Leadership in a time of Crisis

On March 15, with the strict implementation health protocols due to Corona Virus pandemic–quarantine became our new normal. Because it happened after the midterm exam in the 2nd semester, at first, I have considered it as an advanced summer break. I took that opportunity to rest and reconnect with my family. In the mornings, I felt so productive that I was able to do things that I cannot do during normal classes like doing an exercise, meditating and dieting. But that routine was only until the end of the few weeks in March. For about a month, I struggle to sleep at night because of the things that bothers me for any reason that I could not figure out, including the disturbing rise of the number of COVID-19 cases. Then I started to volunteer through various online movements to help frontliners and in addressing mental health issues during the crisis.

One month after, that was April 16, I asked my friends who happened to be my fellow officers through our group chat if who could be the most vulnerable sector in this time of crisis. Discussion went on. There were different answers like sectors of the garbage collectors, frontliners, drivers, homeless, etc. All their answers were valid because everyone is affected and to think that we can also consider ourselves as part of those who are vulnerable in this time of pandemic. After receiving all the answers, a question popped into my mind, “What do they have in common that made them vulnerable to this crisis?” Two days after, I called Venilda in the middle of the night through. We talked about random quarantine stuffs until we came across to our common ground about the things that bother us. That phone call lasted for about five hours straight. We gathered all the concerns as far as we know and we are concerned about. One of it was the shortage of masks, alcohol, vitamins and other essentials in the city because no one is prepared for this health crisis and that made us vulnerable for the virus. We have also identified sectors in the community that really needs attention and are truly in need apart from the primary needs which is food. There were also memes circulating on the social media about the possible increase of pregnancy rate after or even during the quarantine. We searched through the internet about studies or facts that can testify our claim yet there was none. Fast forward, that phone call ended with a commitment to establish a donation drive that will address the need of sanitary kits and contraceptives to financially-challenged communities.

Finally, we were able to launch a project on April 19 and that was the birth of Andam Higala, a Bisayan term which means “a prepared friend”. On the same day, Venilda visited our pilot community, the Mahogany Village in Barangay Canitoan. When she visited the community, she had observed the environment of the community and its people. She had noticed that wearing of face mask and social distancing was not consistently followed. The following day, I also came to visit the community to interview random residents. One of it was Ma’am Vilma Sillacay, the zone leader and sanitary health officer of the barangay. According to her, “Majority of the people have lost their jobs and they cannot even afford to buy food, how much more the sanitary kits?” She also told us that because of the geographic location of there village which is few kilometers away from the barangay proper, most of the donated relief packs can no longer reach their village, only until the previous village. Their community was on the slope of a mountain and beside a flowing river. All of the residents there are survivors of the typhoon Sendong, belonging to sectors with poor socioeconomic status. Even some of the residents there were out of electricity because of their inability to pay bills.

After the community scanning and data gathering, we started our donation drive. Luckily, we partnered with FundForward Initiative, a local crowdfunding organization who helps youth-led initiatives like Andam Higala. They were the first organization who believed in our vision for the community and following were a lot more organizations and companies who started to help our movement. From that, we have received in-kind and in-cash donations through our online crowd-funding activities. For about a week, we were able to raise the target fund and started repacking the items for distribution. It was on April 29, when we went to the community to distribute our sanitary kits to over 80 mothers and to their children in the village. As a youth who has limited community engagement, I find this learning experience very valuable and unforgettable because it marks my year 2020’s journey. In going to the community, we hear stories and pain points that will make us realize how fortunate we are. But despite any challenges we face, we should be grateful that we are able to at least contribute to the need and raise awareness about the underlying problem in the community– specially with the needs of people who are vulnerable in any times of crisis like the women and children.