A person’s life always starts as a blank canvas, but as time goes by, it will be filled with lessons, struggles, and triumphs through his or her journey towards growth.

Just like Fe Bueza Villanueva, a community volunteer in Barangay San Vicente, Garchitorena, Camarines Sur, she has already written her commitment and service to the community in indelible ink.

That commitment started when she joined the Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan – Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS), a program of Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) focusing on community empowerment. Fe began as a community volunteer in 2007 at that time she was only 18 years old.

Back then, she joined a local talent showcase facilitated by the KALAHI-CIDSS program, in which she was later appointed as a community volunteer.

“Nandoon na din po yung parang na-curious ako kung ano po yung ginagawa doon kasi nga po volunteerism so ibig sabihin po wala naman po kami makukuha in return,” she recounted.

(I was also kind of curious about what they were doing there because it’s volunteerism, which means we wouldn’t really get anything in return.)

From her curiosity, she tried volunteering with an aim to learn new skills and knowledge.

“Syempre po ako, gusto ko naman pong may natutunan at the same [time] po, wala naman din po akong pinagkakaabalahan sa buhay,” Fe shared.

(Of course, for me, I wanted to learn something, and at the same time, I didn’t really have anything else keeping me busy in life.)

Now 36, a mother of four, and the chairperson of the Community Nutrition Subproject Management Committee under the Philippine Multisectoral Nutrition Project (PMNP), a modality of KALAHI-CIDSS, Fe has transformed into a leader with years of volunteer experience. Her evolution from a shy youth into a confident speaker who shares her knowledge during seminars or workshops has not only developed her self but also the community.

“Doon po nagsimula ‘yun kasi ang dami ko din pong nakilala na mga kabataan din. So doon ko po na-discover na kaya ko po pala magsalita sa unahan lalo po ngayon kapag may mga seminar, workshop po ang KALAHI-CIDSS. Minsan natatawag po ako para magsalita, mag-share ng kaunting kaalaman,” she said.

(That’s where it all started because I also got to meet a lot of other young people. That’s when I discovered that I could actually speak in front of others, especially now, during seminars and workshops of KALAHI-CIDSS. Sometimes, I get invited to speak and share a bit of knowledge.)

Joseph Daniela Abante, barangay councilor of San Vicente, also shared how the program has changed not only the lives of many volunteers but the barangay officials as well, particularly in gaining knowledge.

“Kung baga dati hindi nila alam kung pano gawin yung isang bagay, pero ngayon alam na po nila. Alam na nila kung paano patakbuhin yung subproject hanggang sa matapos. And then kami rin na mga barangay official, marami rin ang pasalamat namin kasi hindi lang kami natuto sa pagtrabaho bilang kagawad. Tapos sa KALAHI-CIDSS, natulungan kami kung paano magpatakbo ng mga proyekto,” he explained.

(Before, they didn’t know how to do certain things, but now they do. They already know how to manage a subproject from start to finish. And then, for us barangay officials, we’re also very thankful because we didn’t just learn about our duties as councilors. Through KALAHI-CIDSS, we were also taught how to manage projects.)

Fe’s curiosity took a great turn as she together with other community members, has completed various subprojects that benefit the barangay, such as the concreting of farm-to-market road, concreting of pathway, cash-for-work, improvement of daycare center, and construction of sanitary toilet with handwashing facility.

The volunteer also came to understand that volunteerism carries a heavy responsibility, even if there’s no payment.

“Pero ang kagandahan po doon pagnakikita mo yung subproject na natapos na, parang sasabihin mo sa sarili mo na, “part ako ng subproject na ito”. So, may naiambag ka sa komunidad,” Fe shared.

She added that even if she is no longer a community volunteer someday, she knows in her heart that she was able to do something for the community that she can truly be proud of.

The volunteer also compared her volunteer journey to a notebook that continues to be filled with writings as she learns from the program.

“Yung papasok ka palang as in wala pa siyang sulat, wala pa siyang laman. And as you grow habang lumilipas ang panahon, habang tumatagal ka sa KALAHI-CIDSS, napupuno po siya ng sulat. ‘Yung parang nag-aaral ka rin na ang dami mo ng lesson na naisulat doon sa notebook. ‘Yun po yung journey ko sa KALAHI-CIDSS. Pumasok po ako na kakaunti ang alam pero ngayon masasabi ko talagang marami na akong natutunan sa programa,” Fe said.

(When it’s your first day of school, the notebook has no writing, no content yet. But as you grow, as time passes, and as you stay longer in KALAHI-CIDSS, it gradually gets filled with writing. It’s like being in school, where you’ve written down so many lessons in that notebook. That’s how my journey with KALAHI-CIDSS has been. I started with very little knowledge, but now I can truly say that I’ve learned so much from the program.)

As Fe flips through the pages of her notebook, she sees her legacy as a volunteer that was once blank pages and is now brimming with all her experiences. Every page she writes is a proof that her growth is not just for herself but also for the entire community.