Gawad Kalinga Build Day - Part 1: Arrival

July 22 is PNB's anniversary. For this year, part of the activities is joining a Gawad Kalinga Build Day at GK Sunshineville in Las Pinas on July 21, 2007.

120 volunteers signed up and PNB provided a bus to service those who will be coming from the head office. Those who live nearby, like me, went to the site on their own.

I was there by 8AM. The Marketing Services Div. people, who organized the event on PNB's side, were giving out white PNB-GK caps and t-shirts to be worn that day (considering that it is a build day, those white t-shirts and caps eventually showed the dirt and paint they were exposed to).

The treasury folk waiting to get their caps and shirts.
Lenny, Es and Jan
Alex Cheng, former Treasury trader, poses with Joey and Rey. Alex came with the other Southern Metro Manila branch managers.
Lanie even brought along hubby Paw (standing behind her).
Paw, Menchie, Lanie and Dennis
Vincent with the girls from Budget/PNB Gen.
Beth, Menchie, Paw, and Lanie
The Marketing Services Division handing out white PNB/GK caps and shirts.


Only Mimi represented Systems and Methods Division. Actually, she came on her own, not because SMD wanted to send someone :-)
Melody (Alex Cheng's wife), Cheryl, Buddy, Milette and Danny
The women of Sunshine Ville present a dance number while the PNB volunteers look on.

Brother Bong and the other people who've devoted a good part of their lives volunteering for Gawad Kalinga.

Brother Bong's story is very uplifting. He and his wife are Couples for Christ members. He has quit his job to work full time in the building of the Sunshineville community. The sole provider in the family is his wife who is a government employee and only earns enought for their basic needs. God has provided the rest. They used to rent an apartment, but one of the donors to Gawad Kalinga who now resides abroad has a house near Sunshineville that is empty ... Bong and his family now lives there. Bong's two children are in college, charitable friends of Gawad Kalinga are now paying the tuition of the engineering student, while UST is now in the process of reviewing the scholarship application of the medical (or is it nursing?). Someone donated a van to Bong for his use. He now uses the van to drive Sunshineville kids to their school, and whatever the parents pay him are just enough to pay for gasoline and maintenance. This is a good example of how God provides for those who serve him.