Support Education in Tacloban

We’re delighted to report that our work at the Anibongon Elementary School is now complete.

This small rural school is located in the municipality of Jaro, about 40 miles from Tacloban. 76 kids attend school here. The school was devastated by typhoon Haiyan and when we first visited in early April we found them in desperate need of help.

Although the school isn’t far from the main road the only bridge to the community was also washed away by the typhoon. As a result no-one had been willing to provide help for over 17 months due to the logistical challenges involved.

But these challenges didn’t put us off and at the end of April we began work to repair and refurbish the school’s four classrooms.

This work was urgently needed as although the classrooms were in a very dangerous condition, the kids were still using the buildings as they had literally no-where else to go!

We were also keen to complete the work as soon as possible as summer holidays in the Philippines run from late March to late June, and we didn’t want to disrupt classes any more than we had to.

As a result our team decided to camp out at the school so that they could work around the clock and not lose time travelling back and forth.

As soon as their camp was established our team got to work on completely replacing the roofs and internal ceilings on two of the classrooms. We also replaced the broken doors and windows to make the rooms secure and watertight. Finally we repainted the classrooms to make them beautiful and bright.

With this work complete we turned our attention to the two remaining classrooms. Before starting work at the school we’d met with the Philippine Department of Education. They’d told us that these other two classrooms were going to be demolished at some point in the future.

There was no timescale given for this demolition however and we wanted to be sure that the kids had somewhere safe and dry to learn in the meanwhile. So, we reinforced and repaired the damaged roof sections to make sure that they wouldn’t collapse or leak.

As a result of all this work the school has now been completely transformed and all the kids and teachers are overjoyed with their new classrooms.

This transformation was only possible because of your incredible generosity and on behalf of the community of Anibongon we want to say thank you so much!

You’ve already given so much to help support education in Tacloban but this July 15 we’re asking you please consider helping even more kids. This is because on July 15 GlobalGiving will be matching donations to this cause by an amazing 50%.

Matching will start at 9am Eastern Time (or 1pm in the UK) and donations up to $1,000 (or £600 in the UK) will be matched per donor while funds remain. So, please consider making a gift on July 15, and please also spread the word about this incredible opportunity.

As always, if you ever have any queries about how we’re using your donation, please don’t hesitate to email Andy@IDVolunteers.org. I would be delighted to hear from you.

Thanks to your amazing support our work supporting education in Tacloban has progressed in leaps and bounds over the last few months.

Since our last report we’ve repaired typhoon damage at two further schools and one Day Care centre. Taken together, this work has changed the lives of 400 children by giving them back the education they need to build bright futures.

One of these schools is the Guintigian Elementary School, which is located about 40 minutes drive from Tacloban. While not far from the city it’s more rural location means that its 147 kids are often poorer and more neglected than those in the city centre.

When we first visited the school it was in a terrible state! Two of the school’s classrooms were in makeshift buildings which were badly exposed to the elements. The roofs leaked and during rains classes had to be suspended. School supplies were often also damaged. Overall the kids’ education was really suffering as a result of missed classes and inadequate learning materials.

But thanks to your incredible generosity we’ve changed all that.

We’ve renovated and extended one of the classrooms, and completely rebuilt the other from the ground up. We’ve also added a second bathroom, provided furniture and supplied the school with new books and sports equipment. The transformation has been amazing and the kids and teachers are thrilled with the results. Thanks so much!

We’ve also had similar successes recently at the nearby Planza Island school, and the San Agustin Day Care centre. Our repair and renovation of those faciltities has supported the education of 253 kids. However, much work remains to be done, especially in other rural locations.

For example we recently visited Jaro, which is about 40 miles from Tacloban, and found several schools in desperate need of help. The most urgent of these is the Anibongon Elementary school which is responsible for the education of 76 kids.

The only bridge to the community was washed away by typhoon Haiyan and, as a result, the school hasn’t received any help at all since November 2013!

The school’s four classrooms were severely damaged by the typhoon, but with nowhere else to go the kids are still using the buildings. This is not only destroying any chance of a decent education, it’s also extremely dangerous. One of the kids could be seriously hurt, or worse, just by trying to learn.

We’re really keen to help Anibongon school and we’re making it one of our highest priorities moving forward. However, we need more funds to finish all the work we have planned, including supplying the school with learning materials once the repair is complete. So, please consider donating today to help children who have been incredibly neglected to date.

As always, if you ever have any queries about how we’re using your donation, please don’t hesitate to email Andy@IDVolunteers.org. I would be delighted to hear from you.