In light of recent calamities, specifically the onslaught of typhoons in the country and the recent strike of the habagat,

many communities were effectively displaced from their home bases, thus escalating the number of refugees and evacuees. Garcia Subdivision in Binan City, Laguna is one community with a burgeoning number of evacuees. Originally, we were supposed to be doing a feeding program for the undernourished children of that community but when we interviewed the baranggay captain, we learned that there were evacuees, thus causing us to shift our focus to them. Because of the typhoon, many of these families are unable to provide the needs of their children, putting them at extreme risk for malnutrition, thus the need to augment their feeding with our program. In the Philippines, poverty and pervasive malnutrition are not limited to families of deprived seasonal workers. Undernourishment is endemic and increasing throughout most of this archipelago of some 7100 islands, and is compounded by the prevalence of intestinal parasites and gastrointestinal diseases which health workers estimate deprive children of at least 5-10% of the nutritional value in food they do consume. Currently, the problem of malnutrition is particularly prevalent in rural villages and city slums where many people eat with their fingers. According to the Philippine Department of Health, nearly 1/2 of all reported deaths are among infants and children through age 4, and about 1/2 of the accelerated death rate among those age 5 and younger is related to malnutrition, compounded by diarrhea, measles, and malaria which is returning to areas where it once was almost eradicated. 3 factors critically affect a newborn's survival prospects: the

family size he or she is born into; the time or spacing between the mother's pregnancies; and the child's birth order. Evidence indicates that, during the 1970s, as US aid and other family planning assistance became available, they were used most among families in the 2 highest income classes, where reduction of family size is under way. Poverty is the most fundamental cause of malnutrition, although many other factors contribute. Land reform has brought security of tenure and increasingly is transferring ownership of fields to former tenants of rice and corn lands. For the former tenants enhanced security brings greater income and better eating for the farm families retain more of the crop. The undernourished and truly poor of the Philippines number about 1/2 of the population. Although dispersed throughout most of the archipelago, there are important regional differences. These related to marked geographic patterns that affect fertility of the soil, length of the dry season, fortunes of predominant crops, vulnerability to destructive typhoons, chronic warfare and other endemic lawlessness, major debilitating diseases, and especially population pressure. Moral judgement dictates that we, as human persons, are the stewards of our brothers and sisters and that we all have our duties to one another. This is the main reason as to why our group has decided to choose this topic for our project. During the ocular inspection in preparation for the program, we saw that a lot of youngsters in the area are undernourished: this phenomenon happening probably because of their lack of access to foods with high nutritive value. As such, we have decided to conduct a feeding program for them, so as to give them access to proper nutrition.

Doing this project opened my eyes up to the realities of the world. Dont get me wrong, I have always known malnutrition exists, but up until present, I have yet to see it before my very eyes. I used to think that malnutrition was something far away from me, that it was something only those in other countries experience. In all honesty, this project was a rude awakening of sorts for me.

Isaiah 58:10 points out that...If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.

The above Bible verse spoke to me. It actually helped enlighten me on what to do for my less fortunate brothers and sisters. It helped me come to terms with the gravity of the project we will be undertaking.

For me, doing this project will be a major sacrifice as it involves us having to sacrifice our time, money and other obligations for the completion of the project. And I figured I should do so without a heavy heart for it is for the betterment of my fellow man.

I believe that the main reason as to why most programs geared towards the eradication of malnutrition fail is because the programs themselves are temporal at best and hypocritical at worst. James 2:15-16 says that ...If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, Go in peace, be warmed and filled, without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?

This holds true for us who want to help our fellow man. In all honesty, a lot of programs just keep on advertising the name of whoever decides to sponsor such, usually politicians looking for an easy ticket to the hearts of the masses, which is just wrong. Public service should not be limited by words but rather shown through actions. Malnutrition in the Philippines is not a hidden problem. The government, almost since the proclamation of 1972 martial law, has campaigned against malnutrition. During the 1970s, the government developed a major program of expanded production with the result that rice production expanded substantially. Even this achievement leaves the average Filipino short by 300 calories of food intake per day. It is not jiggering with food aid or government price incentives that will assure that future Filipinos will have enough to eat. Only a productive revolution of rural life that also educates mothers to know what makes for sound family nutrition will be adequate. I have always believed in the verse that said that whatever we do to the least of our brothers we do towards Jesus Christ. As such, I am quite happy that our group will, at the very least, help these underprivileged people for even a short amount of time. I am quite confident that with proper training and proper knowledge, they would soon be able to stand up on their own and be able to proceed with life the way they used to do before they were struck down by calamities. Our group is actually hoping that this program will not end with this semesters end, that the officials we worked with will do whatever they can to supplement and continue the

event we started in their community, so as to breed a culture of brotherhood and community service to their constituents.

University of Perpetual Help System Laguna

College of Arts and Sciences

Filipino Christian Living 7

I4C

Jan Michael O. Rebuyas