Last July 24, 2021, HORECA celebrated its 10th anniversary. To commemorate this event, the company held an outreach program at Albert Schweitzer Familienwork Foundation Philippines Inc. (ASSFPI). The outreach brought everyone in the company together in celebration and service to others. It was a reminder that even in these hard times, everyone must try to help each other out, especially children who are the most vulnerable group in society.
AASFPI is a children’s orphanage located in Cordova, Cebu, that aims to provide a safe place for orphaned, neglected and abused children, and to give them the support they need. The outreach’s main purpose was to help out these kids, give them a memorable time, and connect with them. With HORECA being a food safety company, the kids were taught proper handwashing and its importance to their overall health.
On the day of the outreach, everyone had an early start to the morning. After a lengthy drive, everyone finally arrived at the orphanage of AASFPI. Though the roads leading to it were empty, the place felt lively with children and staff helping out. As everyone was setting down, one couldn’t help but notice the many kids playing around. They were all different age groups and everyone did their own thing as we prepared to start. To get the ball rolling, the program started with a prayer from officer Ms. Orleyne C. Tabucanon. This was then followed by short opening remarks by Atty. Edmund N. Villanueva who introduced everyone to the organization and explained the significance of the outreach.
The children showed their gratitude through a sweet song. As the applause died down, the welcome remarks were was given by the orphanage’s Director and Founder, Martiana D. Mercado. Ms. Mercado used to be a regional director of the Department of Social Work and Development and has now devoted her life to the service of AASFI. She used to be and she spoke of the organization and gratitude on behalf of everyone. Then, the company presented the donations and gifts they had for the organization. AASFI depends on donations to support the children and staff so Ms. Mercado hoped the outreach was just a beginning for HORECA. For the outreach, HORECA provided sacks of rice and sanitation products for the orphanage, to help them out in a small way. As soon as the pictures were taken, the program proceeded.
HORECA had prepared a PowerPoint presentation for the orphanage to show them the work of the company which was presented by Atty. Negley T. Villanueva. Soon after, the company began the activity they had prepared for the kids. This involved teaching children the proper way to wash their hands and ways to keep clean. The activity started with a presentation and video on sanitation. After, the employees of HORECA gave a demo of proper handwashing which involved eight careful steps. They urged kids to wash their hands properly, as there would be surprises for those who did well. Surprisingly, all the children took this enthusiastically and began to wash their hands as they were shown, the younger ones proud of their newly learned lesson. After this, everyone shared a hearty packed lunch to prepare them for the fun games they were about to join.
With bellies full and everyone ready for some fun, the second part of the program began. It started with a fun activity that involved one of HORECA’s products, the Luminometer. Using the Luminometer, all the kids competed would compete on on whose hands were the cleanest and who washed the best. Although it was a tad competitive, everybody in the room seemed to have fun. After this, the kids played games with the employees and got special treats if they won.
Once the fun and games were done, it was time for the outreach to come to a close. As Ms. Orleyne gave the closing remarks and gave the certificate, everyone felt the feeling of togetherness and fulfillment of a successful outreach program.
In the state of the world today, one can’t help but feel lonely and desperate for things to be something better. One can’t help but wish for a little bit of joy. On that day, HORECA was able to provide exactly that to for its employees and for the the few children in that orphanage. At the end of the day, even with the masks that everyone wore, it was clear there was a smile on everyone’s faces. It was also clear that the outreach was only the beginning of many more to come.