“The chance to stay at home is a privilege not shared by all.” That kind of thinking was what fueled Kapit Cabalen to keep pushing. We knew that while many of us are privileged to stay home and be safe from the threats of the virus, many poor Filipinos have to go out of their homes each day to earn enough money just to get by.
At 5PM on March 20, 2021, we launched Kapit Cabalen – a donation drive initiated by Des, Joyce, Aly, and myself, which aims to provide assistance in the form of grocery and food packs to the displaced workers in Pampanga. By 6AM the following day, we were able to collect a total of Php40,000 cash donations from families, friends, and colleagues. It was at this time where I realized that people in general are kind-hearted and that everyone is willing to extend a help – whether through small cash donations, simple in-kind pledges, and even just by sharing our pubmats in the social media. Php40,000 might seem small, but it’s enough to cover grocery packs for 80 families in Angeles City, and that was just the start.
It wasn’t easy at first given that there were only four of us in the group doing all the tasks – from purchasing and repacking grocery items, to meeting up with generous donors to receive and pick-up in-kind donations, to doing basic accounting and bookkeeping, to creating our own marketing materials and digital ads and answering and attending to messages from Facebook and Instagram. Not to mention we were all employed full-time and have our own responsibilities at home. We divided the tasks into two – those who can do the physical activities and those that can help with the virtual activities. Des and Joyce were assigned to do purchasing and repacking, while Aly and I were assigned to do pubmats and attending to queries online. When it comes to distribution, the task was divided between Joyce, Des, and myself since we are all located in Pampanga, while Aly is based in Manila. It was exhausting but none of us felt stressed or scared or anxious amidst the pandemic because we knew that what we’re doing would be of help to our community.
Each day, our community grew. Colleagues, families, and friends kept on sharing our pubmats. There was even a point where our pubmats reached Instagram influencers and celebrities. Andi Manzano-Reyes shared our pubmat through her IG stories and many people from all walks of life started sending cash donations through GCash and bank transfers. By the end of week 1, we were able to provide grocery packs to at least 230 families in Pampanga and we even had enough excess cash to provide food packs to healthcare front-liners.
Week 1 distribution to Security Guard Frontliners in Pampanga
By the time we reach Week 4, we were already able to raise close to Php400,000 pesos in cash donations. Kapit Cabalen also stayed true to its initial mission of not only reaching to our Kapampangan Cabalens but also reaching to the displaced workers in Tarlac, Bulacan, Bataan, and Zambales. All in all, Kapit Cabalen was able to reach and provide grocery packs to more than 700 families, at least 400 healthcare frontliners, in over 20 communities in Region 3. It started from a conscious experience – from empathizing and putting ourselves in the position of those in need, to analyzing and reflecting how our simple ways can help and provide assistance to these people, and finally to acting on it and being committed to our mission. At that time, it was difficult to initiate it because everyone was in survival mode, everyone was anxious as to what the future holds because of the pandemic. But it only took a courageous one step that brought out the kindness and generosity among people.
2020 may have been a difficult year, but 2020 thought me several life lessons that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. ❤
The Koreander 