcare projects and just recently nominated by the NATIONAL YOUTH COMMISSION (NYC) to represent the country in The Accomplished Youth Organization in ASEAN Awards (TAYO ASEAN Award).
If you are looking for a purpose in life, here is a link for those who are willing the leave well lit avenues of life to join their group. Here is a link you might want to fill up.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeBkulGLQBkqa9IEEGp3aCX9zDfdCc3HEc1Rh3GuB0WhqkNFA/viewform?c=0&w=1
Shernan believes that once you're a volunteer, you will continue always seek a way to serve others, as long as you feel that your efforts are accomplishing somethin, that your talents are appreciated, and that you make a difference.
Like many of us here, Shernan is a blogger too. Check out his blogs here.
http://shernangamol.blogspot.com/2015/04/fight-for-five-project-sinariri-mangyan.html
https://sfgamol.wordpress.com/
I'm planning to convince him to migrate his blogs here on steemit platform because i firmly believe that his advocates will add value to the community. Help me convince him with your upvotes in this blog.
I dedicate this blog to appreciate the sacrifices Shernan and his youth volunteers does for the people they serve. All earnings and donations it will generate will go to Keep Hope Alive to support their projects to allow them to continue to make a difference. It will fund their recent project on youth agripreneurship & leadership training
and Community development projects for the Mangyan communities.
For verifications or if you would like to get in touch with the group you can call or text Shernan (Mindoro) at +639494743512 or Ritz at 09273591310 / Rewell +63 939 223 8952 (Manila) or Email sfgamol@yahoo.com.ph for inquiries.
Leo Jan Tayco, OFW & Youth Volunteer
When was the last time you put a smile on someone's face? #ShareSmileToday