Mothers line up in Manila community pantry

MANILA, Philippines — A community pantry in Sampaloc, Manila opened yesterday to give aid to mothers as the country celebrated Mother’s Day.

At least 300 mothers were given food items and roses at the community pantry along Matimyas street, according to Defend Jobs Philippines’ spokesman Christian Lloyd Magsoy.

Physical distancing and other health protocols were followed in the line to the workers’ pantry, Magsoy said.

The group opened the pantry for mothers who are affected by the pandemic, Magsoy said.

“As financial managers of the family, budgeting is no longer possible because of lack of jobs during the pandemic,” he said.

The group asked the public to donate to the Matimyas community pantry through GCash at 0915-5670410.

The goods were donated by political prisoners support group Kapatid and the family of Manila detainee Reina Mae Nasino.

Nasino was among the activists arrested by police during a raid on the office of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan in Tondo in November 2019 as part of the government’s crackdown on left-leaning groups.

Her baby died of pneumonia in October last year after being separated from Nasino in detention.

‘Mothers frontliners, too’

A mother in Navotas, who tested positive for coronavirus after giving birth in May last year, remembered her bout with COVID-19 yesterday.

Speaking to The STAR, Judy Ann Sarabia said she realized her worth as a mother after recovering from COVID-19 while taking care of her twins Yoona and Yanna.

Sarabia had called her babies “miracle twins” because they were not infected with COVID-19 even though they stayed with her in an isolation facility in Navotas.

She had resigned from her job as an office staffer in Caloocan to better take care of her twins.

According to Sarabia, mothers should also be considered frontliners during the pandemic.

She said she had relocated to the province and now runs a sari-sari or neighborhood convenience store and online buy and sell business.

Sarabia may not be outside in the frontlines, but she said her duties at home make her a frontliner, too.

“A mother will never get tired of taking care of her children. Day or night, they are always in her mind,” she said.