Archive for February 20, 2009
Visiting the Philippines with Paul
On the recent mission awareness trip to the Philippines, CFCA President Bob Hentzen and Paul Pearce, CFCA international programs director, divided the sponsors into two groups to travel to different parts of the country. In this post, Paul tells about his group’s experiences. Read about Bob’s trip.
Mission awareness trip
Philippines, Feb. 2-8, 2009
By bus and by boat
Legazpi staff and sponsored members with their families meet us at the tiny Pili Airport in Naga City. Our group traveled by bus and boat to the hotel. Under the watchful eye of the volcano Isarog, the setting is definitely South Pacific.
The theme Legazpi has chosen for this year’s trip is “CFCA: Bridging People Amidst Diversity.” Maria Luz, at the closing of her testimonial and upon meeting her sponsors, said she is “the happiest girl in the world.” In tears, sponsor Mariano was moved by the hospitality the sponsors received. We enjoy a rousing, sand-blown rendition of “This Little Light of Mine.”
Later, the Legazpi scholarship youth and staff energize a running-out-of-gas sponsor group. Sponsor April and her sponsored friend, Aprilyn, lift the roof with a duet of “You Are My Hero.” Sponsors head for the pillow after a long and beautiful day.
Legazpi angels
Riding two big buses, we headed down the coastal road toward Legazpi to participate in a tree-planting activity at the municipal park in the town of Tiwi. After visiting the Tiwi geothermal plant, we pass miles of pristine rice fields, stopping at the ruins of Cagsawa, a colonial church destroyed by one of the many eruptions of the Mayon volcano, and the volcanic rock and mud flow area from the 2006 eruption that killed numerous persons and affected CFCA families substantially.
Sponsors commented how much they liked the “angel” concept of the Legazpi project. Sponsors were each assigned a staff member, called an angel, to accompany them from arrival to departure, guide them, answer questions and wake them in the morning, if needed. Sponsors have felt very well-cared-for in Legazpi.
February 20, 2009 at 11:36 am Christian Foundation for Children and Aging (CFCA) 1 comment
