We have a small Shenzhen-based community in China which we aptly
called Brgy. China. This open yet closely-knit family-oriented community has
been our family away from home since we were invited by them in the year 2003.
Families join and leave China but the friendships keeps growing nevertheless.
Through the years, we have cultivated deeper relationships
with one another through regular get-togethers and rich inter-personal
relationships. In the past few years, the core members have actively participated
as choir members, lay ministers, catechists and event organizers during Sunday
mass services at the Saint Anthony Catholic Church in Shenzhen. And they just
completed the Couples for Christ seminar-modules.
Simultaneous with our religious endeavors, we also started to
cooperate closely with the Philippine consulate and other Filipino communities
in bringing fraternal and legal assistance to Filipinos in need and in distress.
We are hosting and organizing outreach programs to provide basic consulate
services like passport renewals, absentee voting, OEC issuance and other
relevant concerns. Surely, our small group has gone beyond our “comfort zones” in
making a small difference in the lives of the fellow OFWs.
But what makes me deeply proud to be a member of Brgy. China
is that we finally expanded our giving to finally benefit the poor and needy
kababayans back in the Philippines. Annually, we support two philanthropic outreach
programs and we have emergency donation pooling in times of urgent relief for
calamities. The trust and generosity of our community friends is humbling.
Each
member of Brgy.China has his/her own family concerns and financial struggles,
but when one member spearheads a lend-a-hand call for our time, talent and
treasures, rest assure that cheerful reaching-out-hands are closely nearby.
So what happens when we give “things that hurts” and keep on giving “despite the hurts”?
God
bless po.
2 Corinthians 9:6-7
