BREAKING THE CYCLE. Fe Cabungcal, 58, from Brgy. Mainit Sur in Perez, Quezon Province experienced sharing classrooms with other grade levels when she was a student. Even her children, who are now working, experienced the same thing. Now that her grandchildren will soon start schooling, she’s glad that she made a way to break the cycle.

Last 2012, Fe headed the volunteers in their barangay as they implemented a school building sub-project under the DSWD’s Kalahi-CIDSS program. The two-classroom building, which costs PhP1.13 Million, is enough addition to the school facility, which now has one classroom for every grade level.

For Fe and the rest of the volunteers, it is their greatest achievement to help change and improve the learning experience of the elementary students of today and the future.

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The act of fulfilling others’ dreams

At the age of 12, when she graduated from grade six, Fe Cabungcal, now 58, never knew that it was the last time she would be in school. As the eldest in a family of 12, instead of enrolling in high school, she was forced to work in the farm and help with the family’s finances.

“Kumpara sa ibang mga bata noon, mas gusto kong mag-aral kaysa mag-trabaho kaya may hinanakit ako sa mga magulang ko. Kaya noong nagkaanak ako, pinangako ko sa sarili ko na pag-aaralin ko sila at susuportahan ang anumang pangarap nila,” said Fe from Brgy. Mainit Sur in Perez, Quezon Province.

True to her words, Fe supported the education of her three children. Two of them graduated in college and are now employed, one in abroad and the other in Manila. Her eldest, who finished high school, is a barangay councilor in their community.

“Masaya ako dahil natupad ko ang mga pangarap ko sa aking mga anak. Lahat sila ay nakapag-aral at hindi ko ipinagkait sa kanila ang karapatang iyon,” the proud mother said.

After achieving her dreams through her children, she wanted to realize this dream again by giving children in their community a comfortable place to learn. So when she had the opportunity to make it possible, she took the chance and volunteered to be a part of the construction of the elementary school building sub-project in their community under the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS) in 2012.

Improving the barangay’s elementary school

Fe knows how hard it was to study in the barangay’s elementary school. When she was a student, she experienced sharing their classroom with other grade levels. They could barely hear their teacher and were easily distracted with the activities of the other group. Even her three children, who studied in the same school, experienced the same thing.

This problem of their school was raised by Fe and the other residents during the Kalahi-CIDSS-facilitated barangay assembly. This also became their venue to collectively decide to implement a school building sub-project to address this problem.

According to Fe, she appreciates the Kalahi-CIDSS’ process of consulting the community on the projects they need in the barangay.

“Ito ang kagandahan sa Kalahi-CIDSS. Ang mga tao talaga ang namimili ng proyekto. Kaya mas ganado ang lahat na tumulong sa paggawa nito,” Fe said.

This process of Kalahi-CIDSS, called the community-driven development approach, allows ordinary citizens to prioritize, plan, and implement sub-projects that would best address their needs. empower people to decide for their own development especially on improving their access to basic social services.

Fe was elected as the chairperson of the community volunteers for the school building sub-project. Together with other volunteers, they underwent trainings on proposal development, construction estimates, and community procurement to have knowledge and skills in implementing the said sub-project. They also developed a financial plan to efficiently budget and utilize the PhP1.13 Million grant provided for them.

During the construction, the laborers worked for free every Saturdays, which they called bayanihan, to help cut project costs. With this, they were able to save and have additional budget to construct a covered pathway for the school.

“Nagamit namin ang savings sa pagpapatayo ng covered pathway mula sa gate ng school hanggang sa building. Kasya ang tricycle kaya pwedeng maihatid ang mga estudyante hanggang loob ng school lalo na kapag umuulan,” Fe added.

After three months of construction, the barangay’s elementary school has enough rooms for each grade level. Fe is glad that they finally addressed the school’s needs and has provided a new facility for the generations to come.

“Masaya ako dahil hindi na mararanasan ng mga bagong estudyante ang mga naranasan namin. Masarap din ipagmalaki sa mga apo ko hanggang sa magiging apo pa nila na ang lola nila ay isa sa mga nag-volunteer para magkaroon sila ng magandang classroom,” Fe said with a smile.

Capable at heart

Last 2014, Fe was again elected to head the community volunteers for another cycle of Kalahi-CIDSS implementation. This time, they proposed to repair the barangay hall, which serves as their evacuation center in times of disasters.

Fe is glad to lead again the community but unfortunately, she had to let this go after she suffered from stroke.

The doctor advised her to take some rest. As much as possible, she should avoid getting stressed or doing things that are too tiring for her. This meant that she should give up her task in Kalahi-CIDSS.

“Ayoko namang maging sanhi ng mga delay kapag inatake na naman ako ng sakit. Mas mabuti nang ‘wag kong ipilit para sa kanila, at para na rin sa sarili kong kapakanan,” Fe shared.

Even though she is not part of the team anymore, Fe keeps herself open to other volunteers, especially those who request assistance in preparing documents. She also keeps on talking to reluctant residents to help them understand how Kalahi-CIDSS can actually improve their community.

“Buo pa rin ang suporta ko sa Kalahi dahil alam kong totoo siya. Binuksan nito ang isip ko sa maraming bagay dahil kasama talaga kami sa proseso. At gusto kong makita rin ito ng iba para sa kapakanan din ng buong barangay,” she said.

Like what she did before for her children and the children of their community, Fe commits her full support to the community volunteers, in any way she can, to achieve the barangay’s dream. Even though she is not on the lead now, it is more important for her and has always been a great fulfillment to help in making dreams possible and seeing people live the dream they all desired.#