A VOLUNTEER PAYS IF FORWARD: A love story

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By Julie M. Aurelio
Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines--After he lost almost all of his belongings in the floods brought about by Tropical Storm “Ondoy” last year, this jeepney driver thought it wasn’t enough to simply thank the strangers who helped him get back on his feet.

Sonny Hernandez, 48, a resident of Barangay Nangka in Marikina City, felt it was but right to repay the generosity of his benefactors with the same acts of kindness and love he was shown when he was down and out.

“I wanted to do good because others were also kind to me. They helped me out, so why not help them in return?” he told Inquirer during an interview in his unpretentious home at Barangay Nangka’s Balubad settlement.

From being a beneficiary of the Buddhist-run Tzu Chi Foundation, which conducted relief operations in his community after the great floods, Hernandez and some of his neighbors are now volunteers themselves for the group.

Hernandez now goes on regular relief missions with the organization to other disaster-stricken areas, helping people who lost their homes to fires, floods and other calamities.

His tightly-knit community, home to many low-income families in Marikina, was one of the hardest hit in the city when Ondoy struck on Sept. 26, 2009, flooding Metro Manila and other parts of the country and leaving many dead, hurt and homeless in its wake.

To encourage the able-bodied members of the community, Tzu Chi also offered a “cash-for-work” program in which residents were paid P400 a day to help clean their neighborhood of mud and muck.

Hernandez, one of the leaders of a team in the “cash-for-work” program, was deeply touched by the selflessness, love and compassion shown him by the Filipino-Chinese aid workers.

With his team, the Marikina volunteer would work all day to wash away the mud from their houses for weeks and be paid later for the hard work.

“That’s when I thought that it must feel good to be able to help other people. Maluwag sa kalooban. Mas pangit kasi kapag ikaw lagi ang tinutulungan (It was easier on the conscience. It wouldn’t look nice if you are always on the receiving end of assistance),” said Hernandez.

Hernandez asked the Tzu Chi Foundation if he could tag along on a relief mission in November 2009 to Dreamland in Rosario, a slum community in Cavite province not much different from Hernandez’s own.

The jeepney driver initially felt a bit shy doing volunteer work, but soon became at ease as he gave away relief goods of rice and blankets to the residents.

Sharing

“Later, I joined relief missions for fire victims in Pasay City and Oroquieta in Manila,” Hernandez said. “I knew what they had to go through because of what happened to me and my family during Ondoy. I tried to cheer them up and told them: ‘We both lost our belongings, but give it just a little more time and you will be able to recover,’” Hernandez said.

Michael Siao, one of the pioneer volunteers of Tzu Chi Foundation, said he was mildly surprised when he saw the “tough-looking” Hernandez had a kind and loving heart, even as he was just recovering from his losses.

“Many were initially wary about approaching him. But each time he comes with us to help out in volunteer work, you could really see what a kind person he is and how willing he is to help,” Siao said.

Such was Hernandez’s fervor that he asked his boss to give him an extra day off from driving his jeepney just so he could tag along during the group’s relief missions.

For Haiti victims, too

At a recent street donation and fund drive in Binondo, Manila for earthquake victims in Haiti, Hernandez was beside himself as he held a box for passersby for donations.

“I enjoy volunteer work thoroughly, and I don’t ask for anything in return. I often wait for Tzu Chi to call me when the next mission comes around,” he said, adding that his 25-year-old daughter sometimes joins him in the activity.

Hernandez then pointed out to Inquirer the home of a neighbor, Boy Morarte, that was destroyed during the floods.

“Apat kami na pinagtulung-tulungang ayusin ’yung bahay niya, kasi baon sa putik. Walang bayad ’yun (Four of us worked at putting the house together again as it was buried in mud. We didn’t ask for a single centavo for the effort),” he proudly added.

Siao said there are around 1,000 Marikina City residents like Hernandez who have taken on the mission of spreading love and kindness through action, even as they are struggling to rebuild their lives.

“We are very thankful for the extra helping hands. It warms our hearts that we have volunteers like them. We didn’t have to ask. Volunteering just came naturally to them,” Siao said.

Hernandez’s neighbor, fruit vendor Robert Coner, who had worked under the “cash-for-work” program, also ended up a volunteer for Tzu Chi, cleaning houses for free in Tumana.

Piggy bank

Like the others, he keeps a piggy bank at home, provided by Tzu Chi in which Coner would drop a fixed amount every day, say P1. When it is full, the piggy bank is returned to Tzu Chi to be used for future missions.

“I just want to be able to show my gratitude in my own small way,” the 44-year-old vendor said.

Another of Hernandez’s neighbors, 29-year-old Jerwin Esquida, also volunteered to help in relief efforts for fire victims and Haiti earthquake victims as well.

“When we asked for donations, we would bow and always say thank you. We also gave out fliers to passersby. It was fun and at the same time gratifying to be able to help,” he said.

Seeing their former beneficiaries like Hernandez, Coner and Esquida turn into volunteers was an “inspiration” to Tzu Chi Foundation workers, said Siao.

“The values that have been imparted to the volunteers through the simple act of helping others have changed their way of looking at things,” he added.

“Long after we have packed up and gone, we are very sure that the spirit of giving and sharing whatever you can will always remain in their hearts,” Siao said.