Grabbing the opportunity to share: Philstar.com surprises orphanage with early Christmas treats
MANILA, Philippines — In the Philippines, Christmas starts as early as September. But last September, amid the funny memes of “Father Christmas” Jose Mari Chan popping out and his timeless tunes starting to fill the holiday air, a heartbreaking news: 122 people, including children, tested positive for COVID-19 in a Quezon City orphanage.
There are at least 3.6 million Filipinos battling mental health issues amid the pandemic, the Department of Health (DOH) reported last May. And if the pandemic has hit hard on people living alone, what more to orphans who are living alone in life?
With COVID-19 vaccines for kids still not widely available, children, especially those in orphanages and the like, are among those at high risk for COVID-19 and COVID-19-related mental health issues.
Aware of children’s plight during the pandemic, Philstar.com, in partnership with Grab Philippines, recently held an outreach project that benefited the Bahay Maria orphanage in Makati City.
Grab Philippines provided Philstar.com with GrabFood vouchers for Philstar.com’s annual Christmas party. But since Philstar.com employees are on a work-from-home setup and are still discouraged to mount a company gathering, instead of using the food vouchers for their yearly shindig or "salu-salo," the team used the vouchers to order from one of their most favorite Filipino restaurants, Amber’s, where the team used to order food for their meetings and other celebrations pre-pandemic.
Catholic nun Sr. Carmela Borres, the administrator of the orphanage, told Philstar.com that the kids under their care love Filipino delicacies like Pancit and Barbecue, which are fortunately, some of the bestsellers at Amber’s.
The outreach project to Bahay Maria was serendipitous because it happened on the weekend before the Feast of the Immaculate Conception yesterday, and the orphanage is dedicated to the Virgin Mary, as seen in its huge image of Jesus Christ’s mother outside the house. Thanks to the Virgin Mary, we now have Jesus, the true origin and heart of Christmas.
Just like Mary and Jesus, who were rejected by innkeepers leading to Jesus’ birth in the manger, the girls and street children of Bahay Maria were cast-off by their families and were left under the care of the orphanage.
Thanks to GrabFood and its partner delivery rider, the food from Amber’s for the children came very hot and fresh. GrabMart also offers balloons and other holiday decors that added more fun and delight to our holiday surprise for the kids.
With the help of Grab Car and their partner driver, we were able to deliver the food, balloons and party decors to Bahay Maria safely and on-time, before the orphanage shut down its doors at 5 p.m. for their evening prayers.
To avoid COVID-19 infection, the orphanage does not really accept visitors. But upon seeing us in holiday costumes, complete with festive food and decorations from Grab, the kids were unable to just stay inside. They opened the gates, turned on their speakers with a Christmas dance track, and obliged us with quick snapshots. Seeing them so happy to receive their early Noche Buena was truly life-changing!
Although the orphanage had a very positive vibe that afternoon, one could not help but still feel sad for some of the kids because they are not children anymore — they have grown up with none adopting them. But thankfully, through efforts like ours and Grab, these children can still feel the joy and spirit of Christmas.
@philstarshowbiz So happy and honored to have delivered early ##NocheBuena to the kids of Bahay Maria. Thanks, @Grab PH @GrabFood PH ! ????????????
? All I Want for Christmas Is You - Mariah Carey
The fun does not stop there! Through the GrabMart credits that the company gave to Philstar.com, we were able to buy Christmas hampers for our teammates so they, too, can still feel that we are together this Christmas and this pandemic even if we are apart. Thanks to GrabMart’s wide variety of Christmas hampers and presents, it has become so easy and affordable to shop for Noche Buena essentials and for gifts that make one’s presence felt by one’s friends and loved ones.
With the help of Grab Express and its delivery partners, the baskets arrived safely to their recipients. It also feeds the soul to be able to give employment and tips to the delivery riders, a small token of appreciation for the priceless sacrificies of these COVID-19 frontliners.
One of them who delivered the packages was disabled and could not completely move one arm, so he could only drive his motorcycle with one hand. Philstar.com asked the delivery rider why is he still working and he said, “Kailangan ko lang po talaga kasi mag-trabaho.” Kudos to Grab for providing employment and hope even for people with special needs!
On top of the GrabFood and GrabMart vouchers, Grab pledged to award more vouchers to the media partner that will win with the best Christmas party setup. Should Philstar.com win this contest, we pledge to use our prizes to feed and donate to more charities and COVID-19 frontliners. We also wish to spread the holiday cheer to Gentle Hands, the orphanage in Quezon City that had kids that contracted COVID-19, as well as to children with cancer dealing with COVID-19 comorbidities.
But win or lose, the mere smiles, gratitude and warmth in our hearts that we received thanks to this project make us feel that we have already succeeded.
