Every school day, since September 2023, four parent groups of new beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) ensure that at least one of them goes to school.

At the Doña Tiburcia Carpio Malvar Elementary School (DTCMES) in Brgy. San Miguel, Sto. Tomas City, Batangas, 102 4Ps beneficiaries alternate taking their time off their usual routines at work or at home to work on the organic school garden.

“Nagsimula po iyon noong kinausap kaming mga 4Ps parent leaders ng school na maging katuwang sa pagsasaayos at paglilinis ng garden noong September [2023],” shared Aleli Matore, 42, one of the 4Ps parent leaders leading the engagement.

According to Aleli, they gladly responded to the call. From then, the partnership between the 4Ps beneficiaries and the school earned them fruitful results.

Together for a good goal

Aleli discussed the idea with her 26 members, and though there were questions at first, Aleli stepped up as a leader.

“Sinabi ko sa mga member ko na tulong namin ito sa school at sa mga bata. Imbes na mga bata ang gagawa, kami na lang ang gagawa,” recalled Aleli, who does not even have a child enrolled in the school.

Since the majority of them have obligations at home or at work daily, they had to strategize to ensure that their commitment to the school would not be affected.

“Nag-usap-usap kaming mga parent leaders, at dahil apat kaming grupo dito, nag-schedule kami ng isang grupo kada linggo. Tapos sa isang linggo, nag-aassign kami ng dalawa o tatlong members kada araw na pupunta sa school at mag-aasikaso sa garden,” shared Aleli.

Assigned 4Ps beneficiaries take charge of cleaning and weeding as well as watering the plants. Based on experience, Aleli shares that these tasks do not take more than an hour daily.

Ms. Hernane Lopez, the Gulayan sa Paaralan Program Coordinator of DTCMES, acknowledges the great contribution of the 4Ps parents in this project.

“Napakalaking tulong sa aming gulayan sa paaralan ng mga 4Ps parents, kaya nagpapasalamat kami lalo na sa mga masisipag at masisigasig na parent leaders tulad ni Ma’am Aleli,” shared Ms. Lopez.

Because of the good partnership of the 4Ps beneficiaries and the school, they have been harvesting various crops including pechay, malunggay, patola, alugbati, and ampalaya among others.

“Ang mga naaani naming gulay ay niluluto namin para sa mga batang kulang sa timbang kaya malaking tulong na mayroon kaming maayos na gulayan sa paaralan,” added Ms. Lopez.

According to Aleli, this makes their engagement with the school more rewarding. Somehow, they feel that they are able to contribute to helping promote good nutrition not only to their children but also to the rest of the pupils in the school.

As an added reward, in December 2023, the school garden won 3rd place in the ‘City-Wide Search for Best Organikong Gulayan sa Paaralan at Tahanan ng mga Kabataan 2023’ organized by the City Agriculture Office.

The DTCMES, headed by Principal Emelda Malolos, shares this recognition with the diligent 4Ps parents who have been taking their time to help them with the garden.

Instilling the importance of community service

Aleli and the rest of the beneficiaries engaged in the maintenance of the school garden are all new beneficiaries of the 4Ps. All of them have been registered in the program in May 2023.

According to Judith Cuevillas, assigned City Link in Sto. Tomas City, despite being new to the program, these beneficiaries are already being encouraged to become active members of their community and contribute towards its development.

For Aleli, on the other hand, serving the community is a form of gratitude.

“Kaming mga benepisyaryo ng 4Ps, kami ay tinutulungan ng gobyerno. Sa tingin ko, ang kaunting oras sa community service kada buwan ay maituturing naming kapalit kahit papaano ng tulong na aming natatanggap,” she shared.

This perception also pushes Aleli to motivate her members more.

“Ini-engganyo ko talaga sila na gumawa nang maayos. Lagi kong sinasabi na parang pagtatanim ng palay ‘yan na hindi agad naaani,” said Aleli, who always stresses that their hard work will be paid off eventually.

With the rest of the new beneficiaries of the 4Ps in their barangay, Aleli also hopes that what they do would also change the perception of other people to beneficiaries like them.

“Hindi kami tamad. Lagi nilang sinasabi, ‘pag 4Ps, mga tamad ‘yan. Pero kami, kumikilos kami,” she shared.

For these beneficiaries, regardless of what people say, they will continue what they are doing for the benefit of the community.

“Pero sana, makita din ng mga tao na ang pagtulong sa community katulad ng paglilinis sa barangay ay responsibilidad ng lahat ng mga mamamayan at hindi naming mga 4Ps beneficiaries lang,” Aleli shared with much hope.# [with reports from JMCuevillas]