Looking Ahead in 2016 - Empowering Leaders

EMPOWERING LEADERS

LEADER MUNDIAL GLOBAL SUMMIT

COACHING GROUP BATCH 2

The year is still a month away before it ends but we are already looking towards 2016.  To say that we are excited is an understatement.  There are so many wonderful things to look forward to in 2016, but for us at ER Asia, the opportunity to expand our reach to empower leaders excites us the most.

In 2015, God gave us many opportunities to be part of developing and empowering leaders in Asia, and more specifically, in the Philippines.

We have established coaching groups comprising of leaders from our partners in Manila that meet once a month.  This involves tackling real issues that our partners face in their organization and ministries.  Each one contributes as we seek to find the best resolution to the challenges.  All of our partners mentioned in our Partner’s Response Report that they have benefitted a lot from the coaching group and are looking forward for more in 2016.

On the other hand John Basiwa, the Executive Director of our Manila Children’s Home, recently started his own network.  Last month, he conducted a capacity building seminar for our partner the Arms of Love Children’s Home.  He is now looking at empowering leaders of other Children’s Home in the Philippines.

I, on the other hand started a second coaching group comprises of young leaders of ministries ER Asia is working with.

Aside from that, 5 of our partners in Asia were able to attend the Global Leadership Summit in Rome, Georgia.  Two came from the Philippines, aside from myself and John Basiwa, one from Indonesia and two from Nepal.

Moreover, just a month ago, we held our annual Regional Summit in Manila which was attended by the leaders and spouses of our partners in the Philippines and we also invited leaders from other organizations..

All of these we intend to continue doing in 2016 and we are planning to do more.  We just recently started renting a bigger room which we are planning to use for training and conferences all year round.

Now we have a suitable facility to conduct our leadership development program which consists of strategic training, conferences and  coaching groups.  This will benefit not just our partners but our own programs.  The Golden Hands for example will have a bigger room to conduct their 6-month educational and livelihood program, while John will have a venue to hold his Children’s Home Network meetings.

LEADER MUNDIAL MANILA SUMMIT PICS

 

Looking Back in 2015 - Our Programs in ER Asia

Time Flies... And we are having so much fun!

(EXTREME RESPONSE MANILA CHILDREN'S HOME)

It seems yesterday when we officially launched the Manila Children’s Home, ER’s first in Asia. It has been almost two years already. Time flies indeed! And we are having so much fun. But it is more than just fun. It is pure joy! It is pure joy to see the amazing transformation in the lives of the ten (10) kids in the home. 

All of them are becoming healthier as the days go by. We have their pictures posted in one of the walls of the Home - their picture the first time we got them and beside it is their current one. You will immediately recognize the big change in their health and appearance. 

More than their appearance, we rejoice the most the change in their attitude and behavior. The once aloof and fearful are the most sweet and loving. 

They are now consistent honor students. In fact all of them finish the school year with awards and honors. Those who were bullies before now care the most. 

Yes, we are indeed having fun. This year, it so fun to watch the kids enjoy their many outdoor activities, such as the Children’s Home Camp, trip to the Mind Museum, movie viewing, just to name a few. For many of them, it was their first time. 

The fun of course won’t be possible without the hard working staff under the leadership of the couple John and Gela Basiwa, our Program and Executive Directors respectively. Through their tireless effort and sacrifices, our Children’s Home has received commendation and approval from the Department of Social Welfare and Development. 

GOLDEN HANDS

ER Asia's Livelihood Educational Program

It all started when Anne saw the unused sewing machines donated by Joshua’s cousin from Canada. She thought, “Why not use the sewing machines to teach some mothers in the church how to sew.” These mothers come from a very poor community and most of their time is spent either gambling or doing nothing at all. 

So Anne started with three mothers. She taught them how to make rags, a popular circular cloth in Manila which can be used for wiping, cleaning, as a pot holder, etc. 

Then Anne saw the need to go further that’s why she enrolled in a fashion school so she can teach the mothers how to make basic patterns. From rags, they ventured into making pillows, pillow cases, bags, short pants, curtains, etc. 

After a year, Anne started expanding the reach of the sewing program. She is now training 10 mothers. For 6 months, they will undergo training in sewing, cutting and pattern making, designing and crochet making to initiate income generating activities. 

After the training, each women will receive a sewing machine. Moreover, training materials required for cutting and sewing including papers, cloth, thread, scissors, and crochet accessories will be provided to them as a starter kit for their new enterprise. 

Now mothers from our partner organizations are waiting for their turn to be trained. 

There's No Place Like Home

There is indeed no place like home. 

It has been my busiest first quarter of the year ever.  Last year, I only traveled out of the country twice, but since starting this year as Extreme Response (ER) Director for Asia, I have been to 4 countries already in a matter of four months.  In the four times I went on a trip this year, I really felt so homesick.  Although, the places I've been were nice and beautiful, nothing still beats my own home.

The longest time I've been away is only for three weeks and it felt like forever already.  I remember feeling so excited as we boarded our last flight heading to Manila.  I can't wait to fasten my seat belt and hear the captain's sweet voice announcing that we are soon ready for take off.

In my mind, I imagined hugging my kids again; eating unlimited plates of rice again; lying on my bed and clutching my old pillows again; drinking ice cold coke while complaining about Manila's hot and humid weather again. 

And I was just gone for three weeks.

Then while thinking about those things I love to do when I am at home, my mind started to shift to the little kids we are helping in the streets of Manila.

I realized these kids don't go out on a trip and yet they have been away from their homes, some, almost all their lives.  Some still were abandoned as soon as they were born.  Some, on the other hand were taken away as they are better off out of their homes because of the abuse they receive from their own parents.  Some call the streets their home only because that's where they were born.

No unlimited plates of rice to eat.  No bed and pillow to enjoy.  No hugs.  No kisses. There's nothing to quench their thirst even if they complain about Manila's hot and humid weather.

Almost all their lives.

I said that again because I know things can change.  Soon, we will be launching in Manila ER's home for street children.  It is a response to an ER partner's dream and now it is becoming a reality.  Before we left for this trip, we actually started renting a house.  Our next step is to furnish it with furnitures and appliances along with the renovation needed to make it a safe place for kids to live in. 

Our plan initially is to take care of ten boys.  Aside from the house where they can live and grow properly, we will be providing formal education, physical and mental health, values and spiritual formation. If things go according to our plans, the ten boys will start to live with us this coming September.  Together with the house parents, the cook, the social worker and the other staff, the children's home (soon we will have a name for it) will be led by John and Gela Basiwa as the Home’s Director and Administrator respectively.

John and Gela have been doing street kids ministry since 2001 and it has been their dream to provide a home for these street kids.  After putting up a drop-in center five years ago, they thought that it will take them 15 more years to accomplish their dream.  Now, through the effort of ER, that dream is just a few months away.

Soon, ten kids will have plenty of rice to eat (of course, not unlimited, a nutritionist will monitor the amount and kind of food they eat).  They will have their own bed and pillows.  They will definitely experience what it means to be hugged and kissed again.  They will still be thirsty because of the weather, and they may not be allowed to drink coke (the nutritionist for sure will say soft drinks are  not good for their health) but for sure the love and care they will receive will be more than enough to quench their thirst.  Soon they too will be able to say, “There's no place like home!”

Show Them How to Catch Fish!

By Joshua Benavidez

I just recently started with my new role as Extreme Response (ER) International's Director for Asia.  I officially started at the start of the year.  Part of my job is to build and maintain healthy relationships with our partner organizations within our region.

So before the end of February, together with Russ Cline and Jerry Carnill, ER's Chief Advancement Officer and Chief Executive Officer respectively, I went to India and Nepal to be acquainted with the leaders of our partner organizations and to personally see what kind of work they are doing.

For 10 days, we went from one city to another and we saw the amazing work being done to help poor communities, street children, children living in the dump and women rescued from human trafficking.  In almost all ministries we visited, they have started a sewing livelihood program for women.

It immediately caught my interest and attention, not only because we have a sewing ministry in Manila but also because it confirms the direction God has placed in our hearts for all our ministries and partnerships.

It is based on the saying, “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; show him how to catch fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.”

Aside from the sewing ministry, towards the end of January, we set up a livelihood program for a ministry among an unreached people's group in the northeastern part of the Philippines - the Dumagats.

The Dumagats, the close relatives of the Aetas, are semi-nomadic people.  They move from one place to another in search of food and better shelter although some have learned to live in permanent settlements.  Most of them are hunters and fishermen.  This particular group we are helping is in Casiguran, Aurora which is about 24 hours away from Manila by land.

Last year, we bought a generator that the pastor requested so he can go around the village and preach the Gospel.  He and his wife also attended Leader Mundial Manila Summit held last October 2012.  There we learned the hardship and difficulties they are facing not just in the ministry but also in their daily life as a family.

He narrated to us that the small boat he was using before to catch fish needed repairs including the motor that powers it. 

He also told us that the church that used to support them stopped.  If only they have the means, they would like to raise hogs so that the income can be used to help the church and the community.

The Lord answered our prayers as a donor gave enough funds to buy a new motor for a small boat and buy some pigs too.

Before we left for the US last January, he came to Manila so we can give him the funds he needed.  A few days later, he bought the hogs they will raise and he also bought a new motor for his small boat.

We also gave some extra for their family's needs.  So in a way, we gave them some “fish” because sometimes before they can catch some fish, they need to eat first too.

The pastor later on sent some pictures.  He reported that the hogs are doing well and are growing healthy.  He also said that he is now able to use the boat for catching fish and at the same time for ferrying people from one island to another which also earns him a little income.   He is so thankful to God that He provided means for them to have a source of living and that God is always on time. He understands that life in their island is still difficult, but now a glimmer of hope shines.  

Rags to Riches

A typical afternoon in Zanzibar, consists of countless kids playing and running to and fro the breadth and the length of a half a mile long street located in one of the smallest communities of Makati City.  Jeepeneys line up one side of the street mainly for parking and sometimes for repairs while the drivers take time to eat, rest, talk with their buddies and sometimes drink.  Teen-agers, boys, play ball on a make-shift basketball court with the goal barely hanging.  Some girls on the other hand cheer on while the others just hang around.  In the middle of the street, one can easily notice a group religiously congregating everyday.  These are mostly mothers, who arm themselves with pebbles (or any small things they can use) in their hands and with cards sitting in front of them, while listening intently to numbers being called.  Once in a while someone would holler, "Bingo!"

That's how we found Zanzibar when we first started several projects in that area.

Now, things start to change.

The jeepneys are still there along with their resting drivers.  The youth still enjoy playing basketball.  We sometimes play a game or two with them.  But aside from having a street children program, which includes feeding, educational assistance and a day care center, we now have a sewing program for the mothers.

Yes, the mothers still congregate everyday.  Same spot, same time.  But some things have changed.  They no longer hold pebbles nor cards sit in front of them.  Those have been replaced by small pieces of rags they need to fashion into circular shape, in preparation for sewing.  They still listen intently, but now for instructions and details on what they should do next.  They still holler (not really, but it's more of a softly spoken way of open discussion), one at a time to share what's in their hearts.  Instead of playing Bingo all afternoon, they now make rags.

Before only one or two go home a winner while the rest are losers.  Now each one goes home a winner.  They don't just go home with a small income, they also go home with a strengthen heart and an encouraged spirit, ready to face the challenges ahead.

Rags to riches indeed.  What they have found through the sewing project is more than just material riches.  They have found life, friends, an all-important skill, and a supportive community.  You can't put a price tag on those.  Those are priceless.  Riches beyond.

The sewing project is also growing.  When we started, we only had two industrial sewing machines.  Now aside from those, we have 3 portable sewing machines, another industrial machine for making rags and a serger for sewing t-shirts.  Also, aside from making rags, the mothers now have learned and are making pillow cases, table cloths, bags and soon, t-shirts.  Also, from two mothers, now seven mothers are actively participating in the sewing program.

Seeing lives changed is really amazing.  We are just glad to be a part of it.

ER Christmas Parties in Manila

It's been seven years since ER started sponsoring Christmas parties for street children in Manila.  I could say that God has been growing this ministry since the very first party in December 2005.  It is indeed growing from glory to glory.  From a simple program held for a couple hundred children, the team this year ministered the love and joy of Christ to a total of 1500 children and about 500 parents.

It is also a big help and a huge blessing for us that Sunrise Community Church, from Sacramento, California, sends a team for the parties.  They've helped us hold parties four times already, sending an average of 12 people.  They first came in 2007.  A year later they returned again, and then in 2010 and most recently, just last December 2012.  We pray that God will bring them back to Manila again.  God willing, they will be back after two years.

The parties this year focuses on the advent theme dubbing the title, "Ang Apat na Mukha ng Pasko" (The Four Faces of Christmas).  Using the advent of hope, love, joy and peace to convey the true meaning of Christmas to the little children and their parents.

It is really amazing to see how God loves the little children and just like the parties in the past, we have seen again the laughter, joy and excitement in the faces of those children.  We are just glad to be able to witness God's display of love through the ER Christmas Parties.  Here are some highlights of the 13 Christmas parties we held in 12 different areas for 1500 street children:

More pictures coming soon!