Libunao's Baptism

Paniqui, Tarlac

Philippines

27 October 2009

Saturday, 23 October was to be a busy day with meetings in Tarlac and Baguio but because of the potential of a “new” typhoon both meetings were cancelled. We did not despair because we had been notified by the Zone Leaders that a baptism was scheduled for Saturday morning.

Some history - last December, a month after our arrival in the Philippines, we were invited to assist the missionaries assigned to the most isolated little branch in the Paniqui District, to visit a family. They asked us to go with them and help in teaching a couple who were progressing in their gospel study. Their son had just started his missionary service. Yes, their son had become a member because of his friends and was on his mission in southern Philippines.

Brother and Sister Libunao were very interested in the gospel but he had a word of wisdom problem that required some time to correct. Their church attendance was off and on but every time we visited the branch and they were attending we tried to encourage them. Sister Libunao had always been closer to being baptized than brother but she waited for him to get all his questions answered and gain the commitment to become a member of the church. Several sets of missionaries were assigned to the Cuyapo Branch during that time with each trying their best to help them.

On Saturday the 23rd we were at the Paniqui District Center at 9 a.m. for the baptism but the Cuyapo members were delayed because of the distance and the motorcycle/ tricycles they were traveling in. As they arrived, we could see the light in the faces of the Libunaos as we greeted them. What a special feeling! We were happy that so many of their branch members came to show their support. (See photo above).

The baptismal service started at 10 with a new elder (green – his first week in the mission field) speaking on faith then NB spoke on baptism and its importance – even the Savior was baptized to fulfill all righteousness. At the conclusion of the service Brother and Sister Libunao were asked to bear their testimony and they bore wonderful and sweet testimonies. The Lord has blessed the missionary son by helping his parents find the church.

The following day, Sunday, we drove to Cuyapo to be present at their confirmation. They are special people.

Elder NB & Sister MB

Pangasinan Relief

Dagupan, Pangasinan,

Philippines

22 October 2009

Saturday, a week ago we planned to go with our team to San Fernando, La Union to hold a Stake Welfare Convention. Our team of five were to meet with the stake members and leaders to review and recommit them to help their members become self reliant.

Due to the typhoon damage and all the volunteer activities required to support those in need in Pangasinan, three members of the team were not available. We received a call late Friday evening asking us to take the message to the stake by ourselves – just the two of us. The three team members had been working long hours all week organizing and delivering supplies to members and were now working on a Humanitarian project to help the community. We agreed to complete the assignment with all its challenges.

Driving to the training in San Fernando, we drove through areas that had major mudslides and a lot of damaged homes. In many places the mud had covered the road up to 12 inches deep or more. The roadway had been cleared for traffic but the mud was still along the sides. We made the trip without delay and met with the stake for two and a half hours collecting data and leaving the challenge with them.

Returning to Dagupan, Pangasinan, we arrived at the chapel in mid-afternoon and found the team and volunteers busy distributing more than 5,000 bags of food to Non Government Organizations (NGO). They had also prepared hygiene kits to be sent out with the food. The NGOs would come in with their trucks load the food, hygiene kits and water with the help of our volunteers then leave with their group and a volunteer observer to make the distribution to their communities. Our observer is part of the check and balance to make sure the aid is delivered to people in need.

Our friends, The Fonbuenas, who are Humanitarian missionaries from Manila, were at the chapel to oversee the work and advise as needed. They are serving their third mission to the Philippines (See above photo).The entire team had been working long hours all week and had just about reached their limit but the end was in sight. They have had a major impact on the relief effort in all of the Province of Pangasinan.

It is impressive to see the effort that can be called upon and given with short notice by members of the church.

Elder NB & Sister MB

Rice Growing in the Philippines

Tarlac City, Tarlac

Philippines

15 October 2009

Typhoon update – we have personally not been affected by the high water but the Tarlac Stake had one branch with high water and had to open the church for some members. The Paniqui District also had three units with some members that had to move into the church buildings. The missionaries in Moncada – four elders had to leave their house and go to the church for a few days. They had about a foot of water in their house. The sun has now been out for two days so the water is in retreat and things will soon be back to normal (we hope).

The rice harvest has begun in earnest even in wet fields. Rice was planted in stages about three months ago. We say stages because most of the work is completed by hand and is labor intensive so they cannot plant larger fields at one time like is done in the U.S. As they plant so do they harvest in stages – and again being labor intensive it is mostly cut by hand tied into bundles then moved to an area where a small threshing machine called a Kiliglig can be positioned for the threshing of the rice from the stalk. The rice is packed in sacks of about 50 Kilograms (over one hundred pounds) called a Caban. These are moved about on the tops of worker’s heads – Wow that would give me a head ache.

Rice at this time is called Palay because it still has a hull or chaff around the rice kernel and is high in moisture. The next step is to remove the moisture. The most common way is to spread the Palay on a concrete surface – including the road and let the sun bake it for about six hours. The person drying the Palay will spend the time turning the piles of rice by pushing a rake through it every so often. Driving during the drying process becomes a challenge because of the obstacles placed in the road to notify drivers. Sometimes you have to drive on the Palay in order to pass an oncoming vehicle.

Once the drying is finished the workers go about sweeping and putting the Palay back into the sacks to make the Caban. The farmers can now sell it to a rice dealer or have it processed himself. Palay will fetch about 10 pesos ($0.21)/ kilo this time of year – harvest time or it they can hold it they can get about 20 pesos ($0.42)/ kilo six months from harvest time. It is a lot of effort for a low return. To finish the rice – make the Palay into rice for consumption it has to go to a mill where it is milled to remove the hull or chaff and polished then graded for quality. We can buy a good variety of rice in bulk at the open air market for 28 pesos ($0.58)/ kilo today.

As you can tell rice production here in the Philippines is labor intensive in planting, harvesting and drying but while growing one man can take care of a large area to control water levels, weeds, fertilizer and pests. Many of the people in the cities do not understand how rice comes to their tables and want lower prices.

Elder NB & Sister MB

Typhoon Update

Manaoag, Pangasinan

Philippines

8 October 2009

Typhoon update – of the two “new” predicted Typhoons to make land on the Philippines, only one, Parma, has actually come ashore as forecast. It crossed land on the northern tip of Luzon and created flooding in that area. Parma, a super typhoon looked like it was going away once it left Luzon but then it stalled and has been back on shore twice since. In fact we have had rain at our house for the past 24 hours from Parma’s last pass. We have had no flooding here but we are sure there will be some north of us.

The welfare department in the area office informed us that their team is still helping members who have been displaced from the severe storm named Ondoy. The paper reported today that 37 Barangay (or townships) in Manila still have standing water so people cannot return to their homes. It will be two weeks on Saturday.

We have had no update from the storm damage from the north except from news reports which do not tell us about our members. The welfare department team in the area office is still engaged in Manila so they plan to organize another team from the north to help members in that area recover from this storm.

During this last week we found a couple of non-stormy days and made a trip to Manaoag, Pangasinan to evaluate a request for a wheelchair for an elderly member. The need was real and we assisted the sister in securing the proper certification from the Barangay captain for her husband who is bedridden. The paperwork was presented to the Humanitarian Missionaries at the area office and they gave us a wheelchair for the member.

On Monday we drove back to Manaoag and delivered the wheelchair to the family. (See above picture). What a spirit of thanksgiving was in the home and it was our privilege to represent the Humanitarian department of the church in the presentation. The needy family was there with their extended family members as well as the home teachers and all were grateful that the request had been granted so quickly. As poor as they are they had prepared a celebratory meal for all.

One observation – a little nipa hut in the front yard of the family had a thatched roof on our first visit but on the second it was gone. We inquired as to the reason and they told us that another family needed to replace their bad roof before the storm came so they gave their roof to them. The Filipino people will share what they have if there is a need and they can assist.

Elder NB & Sister MB

Storm After Storm

Metro Manila,

Philippines

2October 2009

This is still the rainy season for sure – it has even extended longer than normal according to the locals. Rain started in May a month early and should have stopped in September but we are still getting rain – with two more typhoons forecast to hit the Philippines in the next week or so.

Typhoon Ondoy came ashore on Saturday with the center passing through the Capitol City of Manila and its suburbs where it rained in torrents for nine hours. The worst storm in 40 years, it covered the low lying areas in 20 feet of water. As much as 80% of the city was under water to some degree. Also, the area south of Manila was hit just as hard but it is more rural. To the north mudslides caused 12 deaths and much destruction. At last count 246 people have lost their lives.

Manila has a population of 12 million of which about 450,000 were displaced because rivers overflowed and pumping stations failed. Too much debris in the water and blockage from “Shantytowns” built where they shouldn’t be prevented the rain water from returning back out to the sea.

The report from the Philippine Area office estimated as many as eighteen stakes/districts had members that were impacted by the flooding. Unfortunately they also reported 30 casualties among our membership.

We traveled to Manila today to take bags of rice for the members and found lots of wonderful volunteers working in the basement garage assembling bags of food. They were working an assembly line and adding different foods – sardines, pork and beans, rice, etc to each bag and then loading them into pickup trucks to take to the different church buildings for distribution. We really admired them for all their hard work.

In our assigned part of Luzon, we just had wind and some hard rain but with little or no flooding. Our members here have recovered and are putting together assistance for the relief of the members in Manila. Tarlac Stake sent two truck/van loads yesterday morning and they are gathering more for another trip by the weekend.

We are saddened to know there is so much need but one sweet sister (who had lost everything except the clothes on her back) said, “I didn’t care about what I had lost, I just prayed for strength so that I could help others and I did receive an answer to my prayers”. She has washed and re-washed the mud and water soaked meager belongings of her neighbors. Also, because she is a seminary teacher, she has set the example for the youth that you keep on smiling and working hard and have a positive attitude even in the face of great trials.

Elder NB & Sister MB

Making New Friends

Angeles, Pampanga,

Philippines

16 September 2009

In the past few weeks we have run into a very interesting phenomenon with young people here in the Philippines. It occurs when we are in a store and happen to make eye contact with a small group of youngsters and we say hello. That is when it starts, curiosity sets in –

MB and NB were in a grocery store in Angeles picking up a few items when three girls about fourteen years old passed us and we smiled at them and said ‘Hi’ and that was the start of about 30 minutes of shopping with a trailing group. As we made our way around the aisles in the market looking for the items on our list, they would magically appear and be interested in the same items. Of course they never purchased anything. We would ask them questions and one or two would try their English and giggle after each word they tried. It was as entertaining for us as for them and it would cause us to ask more questions to get their reaction. Even the shyest of the three would try to answer our questions. We knew we were entertaining our small group as well as others throughout the store who would turn to smile at us.

It happened again this afternoon when we were in a small mall in Tarlac and two boys followed NB into the hardware store and helped find a tire pressure gage for the car. Their names were Dustin and Macho and they were in the fourth grade. As NB found MB in the scrapbook section of the department store next door, these two boys were his companions and helped him find and track her as she made her purchases. Teaching them how to give and take ‘Five’ (hand slap) – it is new to them and it takes a few times to get it right. Questions about English words – days of the week and months of the year kept them thinking and trying to help each other figure out the order and what was next in order.

You have to know that wherever we go in the Philippines, in stores or on the street, there are many, many people and they are very interested in anything or anyone who is different from them in any way. Some then are bold enough to say something so they can practice their English while others just look at you and are afraid to say anything. Even the ones who talk can run out of English words they know and just stop talking. Sometimes it is just fun to smile and wait to see if a smile is returned – 9 times out of 10 it is!

The picture above is a good example of team work at the local water pump.

Elder NB & Sister MB

Fun Days

Dagupan, Pangasinan

Philippines

28 August 2009

SPIRITUAL - Sister Karganilla, the ERC Manager of the Dagupan Volunteer Center, schedules a lot of activities for us up in her area, she is in the Baguio Mission. Last Saturday she scheduled us to travel to two different Stakes (Baguio and Agoo) to present a Stake Convention entitled "No Poor Among Us"- Moses 7:18. They had opening exercises to introduce the theme and then we divided up into groups to discuss what we can do to improve self reliance and to help each other. NB had Bishops, Branch Pres. and Stake Pres., MB had Relief Society, Sister Karganilla had the Young Adults, and so forth. The discussions and the program went very well. Elder NB gave the concluding address. MB truly loves the sisters in the Relief Society here. They come out of the most humble homes and they look so clean and crisp and beautiful. They have very strong testimonies of the gospel.

After we finished the first session in Baguio, we had lunch and then drove down the mountain to the next Stake in Agoo (pronounced A Go Oh). We presented the same program there and it went well again. We so enjoyed visiting with all the members. It was a long but a really satisfying day.

TEMPORAL - Once MB made some homemade cards for Sister Karganilla as a little thank you gift (Camille had sent her some card making stuff for MB’s birthday). Sister Karganilla loved the cards because she is such a humble and sweet person. Recently she was also made the Stake YW President. She asked MB if she would come to her Stake YW activity day and do cards and scrapbooking!
Anyway, she asked Sister Puzey what she thought and she said "GO FOR IT"! So MB did. She made each girl (42) a little kit in a Ziploc bag with all the supplies to make 4 cards. They could also make all the envelopes they wanted. Then she let them choose one more card to make. It was fun to see how creative they were. They were very talented and went right to work. MB was able to find some supplies (ribbon, buttons, and Rick Rack) in a little fabric store. The store had Rick Rack galore, a key part of the cards. It costs 8 pesos ($.16) a yard. They don’t have designer scrapbook paper so MB used wrapping paper instead. The girls just loved it, they cleaned her supply out and also ribbon and almost everything else she had! It was fun and they were so cute, it was a great day.

Elder NB & Sister MB