[BBBS] Big Brother Big Sister 2011 Outreach Program


Teacher Aida announced, “Get out a half-sheet of paper, we’re going to have a quiz.”  Students of the class were alarmed, terrified of the impending quiz.  Carlito was as frightened as everyone, cold sweat breaking out of his forehead, hands cold and pale.  He couldn’t move, frightened, but for a different reason.  He had no sheet of paper to take out, in fact, he had no pencil nor anything to write with.  His parents sent him to a public school with free tuition, but what’s free ends there.  He was sent to school without a bag, without school supplies, without shoes.

This is a common tale in many Philippine community schools.  How can a child be encouraged to attend school this way?

Through the Big Brother Big Sister (BBBS) Community Outreach Program, children in poor families get a chance to go to school without the embarrassment of having to borrow a pencil or beg for a piece of paper.  BBBS sponsors and volunteers carry school supplies on their backs and give them to the children in person.  On May 7 - 8 this year, BBBS will benefit children in the communities of Marinduque Island Province.

SIX HUNDRED children need big brothers and big sisters like YOU!

Here’s how you can be a big brother or sister:

1. Pledge to sponsor  one child for P300 (or USD 7.00) - Email tohelpbbbs@gmail.com or contact Tina Palestina +639298502790 / Marilet de Guzman +639285032075.
2. Come and meet the kids yourself, sign up as a BBBS volunteer
3. Send this message to your friends, relatives or colleagues who might wish to help

Visit:  http://bbbs2005.multiply.com or http://www.bbbsoutreach.com for more information.

Give Carlito that sheet of paper… give him hope!

** Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the date and venue of BBBS 2011?
A: May 7-8, 2011 in Boac, Marinduque Province.

Q: I’d like to know more about the sponsorship program.
A: Thanks for your interest to help. For Php 300 (or USD 7.00), you may sponsor the school set of one child in Marinduque for one year. We really need all the help we can get to reach our target of 600 kids. Kindly help disseminate the information about our project to all your friends.

You may send your donation thru PayPal: helpbbbs@gmail.com or you may deposit to the following account:
Account Name: MARILET DE GUZMAN
Account No. : 6220111000
Banco de Oro, Sienna-Del Monte Branch
409 Del Monte Avenue, Quezon City, Philippines
If deposits will be made from outside the Philippines, just specify the Bank Swift Code: BNORPHMM

Kindly inform us the date and amount of the deposit through helpbbbs@gmail.com or Tina Palestina +09298502790 / Marilet de Guzman +639285032075. Please keep the deposit slip for reference. BBBS will issue acknowledgement receipts for all deposits received. Do let us know if you would prefer another way for us to collect the donations.

Q: What is the content of one school pack?
A: One school pack contains the ffg. items: 1 knapsack, 7 notebooks, 4 ball-point pens, 4 pencils, writing pads, crayons, sharpener and ruler.

Q: Can I donate children’s books?
A: Yes, but we can not guarantee that we can bring them all since the volunteers’ priority is to carry the school packs of BBBS. Donate only what you can carry yourself.

Q: Can I donate supplies instead of Php 300?
A: We encourage cash donations so that there will be uniformity in the school supplies to be donated and to eliminate comparison among the students. We will be the ones to buy the school supplies.

Q: Can we write checks from other countries?
A: Yes you may write checks and deposit it directly to our account from another country. It is not that secure to mail checks here in the Philippines because there is the possibility of checks getting lost through mail. You may deposit directly to the following account:

Account Name: MARILET DE GUZMAN
Account No. : 6220111000
Banco de Oro, Sienna-Del Monte Branch
409 Del Monte Avenue, Quezon City, Philippines
If deposits will be made from outside the Philippines, just specify the Bank Swift Code: BNORPHMM

Kindly inform us the date and amount of the deposit and please keep the deposit slip for reference. BBBS will issue acknowledgement receipts for all deposits received.

Q: To whom or what company do we write the check to?
A: Write the check payable to MARILET DE GUZMAN.

Q: How much is the equivalent in dollars of the Php 300?
A: The conversion from USD to Peso is approximately 1 USD = Php 45, but it depends on the current exchange rate. Php 300 is less than USD 7.00.

Q: I’d like to know more about the volunteer program
A: Thank you for your interest in the volunteer program. Registration fee for each volunteer is P2000 inclusive of the ffg.: bus transportation from Manila to Lucena, ferry from Lucena to Boac, jeep fares for Marinduque inland transportation for 2 days, climb-related fees, ferry from Boac to Lucena, bus from Lucena to Manila, lunch on May 8, wash-up at Marinduque Hotsprings Resort, BBBS Volunteer T-shirt, ID, certificate of participation and sponsorship of one child. The travel time is about 6.5 hours to reach Boac. From the jump-off, volunteers will have to carry the school sets and trek through mountainous trails to reach the school. The trek will depend on the individual pace of each volunteer. This will require some level of fitness on the volunteer. Each volunteer is expected to carry at least two school sets, more if they can.

During the distribution, volunteers will be given assignments to facilitate the distribution to the kids. Volunteers have the option of sleeping inside classrooms or to bring their own tents. They will be expected to cook their dinner and breakfast with their assigned groups. It's on a first-come first-serve basis, when the slots are full, succeeding volunteers will still be accepted but on wait-list.

For more info and updates, you may visit our Multiply site: http://bbbs2005.multiply.com or Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150116040394560&set=a.112861849559.93600.648974559#!/profile.php?id=100000805195644

Q: How do I register as a volunteer?
A: To register as a volunteer, please provide the following information:
Fullname
Nickname
Phone Number
E-mail Address
Home Address
Birthdate (year of birth optional)
Blood Type
Shirt Size (XS-S-M-L-XL-XXL)
Are you a mountaineer?
In case of emergency:
Contact Person
Contact Number
Relationship
Preferred repacking date (April 17 or 30)
Who do you prefer to be grouped with? (as a guide only, subject to change)

Please take note of the ffg. dates:
1. April 28, Thursday, 8 - 11 pm – Orientation for non-mountaineers and Team pre-climb meeting at the Penthouse Flr., Makati Stock Exchange Bldg., Ayala cor. Makati Ave., Makati City. Attendance is a must! No preclimb, no climb! Reserved slots will be given to those on waitlist.

2. April 17 Sunday or April 30, Saturday, 9am - 12nn - repacking of the school supplies. All volunteers joining the trek are expected to help in at least one repacking session. Venue is at 200 Danny Floro St. (formerly Canley Road), Pasig.

For other volunteer information, you may contact:
Sharon Ponio: sharon.ponio@gmail.com or +639178010033
Medi Nazar: nazarmedi@gmail.com or +639493279691

Q: How do we pay the registration fee?
A: You may deposit it to the following bank account:
Account Name: SHARON D. R. PONIO
Account No.: 3769-0106-44
Bank: Bank of the Philippine Islands, Pacific Star

Kindly text Sharon at 09178010033 to inform us the date and amount of the deposit and please bring the deposit slip during the pre-climb meeting on April 28 as proof of payment.

Q: When is the deadline for payment of the registration fee?
A: You must deposit your registration fee on or before April 13 to confirm your reserved slot. You may also hand over your registration fee at Jaime Velasquez Park, located at Salcedo Village, Makati City. It is bounded by Leviste, Tordesillas, Jaime Velasquez and Toledo Streets. There's a Starbucks Coffee Shop across Leviste St. Meeting place is at the Gazebo inside the park. Text 09175353532 or 09232160378 if you wish to hand over your registration fee instead of depositing thru bank.

Q: Can I be spared from trekking due to injury?
A: Everyone is expected to help carry the school supplies and to trek to the schools. If you think trekking might incur further injury to you, you are still welcome to sponsor some kids.

Q: How about the sleeping arrangements?
A: For accommodations, volunteers may sleep inside the classrooms which means they have to bring groundsheets, earth pads or sleeping bags. They may also bring tents if they want but it’s not necessary. There will be an orientation for non-mountaineers on what to bring, what to expect on April 28, 8pm at the Penthouse Flr., Makati Stock Exchange Bldg., Ayala cor. Makati Ave., Makati City.

Q: How about the meals?
A: For food, we will be grouping the volunteers and assigning group leaders who will plan the meals with them. For breakfast and lunch on Saturday, we have to bring packed food. For Saturday dinner and Sunday breakfast, we will be cooking our own meals per group. Sunday lunch will be provided to all volunteers during the wash-up.

Q: What is the itinerary?
A: A detailed itinerary will be distributed and discussed in the Team Pre-climb Meeting on April 28. We will leave on Friday evening, May 6, at 8:00pm. For the return trip, by early morning of Monday, around 3:30 am, we will be in Manila if everything went according to schedule. But there is always a possibility of delay due to bad weather, vehicle breakdown or other unavoidable circumstances. We have to be mentally prepared for these events.

Q: What is the maximum no. of volunteers that you will accept this year?
A: 150 volunteers

Q: What is the minimum and maximum age for volunteers?
A: Minimum age is 18 years old, no minors. We discourage volunteers who are not physically fit because they might have difficulty through rough trails, which might be slippery or muddy when raining.

Q: How can I help?
A: Here's how you may be able to help: You may choose to sponsor one or more children or you may help us disseminate the project to your friends in the Philippines or other countries who may want to.

We will conduct our repacking of school supplies on April 17 or 30, 9am – 12nn at 200 Danny Floro St. (formerly Canley Road), Pasig. You may come and help, and invite friends who can also spare their time.

If you’re knowledgeable in Adobe Photoshop, you may also help us make flyers that we can use for email blasts in order to promote the project.

For more info and updates, you may visit our Multiply site: http://bbbs2005.multiply.com or Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150116040394560&set=a.112861849559.93600.648974559#!/profile.php?id=100000805195644

Q: Do I need to fill up anything to help?
A: No need to sign up anything to volunteer and be part of this project. Just inform BBBS through helpbbbs@gmail.com.

Q: Do I get to know the kids that I sponsor?
A: We can give you the names of the kids that you sponsored, but after the distribution on May 7 - 8.

Q: Do we get to choose which child we will sponsor?
A: For uniformity and equal treatment of the children, we will be the ones to choose the children.

Q: Please let me know what kind of school supplies you’ll be bringing so that I can bring the same school supplies on May 7.
A: For uniformity and equal treatment of the children, we will accept only cash donations so that we will be the ones to buy the school supplies.

Q; What are the approximate shirt sizes?
A: Width x Length
XS 18.0 in. x  23.5 in.
S   20.0 in. x  24.0 in.
M  20.5 in. x  26.0 in.
L   21.5 in. x  27.0 in.

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