January 30, 2026 – In the rural community of Brgy. Pagsabangan, Gumaca, Quezon, residents have to travel more than ten kilometers to reach the town’s public market.

Even so, the journey is far from simple. For many, it means enduring either a long, tiring walk or a commute that would cost them at least 115 pesos—an amount that can be steep for families earning mainly through farming.

Determined to change this reality, the 27 members of the Kaunlaran sa Pagsabangan Sustainable Livelihood Program Association (SLPA)—given the opportunity to start an income-generating project in 2024—chose to build a General Merchandise community store.

Today, more than a year since the store opened, the business has become a steady source of additional income for the members, and an accessible “tindahan” for the community’s daily needs.

When an opportunity knocked

Lucille Ricafort, 46, shares that her family often finds it hard to make ends meet. Every 45 days, she and her husband would earn a measly ₱7,000 from processing copra.

But with her new role as the vendor of the Pagsabangan community store, the mother of three has started earning an extra ₱200 per day.

“Nakakatulong po talaga. Kapag po nag-aalanganin ang income ng asawa ko, ‘yung sahod ko ang nagiging pambaon ng [mga anak] ko,” she said.

Lucille is one of the members of the Kaunlaran sa Pagsabangan SLPA, an association organized under the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP). In 2024, they received a seed capital of ₱402,000 and a series of trainings on business management, financial literacy, and bookkeeping—all of which they used to build and manage their community store.

“Nakadagdag kaalaman po talaga sa pagpapaunlad ng negosyo [namin]. Dati naman po hindi namin alam kung paano kami mag-handle ng business. Natuto na lang po kami dahil sa training,” said Nieves Madrideo, the president of the SLPA.

Other than Lucille, others of members of the association also help in the overall operations of the store.  Other than patronizing the store’s commodity, other members help in the marketing and purchase of goods to be sold and in the monitoring and audit of daily operations.

Through the members cooperation, the store went on to flourish as a business, with daily sales reaching ₱8,000 and the members having already earned a total of ₱3000 during their profit-sharing sessions in 2025.

More than a livelihood

More than providing additional income to the SLPA’s members, the community store has also served as a blessing to the community. 

“May mga asthmatic po kasi kaming kabarangay na ‘pag inatake po sa gabi, wala kaming mabilhan ng [gamot]. Ngayon, naglagay na kami dito para in case na atakihin sila sa gabi, meron na po silang mabibilhan,” shared Melissa Lozada, one of the members of the association. 

From basic grocery items, the SLPA has expanded its products to cater to the community’s needs, including rice, over-the-counter medicine, feeds, school supplies, and frozen goods. 

Moving forward, the group also plans to sell dressed meat products, which they will ideally source from their planned hog and poultry farming livelihood project. 

With this vision in mind, the members—comprising both Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries and graduates—now feel more hopeful about their future.

“Malaking tulong po ang karagdagang kita galing sa SLP. Dahil kahit [grumaduate] na po sa 4Ps, meron pa ring kapalit. Magiging handa na kami, kaya magsisimula na rin kaming [mag-expand] sa pag-aalaga ng baboy [at manok],” shared Jovel Dagta, one of the members. 

Today, the distance between the Pagsabangan community and their public market remains a struggle. But with the continuously growing Pagsabangan community store, the present has become relatively convenient for the community, and the future has never been brighter for the members of Kaunlaran sa Pagsabangan SLP Association.###