In the Filipino culture, mothers are called as “ilaw ng tahanan” or light of the home. Just like a light, it provides warmth, hope, strength, and guidance same with mothers to their children. Whatever challenges in her path, the resilience of a mother comes from her unwavering love for her children to move forward and navigate the waters of uncertainty. Eden Bayeta, 50 years old, a mother of three children, shaped her resilience which she used to serve her community, Barangay Liboro in the town of Ragay, Camarines Sur.

Eden, who started as a community volunteer of Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan – Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS) in 2010 made a huge impact and influence to her children and the community which became her strength to persevere with her volunteer work.

She acted as head of Barangay Representation Team and Operations and Maintenance as well as a member of the Project Preparation Team while her husband, Roland spearheaded the Barangay Sub-Project Management Committee (BSPMC) under the National Community-Driven Development Program (NCDDP) modality.

Eden’s youngest child, Darwin, a 2^nd grade student at that time the one (1) unit three classroom school building sub-project was being built, proudly boasted about the volunteerism of his parents to his classmates.

“Huy! Amin ‘yan. Pinapagawa ‘yan ng papa at mama ko,” Eden’s child said to his classmate. To which his classmate replied, “Talaga? Ang yaman yaman niyo pala, nagbigay kayo ng school.”

(“Hey! That’s ours. It’s being built by my father and mother,” Eden’s child said to his classmate. To which his classmate replied, “Really? Your family is rich because you can give a school.”)

This made Eden treasure her endeavor in volunteerism. During the implementation of the said sub-project, she found herself in terror as her child, Darwin was hit by a vehicle which resulted to death. The traumatic event made her think of quitting her volunteer work.

“…sa totoo lang po dahil nanay ako, one month po akong hindi kumilos. Nagpahinga po ako at naunawaan naman po nila ‘yun,” she revealed.

(Since I am a mother, I haven’t moved for a month. I made an effort to get a rest, which the community understood.)

As Eden and her family were devastated by the harrowing incident, she took comfort from the support of her fellow community members.

“Kaya pinilit ko pong maging okay at isa din po ‘yan sa naging outlet ko para makalimutan ko yung pain. Kaya sige lang po ako sa mga proyekto ng KALAHI-CIDSS lalo na pag nagse-seminar, masaya ako. Kasi kung baga may outlet ka, hindi mo lagi naiisip,” she explained.

(I forced myself to be alright and carried on with my volunteer activities, which gave me an outlet to let go of the pain. Thus, I continued to work on the KALAHI-CIDSS sub-project, and attending seminars made me happy.  If you have an outlet, you don’t have to recall that situation.)

She used her volunteerism as a vision to help the children to have quality education.

“Nakikita ko po yung mga bata na masaya doon sa binigay ng KALAHI-CIDSS. Hindi na sila nahihirapan sa pagpasok sa eskwela [at] ginawa ko po ‘yun na inspirasyon…kasi daycare worker din po ako kaya ang puso ko ay sa mga bata kaya nagpatuloy ako,” Eden said.

(I see that the children are happy with the sub-project funded by KALAHI-CIDSS. They don’t have to suffer in school, and I took that as an inspiration…because I am a daycare worker and my heart is for the children, which is why I am constantly pursuing volunteer opportunities.)

CONTINUOUS VOLUNTEERISM

Drawn to the program’s objective of empowerment, Eden becomes more actively involved, converting her pain into positive action. With her involvement, she played a vital role in the implementation of many sub-projects such as the construction of portable toilet facilities, concreting of access road, cash-for-work, and construction of open line canal.

Currently, she is part of the improvement of the day care center sub-project under the Philippine Multisectoral Nutrition Project (PMNP).

Eden described the process of KALAHI-CIDSS has involved many community members in the implementation of community-identified interventions and how transparent the procurement process of the program is.

“Nasa tamang proseso ang pag-implement ng KALAHI-CIDSS kaya walang korapsyon na nangyayari. At kita, kitang-kita, may transparency po ang implementation,” she noted.

(Corruption is impossible because KALAHI-CIDSS is being implemented correctly. Additionally, it is clear that the implementation is transparent.)

Allan Angeles, Barangay chairperson, also expressed the importance of the participation of villagers in the implementation of sub-projects.

“Tao mismo ang tinulungan ng KALAHI-CIDSS na magpatakbo ng proyekto. ‘Yun po ang napaka importante doon para malaman nila, maintindihan nila at mahalin yung proyekto,” he shared.

(KALAHI-CIDSS provides direct technical assistance to the villagers to implement the sub-projects. That is important for them to be familiar with, understand, and appreciate the project.)

He also added that community members learn how to budget and facilitate the operations through KALAHI-CIDSS which strengthens the appreciation of people towards the project implemented.

For so many years, Eden was directly involved in providing development to her community which became her legacy that she can pass down to her children and future generations.

Reliving the proud moments of her children on her volunteerism serves as Eden’s driving force to shine brighter and illuminate a path for a better future.