giving and fund raising - Public/Private Ventures

investinginourselves

G I V I N G A N DF U N D R A I S I N G

P H I L I P P I N E SI N T H E

I N V E S T I N G I N O U R S E L V E S

G I V I N G A N D F U N D R A I S I N GI N T H E P H I L I P P I N E S

W I T H S U P P O R T F R O M

Asian Development Bank

The Asia Foundation

Nippon Foundation

United States Agencyfor InternationalDevelopment (USAID)

investing

in

ourselves

G I V I N G A N D

F U N D R A I S I N G

P H I L I P P I N E SI N T H E

Investing in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in the PhilippinesPhilippine copyright © 2001 by Venture for Fund Raising Foundation, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or byany means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording or by aninformational or retrieval system without the permission of the publisher.

Please address inquiries to:Venture for Fund RaisingUnit 2801 Jollibee Plaza CondominiumEmerald Avenue, Ortigas CenterPasig City, 1605Philippinestel: (+63-2) 634-8889 to 90email: [email protected]: www.venture-asia.org

National Library of the PhilippinesCataloguing-in-Publication DataRecommended entry:

Investing in ourselves : giving and fund raising inthe Philippines. � Pasig City : Venture for FundRaising Foundation, c2001.1v

1. Fund raising - Philippines. 2. Grants-in-aid.I. The Asia Foundation. II. United States Agency forInternational Development.

HV41.2.P5 361.70681�09599 2001 P004000166

ISBN 971-92335-0-8

With special thanks to the Philippine Non-Profit Sector Project,the different NGOs that participated in the case research,and The Asia Foundation, USAID, and the Asian Development Bankfor funding the project.

book and cover design sadidaya disenyobook production East Axis Creative, Inc.Printed in the Philippines.

t each ing

the j o y

o f g i v ing

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS play a critical role in society, mobilizing privateaction for the public good. By responding to the challenges and needs thatthe government and the business sector are unable to address, non-profitorganizations improve the lives of people and make better communities.

One of the most critical issues that non-profits face is ensuring financialsustainability for their good work to continue. Responding to the need fornon-profits’ financial sustainability, Venture for Fund Raising was created andbegan operations in March 1999.

Its founding board of directors includes experienced fund raisers: JaimeFaustino, who previously worked with The Asia Foundation and whose ex-pertise is in foundation grants; Marianne Quebral, who managed the largestdirect mail campaign in the Philippines for UNICEF; Marvee Celi, who is cur-rently executive director of the Asian Institute of Management–Scientific Re-search Foundation, and who has extensive experience in capital campaigns;and John Silva, who has had over 20 years of fund raising experience withseveral organizations in the Philippines and in the US like the National Mu-seum, American Cancer Society, Greenpeace, and Oxfam, to name a few.

Venture for Fund Raising has since helped over 200 organizations raisefunds better through professional training, consulting services, and appliedresearch programs. To serve the needs of fund raisers, Venture for FundRaising houses a specialized collection of resource materials from differentparts of the world. It also promotes philanthropic giving through informa-tion campaigns that teach the joy of giving.

Venture for Fund Raising is the Philippines’ first and only non-profit or-ganization to serve the fund raising needs of other non-profits in the coun-try. It envisions a community that celebrates the joy of giving and ensures abountiful and sustainable world. ◗

Foreword xi

Preface xvii

1 Introduction 1

PART ONE | The Survey on Giving

2 Introduction to the Survey 9

3 Survey Findings 13

4 Observations 27

PART TWO | Cases on Fund Raising

5 Introduction to the Case Studies 31

6 Nurturing Individual Giving 35

1 EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE 36Starting them young

2 FAR EAST BROADCASTING COMPANY 40Meeting the personal needs of donors

3 PHILIPPINE EAGLE FOUNDATION 44Developing �not-so-usual� donors

4 PHILIPPINE SCIENCE HIGH SCHOOL FOUNDATION, INC. 48Involving stakeholders

5 PHILIPPINE CANCER SOCIETY 54Connecting with experience

7 Raising Moneyfrom the Sale of Products and Services 57

6 ASSUMPTION SOCIO-EDUCATIONAL CENTER 58Re-orienting people to pay for services

Contents

7 EMMANUEL FOUNDATION FOR SPECIAL CHILDREN 61Socializing pricing

8 INSTITUTE FOR STUDIES IN ASIAN CHURCH AND CULTURE 65Moving towards professionalism

9 KALIWAT THEATRE COLLECTIVE, INC. 69Valuing identity

10 NEGROS CULTURAL FOUNDATION, INC. 74Fund raising for art and culture

8 Managing Volunteers 79

11 DAVAO JUBILEE FOUNDATION

FOR THE REHABILITATION OF THE DISABLED, INC. 80Building from within

12 EMERGENCY RESCUE UNIT FOUNDATION, INC. 86Training volunteers

13 PROJECT LUKE CHRISTIAN HEALING MINISTRIES, INC. 91Cultivating volunteers

14 REMEDIOS AIDS FOUNDATION, INC. 96Fund raising for a difficult cause

15 PARANUBLIUN-ANTIQUE 100Rewarding volunteers

Afterword 105

Investing in Ourselves—Giving and Fund Raising in Asia had its origin inthe International Conference on Supporting the Nonprofit Sector in Asia,sponsored by the Asia Pacific Philanthropy Consortium (APPC) in Janu-ary 1998.1

The central theme of the conference was the need to explore ways inwhich governments, international financial institutions, philanthropicfoundations, corporations, and others could contribute to the continuedgrowth and financial sustainability of nonprofit organizations in Asia dur-ing a period of economic decline. Although planned long before, the con-ference took place at the height of the Asian economic crisis, which beganin Thailand in July 1997 and had just a few weeks earlier, in December1997, brought the Korean economy to the point of collapse.

The economic crisis represented a setback to what had been untilthen more than a decade of steady growth of philanthropic foundationsand other forms of organized philanthropy in Asia. In the short term, theeconomic crisis ensured that foreign funding would continue to be es-sential to the economic support of NGOs, but as I stated in my openingremarks at the conference:

From the perspective of long-term resource mobilization, Asianand other nonprofit organizations will ultimately depend for theirsurvival on the quality of the relationships they are able to establishwith public opinion in their countries and with their own govern-ments, and only secondarily and for the short-term on their rela-tionships with international public and private donor agencies.

In other words, the fundamental challenge to Asian NGOs was, andremains, to develop local sources of sustained funding.

The Asian Development Bank was represented at the conference byGordon Wilkinson, who was at the time responsible for the ADB’s workwith NGOs. Wilkinson took the initiative to approach Jaime Faustino, who

Foreword

xi

was then APPC’s Executive Of ficer (and, concurrently, The AsiaFoundation’s Assistant Representative in the Philippines), to expressADB’s interest in discussing how ADB and APPC might cooperate to assistNGOs in their quest for financial sustainability.

Subsequently, APPC and Venture for Fund Raising, a newly estab-lished nonprofit consulting and research firm, developed a proposal andbegan the complicated process of negotiating co-financing arrangementswith the Asian Development Bank. Before that deal could be consum-mated, however, USAID became interested in the project and providedfunding for research on NGO resource mobilization strategies in the Phil-ippines, a study that served as the pilot test for the eventual seven-coun-try project. Subsequently, the Nippon Foundation in Japan also joinedthe project as a donor. We are grateful to all three donors for their sup-port, and to The Asia Foundation for its role in facilitating the project andmanaging its finances.

Investing in Ourselves—Giving and Fund Raising in Asia had fourprincipal objectives:

◗ to build awareness of successful methods of fundraising em-ployed by Asian NGOs and to identify innovative best practices;

◗ to increase understanding of the need for transparency and ac-countability among Asian NGOs if they are to be successful infundraising;

◗ to increase the capacity of Asian NGOs to mobilize resources;and

◗ to establish benchmarks against which to measure the natureand scope of philanthropic giving in selected countries.

The study also sought to document Asian fundraising experience inorder to supplement or replace imported models and experience for usein local training; and to demonstrate that charitable giving and volunteer-ing takes place even in relatively poor countries that do not share West-ern cultural traditions.

The study produced 118 case studies of successful local fundraisingin seven countries (Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, Phil-ippines, Thailand) and household level surveys of charitable giving infour of these counties (India, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand).

Investing in Ourselves is a pioneering study. The household surveyon charitable donations in Indonesia is the first ever conducted in that

xii F O R E W O R D

country, and the surveys in India, Philippines, and Thailand complementsurveys being conducted by the Johns Hopkins Comparative NonprofitProject. As a pioneering effort, there are few benchmarks against whichto compare our survey findings and only limited experience on which toestimate the impact of potential sample bias. It will take repeated futuresurveys to validate or revise these results. We hope that publication ofthese findings, with all the methodological caveats discussed in Chapter3, will encourage others to continue to gather empirical data that willeventually result in a more detailed and comprehensive understandingof the dynamics of charitable giving in Asia.

These caveats aside, the surveys and case studies begin to providevaluable insights into the dynamics of philanthropy in the countriesstudied.

The surveys confirm in a practical way what cultural anthropologistshave long taught—that philanthropy takes place everywhere, in all cul-tures. The frequently heard arguments that there is no cultural traditionof philanthropy in Asia, or that it is a Western import, or that philan-thropy only occurs in wealthy countries, are once again refuted by theresults of this study. In all four countries, almost all high to middle in-come households, as defined in the local context, made philanthropicgifts during the preceding twelve months, a pattern similar to that foundin “developed” countries.

In addition, the amounts donated to charitable causes are substan-tial in local terms. In Thailand, Philippines, and Indonesia, for example,the average amount given per capita was reported to be US$546, $400,and $123, respectively. Restated in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP),which provides a more meaningful international comparison, theseamounts convert to the equivalent of US$1610, $1385, and $538, respec-tively. On the other hand, the Indian respondents reported significantlylower levels of giving and a lower giving rate (that is, fewer of the respon-dents reported giving).

There is a similar hierarchy of giving in all four countries. Individualsare the main recipients of philanthropy, followed by religiousorganizations, then voluntary organizations. Individuals were therecipients of about 40 percent of charitable giving in three countries, andabout 58 percent in Thailand. Although the four countries have differentreligious traditions, in each of them religious organizations receivedalmost a third of all giving except in Thailand. In that country, although

F O R E W O R D xiii

95 percent of the respondents reported that they had made “religiouscontributions” during the previous year, only about 16 percent of theircash donations on a per capita basis were reported to have gone toreligious organizations.2 (In contrast, the annual estimates of privatecharitable donations compiled in Giving USA indicate that almost half ofall charitable donations made in the Unites States go to or throughreligious organizations.) Voluntary organizations, particularly socialservice providers and those in education, received between 21 and 28percent of charitable donations.

Both the surveys and the case studies suggest that there is consid-erable scope for increased fundraising from local sources in the sevencountries studied, but that some significant obstacles need to be over-come. On the one hand, the household surveys and the case studiesdemonstrate that there is already a significant pool of current contribu-tors in each country. As fundraisers everywhere know, it is often mostfruitful to focus on increasing donations from those who already give. Italso appears that at least some fundraising approaches common in theUS and Europe, but previously presumed to be inappropriate in Asia,such as direct mail, media advertising, telephone solicitations, sellingtickets to special events, workplace giving, and selling NGO products,publications, and services, have also been used successfully by NGOsacross the region.

In a statement that draws together the survey findings and the casestudies, the authors of the chapter on fundraising principles assert that“people don’t give money to causes; they give to people with causes.”While individual donors in each of the seven countries studied may dif-fer in their motivation to give to others, they share the need for a sense ofconnection to the organization and its cause. Most often, that sense ofconnection takes a personal form—knowing the organization’s founder,trustees, or staff; believing in the personal integrity of key organizationalleaders; serving as a volunteer; or being approached in a manner thattakes into account the potential contributor’s interests and concerns.Advocating a good cause may not be enough to attract local funding;even more critical is building and nurturing positive personal and com-munity relationships, based in large part on the organization’s demon-strated legitimacy, accountability, transparency, and impact.

The challenge for voluntary organizations, particularly for de-velopment-oriented NGOs, is whether and how they can increase theirshare of charitable giving from local sources. Given the importance

xiv F O R E W O R D

of religion as a motivating force for charitable giving in all the coun-tries studied, the obvious question is whether those who give to reli-gious organizations also give to voluntary organizations or whetherthese are separate markets. Is it possible to increase local levels ofgiving so that both types of organization benefit, or does giving toone come at the expense of the other?

From the perspective of an NGO fundraiser, we now know that ordi-nary people in relatively poor countries do make charitable contribu-tions to causes they believe in, but voluntary organizations, even thosethat provide direct educational and social services, appear on average toreceive less than a quarter of those contributions. Even less appears tobe donated to development-oriented NGOs, except possibly in Indonesia,where the survey respondents reported that they give slightly more todevelopment NGOs than to education providers. Is it because NGOs arestill not well known to their communities? Is it therefore a matter of pub-lic education and better media coverage? Or are there also deeper issuesat work—perhaps related to public expectations about the role of theState, or to issues of NGO legitimacy and accountability? The data in thisstudy do not allow us to address these questions, but we now know thatit is not simply a matter of “poor” people not having funds to give, or nothaving a tradition of charitable giving. If I were an NGO leader, I would beinterested to ask: since local people do give money, why doesn’t more ofit come to us? what can I and my organization do to raise our share of thecharitable gift market? This book may help provide some of the answers,based on Asian experience.

I would like to express my thanks, on behalf of the Asia Pacific Phi-lanthropy Consortium and The Asia Foundation, to the Asian Develop-ment Bank, the Nippon Foundation, and USAID for their financial support,and to all the researchers and participants who contributed their energy,enthusiasm, and insights to make this project a success. Above all, I wouldlike to express thanks and appreciation to Jaime Faustino and his col-leagues at Venture for Fund Raising for having the vision and the mana-gerial capacity to conceptualize and implement so well this complex,multi-country and multi-donor effort. ◗

BARNETT F. BARON

Founding Chair, Asia Pacific Philanthropy ConsortiumExecutive Vice President, The Asia FoundationJanuary 2002

F O R E W O R D xv

Notes1 Reported in Lori Vacek, International Conference on Supporting the Nonprofit Sector

in Asia, Bangkok, January 9–11, 1998 (available from The Asia Foundation)2 Higher than average educational levels and employment patterns in the Thai sample

may account for their unexpectedly low level of support for religious organizations,in a country otherwise known for its well-endowed temples and generally well-fundedreligious societies.

xvi F O R E W O R D

IIIIInvesting in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in the Philippineswas born out of the minds of a group of people, some of whom donot know each other but have one thing in common—an interest inmaking people’s lives better. It is part of a vision that believes thatmany people will contribute their time, their money, and their heartsto help others. We hope that this book will not just sit in shelves butbecome a useful tool in getting more Filipinos to invest more of them-selves in solving the problems of our community.

To realize this dream, the team at Venture for Fund Raising playeda critical role. Melinda Bonga and Ramon Fernan, the principal re-searchers, did the heavy lifting on this project. Their energy andstamina in undertaking this pioneering effort is a testament to theirfaith in the process. Gina Pattugalan drafted the framework for caseresearch. Frankie Roman taught us how to write cases and, moreimportantly, to keep our sense of humor. Jannette Rodrigo coordi-nated interviews. Mercy Garcia helped analyze financial figures.Celine Santillan opened doors, while Mayan Quebral and Mark Lopezkept things on track!

Others who need to be recognized are Robert Dobias and Gor-don Wilkinson of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the publish-ers; John Gershman, the silent editor of the proposal; Barnett Baronof The Asia Foundation (TAF), who allowed us to discover somethinghe already knew; Dr. Ledy Cariño of the National College of PublicAdministration and Governance at the University of the Philippineswho gave us the opportunity to work in cooperation for the survey;Dan Songco of the Caucus of Development NGO Networks (CODE-NGO), Marissa Reyes of the Association of Foundations, and SteveSingson, who gave their time to help shape the publication; and RaniloSorongon who coordinated interviews with NGOs in Iloilo.

Finally, the case studies would not have happened without thehelp of those who shared their stories, and opened their hearts andorganizations. We would like to congratulate and acknowledge the

Preface

xvii

organizations who participated in this effort and the individuals whoshared their stories with us:

◗ Heide Gustilo-Foulc, Assumption Socio-Educational Center◗ Evelyn Cabigon, Davao Jubilee Foundation for the Rehabilitation

of the Disabled◗ Jovel Patricio and Lorna Gabad, Educational Research Devel-

opment Assistance◗ Herminio Cortes, Emergency Rescue Unit Foundation◗ Dr. LQ, Emmanuel Foundation for Special Children◗ Priscila Calica, Far East Broadcasting Company◗ Dr. Melba Maggay, Institute for Studies in Asian Church and

Culture◗ Richard Belar and Liza Palarca, Kaliwat Theatre Collective◗ Lyn Gamboa, Jenny Lizares, and Lilibeth La’O, Negros Cultural

Foundation◗ Florentino Egida, Paranubliun-Antique◗ Myrna dela Cruz, Philippine Cancer Society◗ Dennis Salvador, Philippine Eagle Foundation◗ Dr. Cleofe Bacungan, Philippine Science High School

Foundation◗ Florita Paragas, Project Luke◗ Dr. Jose Narciso Melchor Sescon and Nenet Ortega, Remedios

AIDS Foundation

As with many NGO projects, this is part of other projects. Thefirst is a Philippine-focused project administered by TAF with fundsfrom the United States Agency for International Development(USAID). The other components are the creation of the Database onLocal and International Grantmakers by the Association of Founda-tions and Training Workshops on Resource Mobilization conductedby Venture for Fund Raising. Specific friends who helped are SteveRood, current Representative of TAF, who humored us and supportedthis project even prior to joining TAF last year; Gavin Tritt, the Assis-tant Representative, who was the epitome of a “partner-donor”; andPatti Buckles and Cris Pineda of USAID, pioneers in the donor com-munity, who supported this project.

The second project this book is related to is a more ambitious ef-fort, Investing in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in Asia. This seven-country research project mirrors the case study and survey approach

xviii PREFACE

of this book. It is hoped that each country team will develop trainingmaterials, conduct courses on fund raising, and further assist gettingAsians to invest in their communities. ◗

JAIME FAUSTINO

PresidentVenture for Fund RaisingPasig City, PhilippinesNovember 2000

PREFACE xix

1

DECADES OF DEVELOPMENT WORK have revealed the limitations of statesand markets in addressing fundamental social issues. This has led toincreased recognition of the importance of non-government organiza-tions (NGOs) in the human development process.1 The Philippine NGO

community is an example of the key role NGOs play in a vibrant civilsociety.

Much of that work has been sustained by a combination of factors.First, the “semi-voluntary” NGO sector pays workers substantially lessthan other sectors.2 This creates an ironic situation where those whowant to “do good” must make personal sacrifices to continue the work.To quote Prof. Vic Limlingan of the Center for Development Manage-ment Program at the Asian Institute of Management, “the challenge is todo good and to do well.”3 Secondly, a major source of NGO funding isgrants and contracts from international donors.

An unexpected division of labor has emerged—donors concentrat-ing on providing funds and development education, and NGOs concen-trating on program development and implementation.

This, however, is not a sustainable formula in the long-term because:

◗ Political conditions and priorities in donor countries have re-sulted in changing and reduced levels of official developmentassistance.4

◗ There has been more competition from less developed coun-tries. For example, Helvetas, a Swiss donor agency, announcedthat it will be ending its Philippine program in 2001 to shift re-sources to other countries closer to Europe.

◗ Volatility of regional markets and government policy constraintsalso affect the flow of assistance. In Japan, for example, grantfunds from private foundations are limited because the founda-tions are required to invest in government securities. With cur-rent returns virtually negligible, the funds available for grantsare also reduced.

1 | Introduction

2 INTRODUCT ION

The Broader Implicationsof Fund Raising

Fund raising is not just about money. It is about touching people’slives and getting more people involved in eliminating the dehumanizingpoverty and solving other social problems.5

On the NGO side, fund raising strikes at the core of their own legiti-macy, accountability, and transparency. For years, NGOs have been atthe forefront in demanding these attributes from its government, publicofficials, and corporations. Yet, because the majority of funds are frominternational sources, there is a concern that the work of NGOs does notreflect the views of the communities in which they work. Some NGOsproudly proclaim that they “represent the interests of the community orthe masses.” When challenged, however, few have real evidence to sup-port this contention. Fund raising is one of the most tangible ways inwhich NGOs prove the legitimacy of their cause. It is about identifying,nurturing, and mobilizing a “constituency.” Therefore, when NGOs ar-gue that they “represent” the interests of distinct sectors in society—thedisadvantaged, the homeless, urban poor, and so on—one measure ofthat claim is the extent to which Filipinos contribute, financially or inkind, to the cause.

It is recognized that it is easier to go to donors, who are in thebusiness of giving away money, instead of to individuals in the commu-nity. However, going to the communities and asking people to give someof their hard-earned money is an effective method of increasing the ac-countability of NGOs. A skeptical but hopeful public wants to know thattheir P500 donation made a difference, and how.

The Purpose of the BookThe growing body of literature on fund raising and resource mobili-

zation is primarily for the more developed countries. A few publications,such as CIVICUS’s Sustaining Civil Society, provide an excellent overviewof a variety of vehicles for mobilizing resources in developing countries.6

While these are very helpful in introducing new ways of thinking andproviding examples for NGOs, it is recognized that more country– orregion-specific material needs to be developed.

In the Philippines, there are some sources of information on fundraising.7 Venture for Fund Raising maintains a small fund raising infor-

I N TRODUCT ION 3

mation center open to the public. This service complements theorganization’s consulting, research and training activities.8

This book is a modest ef for t to strengthen NGO financialsustainability in the Philippines by documenting and disseminatingcountry-specific strategies, principles, and techniques for mobiliz-ing local resources and expanding philanthropic giving. It aims to:

◗ provide training material for fund raising training courses,◗ establish a baseline of the individual donor market, and◗ provide evidence to skeptical NGOs that it is possible to diver-

sify their funding sources to include individual Filipinos andearned income.

The Structure of the BookThis book is divided into two parts, reflecting the twin sides to fund

raising—asking and giving. Part One includes a pioneering effort todetermine the “donor or gift market” in the Philippines. It highlights towhich causes people give, why they give, and how much they give. Itprovides a sense of the potential size of the individual gift market andhow best to approach potential donors. Part Two focuses on the “ask-ing” side of the equation—how NGOs raise money. It is divided into fourchapters: chapter 5 provides an overview of the case studies, and chap-ters 6 to 8 feature cases that focus on the role of individual giving, volun-teers, and earned income. Each case has a specific theme developed tohighlight an issue, and discusses how the organization addresses thatissue.

FrameworkAnecdotal evidence shows that many Philippine NGOs have survived

primarily from grants. This dependence is at the core of the problem offinancial sustainability, because donors who provide grants rarely pro-vide money to build endowments. The challenge thus confronting mostNGOs is to diversify non-grant sources of funds. Given that, the casesand the survey focus primarily on individual donors and earned income.

Earned income is a potentially important source of sustainable fi-nancing for NGOs. This includes micro-credit; fee-for-services such astraining; contracts with governments, foundations, bilateral and multi-lateral development agencies; publications; and conference-organizing,

4 INTRODUCT ION

among others. In the Philippines, the pioneers are the Philippine Busi-ness for Social Progress (PBSP), Tulay sa Pag-unlad micro-credit pro-grams, and the Foundation for a Sustainable Society, Inc. Non-profits inthe United States raise over half of their annual revenue as earned in-come. In Bangladesh, the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee(BRAC) raises almost $30 million annually from enterprises ranging froma chain of handicraft stores to an Internet service. As the cases willshow, earned income poses its own unique set of challenges to NGOs.

The least developed and potentially most important strategic sourceof funds is individual gifts and contributions. Most foundations, corpo-rations, and bilateral donors are generally unable to support the build-ing of endowments, the cornerstone of a financially sustainableorganization. Given that, many NGOs survive from grant to grant.

Individuals are critical to a balanced fund raising effort for two rea-sons. One is that they provide a broader financial foundation. Many ofus have heard of NGOs who have either closed down or gone into hiber-nation because their single donor changed priorities. Raising moneyfrom individuals insulates the NGOs from the volatility and vulnerabilityof grant dependence. If only one grant-maker changes their program,the impact is felt across the NGO. However, if one individual donor doesnot renew his pledge, the NGO still survives. A second important reasonis that individuals have the flexibility to transfer assets and estates—apotential source of long-term NGO financial sustainability since theseare the building blocks of endowments. ◗

Notes1 The term NGO will be used to refer to all non-profit organizations, including those

identified in the International Classification of Nonprofit Organizations (ICNPO).2 Based on a salary survey conducted by the Ford Foundation office in Manila.3 Basic Course on Fund Raising, Manila Galleria Suites, May 1999.4 For a more detailed discussion, see Donor Trends: A Resource Book of Development

Assistance in the Philippines, Association of Foundations (AF) and CODE-NGO, 2000;and Raul Gonzalez’ Official Development Assistance in the Philippines 1986–1996,CODE-NGO, 1998.

5 Dan Songco, comments during a peer review of research findings, Ateneo de ManilaUniversity, November 2000.

6 Another example is Michael Norton, The Worldwide Fundraiser’s Handbook: A Guideto Fundraising for Southern NGOs and Voluntary Organizations, 1996.

7 The current resources include: Gina Velasco, “Corporate Philanthropy in Asia: ThePhilippine Case,” City University of New York, 1996; Jaime Faustino, “Traditions inPhilippine Philanthropy,” 1997; Soliman et al, NGO Strategic Management in Asia: Fo-cus on Bangladesh, Indonesia and the Philippines (ANGOC: Manila) 1988; Juan MiguelLuz, “Strategizing the Future: Philippine Business for Social Progress,” in The Man-

I N TRODUCT ION 5

agement of NGOs: Case Studies of Asian Non-governmental Organizations (ApprotechAsia, Manila, 1991); Victor Tan and Maurino Bolante, “Philippine Business for SocialProgress,” in Voluntary Sector Financing Program, Case Studies of Foundation-build-ing in Africa, Asia and Latin America, Synergos Institute, 1997; Teresita del Rosario,“Foundation for the Philippine Environment,” Voluntary Sector Financing Program,Case Studies of Foundation-building in Africa, Asia and Latin America, Synergos In-stitute, 1997; G. Sidney Silliman, “Bilateral Programs of Official Development Assis-tance to Non-governmental Organizations: Innovative Models from the PhilippineExperience,” International Center, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona,1994.

8 For more information, visit www.venture-asia.org.

P a r t O n e

The Survey

on Giving

9

BackgroundThe household survey on giving was conducted in seven different

provinces and cities throughout the country from August 1999 to mid-2000. This was the first quantitative research of its kind to probe Fili-pino philanthropic giving attitudes. Survey respondents were asked aboutwhether or not they had given to charitable or cause-oriented organiza-tions or individuals in the past year, what kind of organizations they hadsupported, why they had done this, and how much or in what form theygave. Respondents that were found not to have given in the past yearwere also asked about their reasons for not giving.

The areas surveyed were Benguet Province (including Baguio City),Metro Manila, Iloilo Province including Iloilo City, Southern Leyte,Zamboanga del Norte, and Davao del Sur (including Davao City). Thesurvey areas were chosen purposively, given that the survey on givingwas a component of a larger research project that involved an organiza-tional survey of non-profit groups conducted simultaneously in MetroManila, Baguio City, Iloilo City, and Davao City. The survey assumedthat the presence of NGOs positively influenced giving behavior. Thetwo other areas, Southern Leyte and Zamboanga del Norte, were chosenbecause they are relatively poorer and harbor few NGOs, with a corre-sponding negative effect on the extent of giving.

The requirement of geographic representation also meant that theareas should represent the major geographic divisions of the country—Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

Basic Demographic and Income FeaturesTable 1 provides population and average family income information

on the survey areas. Metro Manila had the highest average family in-come overall. Of the three other major cities covered by the survey,Iloilo City had the highest average family income level.

2 | Introductionto the Survey1

10 THE SURVEY ON G IV ING

Average family incomes for the rest of the provincial areas outside ofthe major cities were relatively low. Only Benguet Province’s averagefamily income was higher than the national average. The rest reportedincomes close to half of the national average, except for Iloilo province.Discounting Davao City’s contribution, Davao del Sur’s average familyincome was only slightly higher than that of the poorest provinces ofSouthern Leyte and Zamboanga del Norte.

While the major cities constitute most of what has been designatedin the survey areas as urban, there are some significant exceptions.Davao City measures an expansive 2,000 sq. km., almost half as large as

Population, Total Number of Families and Average Family Incomes

Region/Province

Population

(1995)

Total Number

of Families

(1994)

Average

Annual Family Income

(1994, in Pesos)

Metro Manila 9,454,040 1,765,644 173,599

Benguet 540,716 101,271 102,013

Baguio City 36,009 131,950

Other Benguet 65,262 85,496

Iloilo 1,749,561 347,268 76,739

Iloilo City 57,947 165,892

Other Iloilo 289,321 58,883

Southern Leyte 317,565 80,953 45,503

Zamboanga del Norte 770,697 146,824 42,158

Davao del Sur 1,683,909 315,287 89,762

Davao City 179,747 122,404

Other Davao del Sur 135,540 46,474

Ave. Family Income (National) 83,161

tabl

e 1

Source National Statistics Office Website (www.census.gov.ph) and 1994 FIES

I N TRODUCT ION TO THE SURVEY 11

the entire province of Davao del Sur. Barangays far from the city centertend to have more of a rural than an urban character. Some of them areso remote that transport is basically nonexistent while some harbor armedguerrilla bands.

Survey Methodologyand Sampling Design

Within each survey area, 60 barangays were selected based on prob-ability proportionate to size. Provisions were also made to account forthe prevailing urban-rural distribution of barangays in each area. Largebarangays that were chosen were further divided into sub-clusters ofabout 100 households each, and a cluster was randomly chosen to beincluded in the survey. For each cluster, every fifth household from arandom start was approached. A 75 percent response rate was assumedso that 15 completed interviews per cluster were expected, totaling some900 interviews per area. Because of its size and importance, MetroManila was divided into two sub-areas with clusters of 60 barangayseach, for a total of 120 clusters and 1,800 expected interviews. However,due to the low response rates in Metro Manila, only 1,410 interviewswere successfully completed. The areas outside Metro Manila had muchhigher response rates.

Within each household, eligible respondents were identified andthen randomly chosen for interviews. Eligible respondents to the ques-tionnaire were the household head, the spouse of the household head,or the household member earning the highest income. These criteriawere based on the assumption that decisions on giving were generallymade taking the income of the household as a whole.

Conduct of the SurveysField interviews in Metro Manila began in late August 1999 and were

completed by late November of the same year. A low response rate of39.5 percent accounted for the fact that there were only 1,410 interviewscompleted.

Surveys in the areas outside Metro Manila started in late March2000. Field interviews took from 30 to 45 days to complete. Some clus-ters were difficult to access due to the lack of regular transport service


into the area, while others were accessible only by foot or horseback.Still others were made inaccessible due to inclement weather or the pres-ence of guerrillas or bandits. Substitute clusters were assigned once itwas determined that certain clusters had to be replaced.

Table 2 contains the distribution of respondents by area.

Notes on Conventions UsedThe results of the interviews reflect giving in the past 12 months

unless otherwise stated. Giving in the form of money is likewise theproxy used for all giving.

For the sake of convenience, certain conventions were used for placenames—Manila for Metro Manila instead of just the city with the samename, Zamboanga for Zamboanga del Norte, and Davao for Davao delSur. ◗

Notes1 The Household Survey on Giving and Volunteering is part of the Philippine Non-

profit Sector Project. The survey was supported by The Asia Foundation and USAID.The Nonprofit Sector Project is implementing the Philippine component of the Inter-national Comparative Study on the Nonprofit Sector directed by the Institute of PolicyStudies at Johns Hopkins University. This chapter is based on an initial analysis ofthe partial results of the survey conducted in various areas over several months in1999 and 2000.

Distribution of Respondents by Area

Area Household Individual

Urban Rural Urban Rural

Metro Manila 1,410 1,359

Benguet 550 359 648 388

Southern Leyte 204 902 258 1,141

Iloilo 370 773 579 1,141

Davao del Sur 568 325 808 498

Zamboanga del Norte 114 772 163 1,162

TOTAL 3,216 3,131 3,815 4,330

tabl

e 2

13

THIS CHAPTER PRESENTS findings on the gift-giving habits of Filipinos.Despite pervasive poverty and the absence of the notion of “disposableincome,” the survey findings provide strong evidence of a “culture ofgiving” and a willingness to help.

Giving to Organizations

Incidence of Giving

There was a uniformly high incidence of giving in all areas [see chart1]. In “ever contributing to persons and causes,” well over 80 percent ofrespondents in all areas indicated that they had, at least one time in thepast, given to a person or cause for charity. This ranged from about 85percent in Southern Leyte to over 95 percent in Benguet.

The incidence of giving over the past 12 months remained high. BothVisayas areas, however, showed a significant decrease in the incidenceof giving in the form of money in the past year compared to the level of“ever giving.” This is significant considering the difference in averagefamily incomes between the two. From an incidence level of above 80percent, giving in cash slid to 67 percent of respondents in both Iloiloand Southern Leyte. The percentage of cash giving in Metro Manila,Benguet, and Davao remained above 90 percent while that in Zamboangafell to 84 percent.

Form of Giving

Donors overwhelmingly preferred giving money in all areas [seechart 2b]. Those who gave predominantly made cash donations as op-posed to giving by check or postal money order. Very few respondentsindicated that they used the latter forms to make donations.

3 | Survey Findings


Incidence of Giving in All Areas,

in percent

char

t 1

Percentage of Giving in Cash and Kind

char

t 2a

SURVEY F IND INGS 15

In-kind giving was not that popular. In Metro Manila, only about 33percent of the respondents reported giving goods while in Benguet andDavao, the figure was about 20 percent. Both Zamboanga and SouthernLeyte were at 16 percent. Iloilo reported the lowest incidence, with justover 10 percent of respondents saying they gave in kind. [See chart 2a.]

Less than 10 percent of respondents gave goods to any one categoryof organizations. In Metro Manila, the highest incidence of giving in kindwas to churches and less than eight percent of respondents engaged inthat practice. About the same proportion of respondents in Benguet andDavao del Sur gave to groups in education, while Zamboanga respon-dents preferred to give goods to business and professional associations.Less than four percent of respondents in both Iloilo and Leyte gave inkind to any one group of non-profit organizations. Iloilo respondents pre-ferred business and professional groups, while Leyte households gaveto informal neighborhood groups. [See chart 3.]

Percentage of Giving in Cash

chart 2b


Amount of Giving

The total amount of giving referred to is the simple sum of theamounts claimed by givers, not the weighted estimate by area. It is usedhere only to indicate the preferences of donors and the relative generos-ity of donors in each area.

The total amount of giving in both cash and kind to organizations, onthe average, varied widely—both between areas and between categoriesof organizations [see chart 4]. It ranged from a low of P107 in Zamboangadel Norte, an area with relatively low family incomes, to a high of P2,130in Metro Manila, the region with the highest family income levels. Therelative amounts seem to roughly correspond to each area’s relative in-come level. The exception is Iloilo where average giving is nearly as lowas Southern Leyte’s, a province much poorer than the former.

Highest Incidence of In Kind Giving to Organizations

in the Past 12 Months, by Area

char

t 3


Giving in Urban/Rural Areas

There was a slight difference in the incidence of giving between ur-ban and rural areas [see chart 5]. In Davao del Sur, the pattern was aboutthe same in both urban and rural areas while in Benguet, rural givingwas higher than urban giving. Giving in cash by both Iloilo and Leyterural households was lower than that of their counterpart urban house-holds, as would normally be expected if giving is positively related toincome levels. Otherwise, the overall pattern of giving between urbanand rural areas did not seem to vary significantly, at least at this level.

Beneficiaries

Giving to Churches

In all areas, the principal beneficiaries of both kinds of giving werechurches and other religious institutions [see chart 6]. In Metro Manila,

Average Amount of Total Giving in Cash and Kind,

per Area

chart 4


giving to churches was reported by 77 percent of respondents. Davaohad the highest incidence of giving to churches with almost 88 percentof respondents. The two Visayas provinces reported the lowest incidenceof giving to churches, reflecting the generally lower giving levels in theseareas. Only 40 percent of Iloilo respondents said that they had given tochurches in the past 12 months, while just over a half of Southern Leyterespondents reported doing so. Benguet and Zamboanga respondents,even with their lower incomes, matched church giving in Manila withthree-fourths saying they did so.

Despite the high incidence of giving to churches, the amount givenby each donor, on the average, was small [see chart 7]. It was muchlower than the overall average amount of giving for each area. Benguetrespondents gave the highest amount per respondent, with Metro Ma-nila rating only second.

Giving to churches in Metro Manila was only one-fourth that of totalgiving, about the same as in Iloilo and Southern Leyte. Davao gave thehighest in proportion to total giving—almost three-quarters went to

Incidence of Cash Giving in Urban/Rural Areas, All Areas

in percent

char

t 5

RuralUrban


Percentage of Giving in Cash to Churches in Past 12 Months

chart 6

Average Giving to Churches, All Areas

chart 7


Giving to Churches as Proportion of Total Giving

Metro

Manila Benguet Iloilo

Southern

Leyte

Zamboanga

del Norte

Davao

del Sur

Percent to Total 26.1% 55.1% 22.7% 22.6% 50.7% 72.1%

tabl

e 3

churches. Benguet and Zamboanga reported that half of total giving wasto churches. [See table 3.]

Giving to Other Organizations

No other NGO category came close to churches in the level of givingincidence [see chart 8]. In Manila and Zamboanga, social services groupshad the next highest incidence of reported giving, with half of MetroManila respondents saying they gave to such groups. Less than 10 per-cent in Zamboanga reported this trend. In Benguet, the education sectorwas preferred second to churches by donors, with over 40 percent ofrespondents indicating that they gave to groups in this category. Iloilorespondents favored the culture and recreation sector, Leyte respondentsindicated “other groups” (i.e., those not elsewhere classified), while Davaorespondents chose to give to informal neighborhood groups.

Among the top three sectors other than religion favored by respon-dents in each area, only the culture and recreation sector was commonin all five. Table 4 lists these areas of giving.

Giving to Persons, Not InstitutionsInformal or direct giving is the practice of giving to individuals,

whether relatives, beggars, and so on. For this kind of giving, cash wasthe preferred form of donation as well. In Metro Manila, Benguet, andDavao, almost 80 percent of respondents gave money directly to per-sons in need. Iloilo had a 63 percent incidence of direct giving in cash,while both Southern Leyte and Zamboanga were below 45 percent. [Seechart 9.]

This pattern appears to be similar to that of giving to organizationsexcept for the change in the relative position of Zamboanga: while re-


Organizations with the Highest Incidence of Giving Other than Churches,

All Areas, in percent

chart 8

Top Three Sectors of Giving, Per Area

Metro Manila Benguet Iloilo Southern

Leyte

Zamboanga

del Norte

Davao

del Sur

Social Services Education Culture and

Recreation

Other Groups

(NEC)

Social Services Local

Neighborhood

Groups

Culture and

Recreation

Local

Neighborhood

Groups

Social Services Culture and

Recreation

Local

Neighborhood

Groups

Culture and

Recreation

Education Culture and

Recreation

Education Local

Neighborhood

Groups

Culture and

Recreation

Social Services

table 4


Average Amount of Direct Giving,

by Area

char

t 10

Percentage of Direct Giving in Cash,

by Area

char

t 9


spondents generally appeared to prefer giving to organizations ratherthan directly to persons, the dif ference is much more marked inZamboanga than elsewhere.

The average amount of direct giving both in cash and in kind washighest in Benguet. Average amounts show a tendency to be widely vary-ing between areas. Again, the two poorest provinces had the lowestamount of giving, on average. Even in direct giving, Iloilo continues torank low considering its relative income level. [See chart 10.]

Major Decision MakerIn all areas except Iloilo, all decisions on giving (whether or not to

give, how much to give, and what to give) were said to be the joint re-sponsibility of both husband and wife. In Iloilo, however, it was the house-hold head that most respondents identified as deciding on matters ofgiving, although husband and wife jointly received a fairly high propor-tion of the responses as well. A fifth of Metro Manila respondents saidthe spouse (usually the wife) was the decision maker. [See table 5.]

Reasons for Giving or Not GivingMore respondents ranked “a feeling of compassion for others” as

the most important reason for giving. Of all the choices listed, this is themost altruistic reason as it implies absolutely nothing in return to thegiver, either materially or in “psychic terms.”

Respondents in all areas also generally agreed that the fact that theact of giving made them “feel good” was another important motivation. It

Who Decides whether to Give or Not, in percent

Metro

Manila Benguet Iloilo

So.

Leyte

Zambo

del Norte

Davao

del Sur

Household Head 26.4 4 3 14

Both Husband and Wife 3 41

Individual 2

Spouse 1 9

table 5


Reasons for Not Giving, in percent

Needs of

household

come first

Lost job Could not

afford Not asked

Lack of

trust

Pressure

from

others

Don�t

believe

in

cause

of org

Metro Manila 79.1 62.8 59.3 43.0 44.2 24.4 41.9

Benguet 73.0 67.6 64.9 45.9 16.2 37.8 16.2

Iloilo 80.7 64.9 68.4 30.7 15.8 20.2 15.7

Southern Leyte 72.1 41.6 33.8 10.4 22.1 14.5 17.8

Zamboanga del Norte 60.8 36.5 37.8 29.7 24.3 25.7 23.0

Davao del Sur 74.1 59.2 63.0 33.3 33.3 18.5 38.5

tabl

e 7

Most Important Reasons for Giving, in percent

Compassion Feel good Easier than

volunteering Religious beliefs

Metro Manila 73.0 73.1 60.6 36.6

Benguet 72.6 74.6 45.5 57.5

Iloilo 86.6 59.5 59.5 54.4

Southern Leyte 79.7 68.6 48.1 58.0

Zamboanga del Norte 45.8 41.6 42.4 45.8

Davao del Sur 75.5 76.5 47.8 64.5

tabl

e 6


is noteworthy that although the most common form of giving was tochurches, religious beliefs did not count as high in importance as mightbe expected. For Metro Manila respondents especially, “giving beingeasier than volunteering” seemed to be a far more important reason thanreligious belief.

Those who have never given cited reasons that alluded to incomeinsufficiency. On the other hand, it appears that those who could affordto give but did not felt a lack of trust or an inability to identify with theorganization’s values as their reasons. ◗

27

THE SURVEY RESULTS REFLECT a well-developed donor base essential toNGOs’ long-term financial sustainability. The high incidence of givingamong survey respondents implies a basic openness to charitable giv-ing, reinforcing the conventional wisdom that Filipinos are helpful andneighborly. It also affirms the culture of cooperation (bayanihan) that isstill very much a part of their lives. Such cooperation and a readiness tohelp others are characteristic of pre-colonial communities where neigh-bors can be relied upon to help move a house or work the land. Thegeneral welfare of the community depended on keeping this supportsystem alive. No doubt teachings of charity brought by Christian mis-sionaries only served to reinforce what were already sustained practicesof helpfulness and neighborliness.

The fact that the Philippines is a predominantly Catholic countrymay help explain the propensity to help each other as well as the church.While not formally imposed as a tithe, giving to the church is neverthe-less an ingrained obligation that continues to dominate people’s givingbehavior to institutions. One astute observer noted that the church’slong tradition of trust with its community is one of the main reasons forhigh giving to the church.1

While this appears to be a prevalent behavior, the amountsinvolved are modest, on average. A lot of people say they give tochurches and beggars, but they do not give very much. On the otherhand, fewer people give to institutions other than the church but theytend to give substantially more. This indicates that there is a potentialindividual gift market which can help NGOs become more sustainable.But because giving to institutions other than churches appears to bean infrequent phenomenon for most, NGOs clearly have their workcut out for them in informing people of their cause and the importanceof getting involved.

Given respondents’ choices among the possible reasons for theirgiving, it would seem that donors tended to point to “emotional” consid-

4 | Observations


erations rather than those that could be said to be “intellectual” or “ratio-nal.” It may be that altruism has stronger emotional and spiritual under-currents than rational ones. This seems to have important implicationson how NGOs make their case for donations. While not discounting theimportance of coherent rational analysis to issues related to poverty re-duction, womens rights, and so on, NGOs may have to balance their de-sire to inform a broader public with an emotional appeal to people’s senseof justice and humanity.

The low incidence of giving to non-church institutions is probablydue to the neglect of the individual gift market by NGOs dependent ongrants and on the charity of a few rich individuals. The “culture of giving”that obviously exists needs to be broadened to encompass non-churchNGOs.

The high incidence of direct giving to persons underscores the highlypersonalized nature of Philippine society. People hesitate less when theyare asked to give to relatives and friends in need. It also reinforces thatobservation that people give more readily (whether to institutions orpersons) when they are asked by someone known personally by them. ◗

Notes1 Dan Songco, Peer Review Workshop, November 2000.

P a r t T w o

Cases

on Fund Raising

31

THIS CHAPTER provides the framework used in documenting best practicesof fund raising as seen among primarily small– to medium-sized non-profitorganizations. Each case yields many lessons, and certain themes have beenhighlighted to facilitate the reader’s search for examples.

The next three chapters have been organized to reflect the keyissues which non-profit organizations deal with—individual giving,income derived from the sale of products and services, and the mo-bilization of volunteers. A case reference table has been included atthe end of this chapter as a guide the reader to themes and issuesdiscussed in the cases.

The cases show how selected non-profits manage the challenges offinancial sustainability and how they try to mobilize local resources torespond to such organizational constraints.

BackgroundThe International Classification of the Nonprofit Organization

(ICNPO) identifies 12 types of non-profits. For reasons of manageability,this study included only six—those focusing on the areas of theenvironment, social services (children’s welfare in particular), health,arts and culture, religion, and education. No studies were done on NPOsthat worked in the sectors of law, housing, volunteerism and philanthropy,international affairs, and neighborhood or business associations.

Sampling/Selection Criteriaand Methodology

Fifteen cases were included in this study:

1. Educational Research Development Assistance2. Far East Broadcasting Company3. Philippine Eagle Foundation

5 | Introductionto Case Studies

32 CASES ON FUND RA IS ING

4. Philippine Science High School Foundation5. Philippine Cancer Society6. Assumption Socio-Educational Center7. Emmanuel Foundation for Special Children8. Institute for Studies in Asian Church and Culture9. Kaliwat Theatre Collective

10. Negros Cultural Foundation11. Davao Jubilee Foundation for the Rehabilitation

of the Disabled12. Emergency Rescue Unit Foundation13. Project Luke14. Remedios AIDs Foundation15. Paranubliun-Antique

These cases were chosen across major regions of the Philippines—Metro Manila and Baguio City in Luzon; cities of Cebu, Iloilo, and Bacolodin the Visayas; and Davao City in Mindanao. Initial efforts were made tohave an equal distribution of cases among sector and location. However,the study was constrained by the availability and approval of NGO repre-sentatives to participate in the research. Organizations that are politi-cally motivated (i.e., run by politicians or politician’s kin) and those whoseresources depend solely upon political connections are excluded fromthe study, since political connection automatically allows financial cloutor access that may not be available otherwise. In addition, the selectedorganizations range from small– to medium– and large-scale, and musthave undertaken fund-raising schemes other than relying on grants frominternational or local foundations. Finally, the most important criterionis the possibility of replicating the experiences of these non-profits. Inother words, resource mobilization strategies undertaken by non-profitsmust not be too unique to disallow replication.

Data gathering was done primarily through personal interviews withthe executive director, finance or development officer, and board mem-bers. Documentary research was also utilized.

Sector and Area

Most cases were taken from the National Capital Region (6 cases),followed by the Visayas (5), Mindanao (3), and Luzon (1).

The health sector is represented by the most number of cases (4).

I N TRODUCT ION TO CASE STUD IES 33

There are 3 cases each representing education and arts and culture, 2cases for religion, and 1 each for social service and environment. It willbe noted, however, that some cases may be classified under more thanone category.

Size of NPOs

In terms of annual funds, the smallest non-profit among the casespresented here is the Paranubliun with an annual budget of aroundP800,000, while the biggest is ERDA with P38 million. Eight cases wereclassified as small-scale (P1 to 4 million); three cases as medium-scale(P5 to 8 million); and four cases as large-scale (P12 to P38 million).

Proportion of Localand Foreign Sources of Funds

The study focused on organizations whose funds were at least 20percent locally sourced. Three cases did not satisfy this criterion butwere included because their experiences can be valuable for training.

Year Established

The oldest organization in the survey is the Far East Broadcast-ing Company or FEBC (52 years), and the youngest is the EmmanuelFoundation (two years). Half of the cases were established duringthe presidency of Corazon Aquino, when support for the non-profitsector grew.

It can be surmised that some of the organizations were born out ofdifferent crises taking place in Philippine society. For instance, FEBC wasestablished after World War II, the Assumption Socio-Educational Cen-ter (ASEC) was put up after a series of fires in Iloilo City, the Institute forStudies in Asian Church and Culture (ISACC) was conceived to respondto social issues brought about by the Marcos regime, and the KaliwatTheatre Collective’s growth coincided with events surrounding the EDSA

Revolution in 1986.


Case Reference Sheet

Case

Nurturing

Individual Giving

Raising Money

from Products

and Services

Managing

Volunteers

Educational Research Development

Assistance

* *

Far East Broadcasting Company * *

Philippine Eagle Foundation * * *

Philippine Science High School

Foundation

* *

Philippine Cancer Society * *

Assumption Socio-Educational

Center

* * *

Emmanuel Foundation for Special

Children

* * *

Institute for Studies in Asian Church

and Culture

* * *

Kaliwat Theatr e Collective * *

Negros Cultural Foundation * * *

Davao Jubilee Foundation * * *

Emergency Rescue Unit Foundation * * *

Project Luke * * *

Remedios AIDS Foundation * * *

Paranubliun-Antique * * *

Case ReferenceThe 15 cases are grouped according to theme, as follows:

1. nurturing individual giving,2. raising money from the sale of products and services, and3. managing volunteers.

There are cases, however, that discuss more than one theme. Thefollowing matrix shows which case has information on a particular theme.

35

ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE DEVELOPED a broad donor base are not aseasily affected by changes in institutional funding as organizations de-pendent on foreign grants. This is best illustrated by the Far East Broad-casting Company (FEBC), with more than 50 percent of their local fundssourced from more than 10,000 individual donors.

Individual giving fosters relationships among individual donorsand their community. The Assumption Socio-Educational Center(ASEC), for instance, inculcates in their alumni the value of giving totheir alma mater. Heide Gustilo-Foulc, ASEC’s executive director,says, “Giving our service to the community is in our blood becausewe were ASEC scholars from preparatory until grade six. Every yearwe had sponsors and friends who visited us, so we were remindedthat some people helped us to finish school. So when we grew up wealso wanted to do [the same] thing.” ◗

Part 16 | Nurturing Individual Giving


EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

Starting them young

From 1953 to 1963, according to astudy by the Bureau of Public Schoolsof the Philippines, more than half amillion elementary pupils from govern-ment schools dropped out of schooldue to poverty. Fr. Pierre Tritz, aFrench Jesuit, started the EducationalResearch and Development Assis-tance, Inc. (ERDA) in 1974 in responseto this drop-out problem.

ERDA aims to “promote the totaldevelopment, physical, social, and eco-nomic aspects of poor children.” ERDA

has helped about 80,000 children withtheir schooling through its EducationalAssistance Program which has tie-upswith 188 organizations nationwide. For

school year 1998–1999 alone, some29,000 children were assisted. ERDA

has expanded its outreach to includesupport services on health, livelihood,continuing education and advocacy.

ERDA envisions “a nation where allchildren are able to avail of educationalopportunities that can prepare themadequately for life.” As such, its lifepurpose is “to empower the socially andeconomically disadvantaged children,youth, women, families and communitiestowards human development.”

ERDA receives funding supportfrom local and foreign donors—indi-vidual and corporate entities, privateorganizations, and other NGOs—as

Case 1

List of Programs and Sources of Revenue, 1998

in percent

Sources of Revenue (%)

Programs Foreign

Grants

Local

Gov�t

Agencies

Local

NGOs

Local

Corps

Local

Indivi-

duals

Educational

Assistance

94 1 5

Pre-School 63.7 25.8 2.5 1.2 6.8

Health 100

Livelihood 100

Continuing

Education

100

Special Projects

Tuklasan 92 8

Sabana 98.6 1.2 0.2

ECPSR 100

NURTUR ING IND IV IDUAL G IV ING 37

well as from some government agen-cies. The majority (95 percent) of itsfunds come from Europe, specificallyfrom Austria, Belgium, France, Ger-many, Holland, Luxembourg, and Swit-zerland. Donations in 1998 amountedto almost P38 million.

For 25 years ERDA’s programswere sustained through the fund rais-ing efforts mostly of Fr. Tritz, now86 years old. To ensure continuedsupport for the organization in thecoming years, a social marketingunit was established in May 2000.Headed by Jovel Patricio, its func-tions are fund sourcing, promotion,public relations, and documentation/data base and volunteers develop-ment. The unit is in charge of pro-motional materials like brochures,leaflets for special projects, andmonthly updates, among others.

Proposals for local and foreigngrants are sent to contacts sourcedfrom ERDA’s director y of donors,friends of Fr. Tritz in Europe, referralsof Fr. Tritz’ contacts, and local govern-ment leaders. In 1998, 16 proposalswere prepared and submitted to five in-ternational funding agencies and 11 pri-vate foundations. All proposals wereapproved.

From August to September 2000,the SMU solicited around P77,000 fromlocal individuals and business estab-lishments. They sent some 30 solicita-tion letters, and received favorableresponses from 15 local donors. “Wewere discouraged when the answer toour letter was ‘regrets’. But this did not

stop us from asking. Instead, wethought of other strategies to get theirsupport,” Patricio says.

She adds, “Most [local] companiesdo not know ERDA nor Fr. Tritz. So weplanned an information campaign tar-geting 300 companies in 2000.”

ERDA’s fund raising strategies in-clude approaching companies whosetarget market is children. “Most com-panies usually give during Christmastime. There are donors that give gen-erously even though we do not knowthem. If it is for children, most peoplewould easily give,” says Patricio. Real-izing that some companies wouldrather give in kind than in cash, shehas adopted another strategy—ap-proaching companies whose productsor services are specifically needed byERDA’s beneficiaries.

In June 1999, ERDA’s children ben-eficiaries presented a theater produc-tion at the Shangri-la Plaza Mall uponthe invitation of the French Embassyfor its festival, “French Spring in Ma-nila.” The production was a depictionof the realities faced by child workers.

Patricio narrates, “Some peoplewho watched the children approachedus after the performance. They told usthey wanted to help the children. We

“We want the youngergeneration to develop a sense ofsocial responsibility.”


invited them to visit our center to spendtime with the children.”

She continues, “Nahihiya kami nakumita rito sa children’s theater (weare reluctant to earn income from thechildren’s theater presentations). Weare advocating children’s rights, so wewould just like to invite people to watchthe performance. Our aim is for peopleto be aware of the issues affecting thechildren and later on, be challenged tohelp.”

Patricio stresses the importance ofteaching the young to give: “We wantthe younger generation to develop asense of social responsibility. In thefuture, when they have their own jobs,they would know how to help organi-zations like us. Even the poor children,we gave them opportunities to contrib-

The Difference We Made

�. . . And thus, there it was, our modest fund�a few pesos that means more than its

worth. I called up the ERDA Foundation and told them that we would like to donate our humble

amount to their organization. . . I was received with so much enthusiasm. In fact, so much so

that their Founding President volunteered to receive our donation himself. All in all, we have

P10,000 blessings to share. And what is so special about it is that it came from us. No big

deal, people would say. But I guess that is what makes our gift matter more, because it was

given by 418 more generous souls�the Seniors 2000.

When I formally turn over this amount in a few minutes, it will not mean P10,000 anymore.

It will mean 6 human beings who are getting another shot at life because we think that they

should. This is a cliché most of you would not want to hear but almost all of us take for

granted, this shot we have at life, education. A shot a lot of kids out there would want to have

very much.�

Reprinted from The ERDA Courier, 2000 from a speech by Rafael D. Del Rosario, Represen-tative of the Students Affairs Central Body, La Salle Greenhills.

ute.” At the ERDA Tech, a vocationalsecondary school, for example, the stu-dent contributed a peso each for theconstruction of the school. “Althoughthe school was put up with foreignfunds, the children know that they havecontributed something. Bata pa sila,kailangang mas maintindihan nilanglalo ang pagbibigay (young as they are,the children have to understand the im-portance of giving).”

Students from private schools likeSan Beda, De La Salle and Ateneo HighSchool, and foreign students who visitthe center are encouraged to spendtime with the children. “Seeing theplight of the children motivates themto later on give financially,” Patricioconcludes.

Perhaps the best example of this


is the graduating class of 2000 of LaSalle Greenhills. Their project to sup-port the education of the less fortunategenerated P10,000 which was laterturned over to Fr. Tritz during thebatch’s Baccalaureate and RecognitionDay on March 16, 2000. ◗

Patricio, Jovel and Lorna Gabad. Interview byMelinda A. Bonga. 1999 and 2000.


FAR EAST BROADCASTING COMPANY

Meeting the personal needs of donors

Case 2

In 1946, after World War II, threeAmericans—a war veteran, a radiobroadcaster, and a church pastor—formed the Far East BroadcastingCompany (FEBC) to spread the gospelof Jesus Christ in Asia by radio. Theybuilt a 1,000–watt transmitter inKaruhatan, Valenzuela, and in June1948, FEBC Philippines’ first station,KZAS, went on air.

Today, FEBC International has 30transmitting stations that broadcast inmore than 150 languages and dialects.FEBC Philippines manages 17 of thesestations and broadcasts in more than80 languages and dialects, reaching alarge portion of Asia—China, Thailand,Cambodia, Vietnam, India, the Philip-pines, Laos, Indonesia, and Myanmar.FEBC broadcasts also reach listeners inRussia, Ukraine, central Asia, and partsof Africa and the Middle East.

FEBC has established nine radiostations in the Philippines, two of whichare based in Metro Manila (DZAS andDZFE-FM). The provincial stations arelocated in Marbel (DXKI), Legaspi(DWAS), Davao (DXFE), Bacolod(DYVS), Iba (DWRF), Cebu (DYFR-FM),and Zamboanga (DXAS). Prior to set-ting up the radio stations in the sevenprovinces, FEBC generated support inthe areas by linking with the churchesand the Christian community in order

to form radio advisory councils.

The FEBC vision is that “by theyear 2000, FEBC Philippines [will be]reaching the whole country with rel-evant, trendsetting, and effective pro-gramming carried by a competitivesignal so that listeners who respond toChrist are provided immediate follow-up through viable and vital networkingwith the local church and other Chris-tian organizations.”

The company uses varied radioprogramming formats—music, news,information, Bible teaching, and evan-gelistic, among others—towards itsmission: to develop radio program-ming and deliver it to listeners in Asiain such a way that:

◗ they are moved toward JesusChrist and into the fellowship ofHis church;

◗ they come to know Him as Savior,Lord and King; and

◗ they follow His teachings and livein obedience to Him as membersof God’s kingdom, and of a localfellowship of believers.

FEBC stations are non-profit andnoncommercial. In the United States,FEBC’s mission of bringing “Christ tothe world by radio” was supported byProtestant churches and individuals


early on. Locally, however, it was onlyin 1950 that the Manila office of FEBC

Philippines started to get the help ofPhilippine evangelical Christianchurches. There have also been corpo-rate gifts—but not in exchange for air-time or adver tisements. The radiostations in the seven provinces havetheir own fund raising activities.

At present, FEBC Manila’soperational budget is around P6 milliona month. The local development officeraises half of this budget for domesticoperations. The other half comes fromoverseas contributions that supporttheir international broadcasts.Although FEBC Manila has a long-range goal of becoming self-sufficient,theirs is an international mission thatwelcomes contributions from othercountries.

From experience, FEBC has iden-tified December and June as the mostproductive months for fund raising.The lowest season for giving, on theother hand, is from March to May.

In 1994, the total number of giftsor donations to the FEBC was 8,751,amounting to P15 million. This wentdown to 8,165 in 1995, 8,733 in 1996,7,456 in 1997, and 8,371 in 1998. How-ever, the total amounts increased toP18 million in 1995, P33 million in 1996and 1997, and P27 million in 1998. Theaverage gift size thus increased fromP1,702 in 1994 to P2,223 in 1995, P3,776in 1996, P4,443 in 1997, and P3,200 in1998.

A budget crisis proved the impor-tance of being self-sufficient. During

the last quarter of 1999, FEBC experi-enced reductions in local and overseascontributions. With a deficit of aroundP2 million in November 1999, cost-cut-ting measures were implemented. Thesituation became a cause for intensiveefforts at fund raising, which enabledthe company to get out of the criticallevel by January 2000.

Petite Calica, FEBC’s developmentofficer, has been with the company formore than 20 years now. She notes thatdespite such financial crises, many ofthe FEBC staff stay on. They are moti-vated by a strong sense of mission, andthey know that their work has eternalvalue.

FEBC’s nine-member board in-cludes businessmen and pastors. Theythemselves do not raise funds, as theirwork focuses on consultancy andpolicy-making. Fund raising projectscannot be implemented without theirapproval.

FEBC Manila sources funds fromindividual donors, a few foundations,and some 500 local evangelical Chris-tian churches. The majority of the in-dividual donors are DZAS listeners,while some are church-based. No studyexists on the extent of giving from eachdenomination to the FEBC ministry.

Calica describes the top of FEBC’sdonor pyramid as composed of around2,000 individuals and foundations con-tributing almost 80 percent of thefunds. At the base are about 10,000donors. “Maybe this is the key toFEBC’s sustainability. Sometimes wethink about whether we should concen-


trate our efforts at the top or at the baseof the donor pyramid. Even thoughthere are fewer people at the top, theygive a lot. But they are not permanent[donors]. If one pulls out and he is giv-ing a million, you will really be affected.So you want to strike a balance. Youdevelop the bottom more becausethere are many of them, and eventhough some pull out, you’re notgreatly affected.”

In FEBC’s experience, when onemajor donor pulls out, another donorcomes in. Calica adds, “With God’sprovidence, the number of donors atthe top [of the donor pyramid] hasbeen stable. There are really loyaldonors.”

When Calica joined FEBC’s devel-opment division in 1980, there wereabout 1,500 names in their mailing listof regular donors, with an average in-crease of 1,000 new names every year.Out of this list, around 20 to 30 percentrespond with positive results by givingcash donations. However, most of theseare one-time donors.

A regular donor is one included inthe mailing list if s/he has given morethan once. In 1999, the list already hadmore than 18,000 names as a result ofvarious activities undertaken by the or-ganization intended to raise funds and

develop new friends for FEBC. Althoughthe special events are not expected tobring in as much as the direct mail ap-proach, they generate the names of pro-spective donors.

Examples of special events includean annual golf tournament amongchurches and other organizations inMetro Manila, an art exhibit featuringthe works of Christian painters, a semi-nar on balancing family and businessentitled “Walking the Tightrope” con-ducted by Harold Sala and FrancisKho, and an annual open house duringFEBC’s anniversary in June.

“Minister to those who minister toyou,” is one of FEBC’s principles in fundraising. Listeners who have benefitedfrom their broadcasts have expressedthe desire to be part of the FEBC min-istry, even sharing what they think willfurther improve their programs. Thecompany has continued to strive to ca-ter to listeners’ needs not only spiritu-ally, but also in other aspects of theirlives. In an issue of Signal, an in-housepublication, FEBC’s President PastorCarlos L. Peña wrote, “During the1980s, DZAS shifted its programmingso it could target the practical needs ofour listeners and display Christianityin action.”

The listeners of DZAS share theirconcerns and problems through mailand phone calls, while others person-ally visit the stations to hand in theirprayer requests. Some of these testi-monies are then published in Signal.A special program called “Heartline”was born out of the concern for the

“Minister to those who ministerto you,” is one of their principlesin fund raising.


personal lives of the listeners. “Now onits 14th year of service, the daily pro-gram has touched countless lives andhas played a part in remarkable testi-monies,” declares Peña.

Regardless of the size of the dona-tion, FEBC sends their donors a receipt,a welcome letter if the donor is a first-time giver, and informational materialsabout FEBC. A donor also receives amonthly prayer letter/report, a quar-terly newsletter, and a calendar. FEBC

also remembers their donors’ birth-days and anniversaries by sendingthem greeting cards. When donorssend their prayer requests, FEBC re-plies by assuring them that prayers arebeing offered for their petitions. Ac-cording to Calica, some donors are

amazed and touched by the thank youletters because they are personalized.

FEBC continues planning forsustainability. “We don’t want the finan-cial dips to happen again. We are in theprocess of learning and we cannot al-ways use what worked in the past. Weneed to be responsive to changes,” saysCalica. Upcoming plans include the“Friend of FEBC” campaign to recruitnew friends for FEBC who might be-come donors. This will start with alaunch among the FEBC staff, motivat-ing their community to join in the ef-fort of gathering new friends. ◗

Calica, Priscila. Interview by Melinda A. Bonga.1999 and 2000.


The Philippine Eagle Foundation(PEF) was a government project in thelate 1970s directed primarily to the res-cue and rehabilitation of the Philippineeagle (Pithecophaga jef feryi). The sitethen was in Mt. Apo, Mindanao, wherea cage was constructed for the rescuedbirds. Since the government lacked thetechnical expertise to rehabilitate thebirds, it relied on foreign personnel forassistance. Peace Corps volunteers alsohelped but volunteer teams changed af-ter their tour of duty finished.

Meanwhile, the country was los-ing its timber resources, which conse-quently affected the eagles’ habitat.With the eagle population declining atan alarming rate, the government em-barked on captive breeding. At thetime, very little was known about thespecies and its behavior in the wild,much less in captivity. This was aggra-vated by lack of funds, making the gov-ernment end the project in 1987.

Since then, the PEF has continuedas a non-government organization com-mitted to saving the endangered Phil-ippine eagle and its rainforest habitat.Its work is divided broadly into tworoles—in situ and ex situ conservationof the Philippine eagle. It characterizesits programs as “applying an integratedand holistic approach to the manage-ment of the species. In the broadest

sense, this means balancing technologi-cal solutions and conservation actionwith socioeconomic and developmentgoals.”

After its termination as a govern-ment project in 1987, the PEF was sus-tained by the efforts of some membersof its staff. One of them was DennisSalvador, an agricultural economistby profession. He became involvedwith the Foundation in 1987, assum-ing the position of deputy director lateron, and in 1991, executive director.

Salvador relates, “It was a very dif-ficult project and the money for the op-eration was cut of f in 1987. A coregroup of eight people decided to con-tinue with the project on a purely vol-untary basis for about a year. Thoughthere were small individual contribu-tions, the money was used in feedingthe eagles and doing the work. Therewere no salaries to speak of at all.”

In 1988, the PEF moved from Mt.Apo National Park to a two-hectare lo-cation in Malagos, Davao City, ownedby the Davao City Water District.Through their first foreign grant fromthe McArthur Foundation, they wereeventually able to acquire eight hect-ares of forest land in Malagos alsoowned by the water district. Theynamed the eight-hectare complex thePhilippine Eagle Center. It currently

PHILIPPINE EAGLE FOUNDATION

Developing “not-so-usual” donors

Case 3


houses 14 Philippine eagles, variousbirds of prey, owls, and other endemicPhilippine wildlife. Two Philippineeagles, Pag-asa (Hope) and Pagkakaisa(Unity), were bred there in 1992 andare now reaching maturity.

The Foundation also went intoother programs aside from biologicalresearch and conservation. Indeed,when an organization like the PEF com-mits itself to promoting the survival ofan endangered bird species, it needsto think about how to preserve thebiodiversity of the forests where thebird lives and how to educate peopleon the sustainable use of forest re-sources. Their experience with com-munities led them to conceptualizeprograms that include captive breed-ing management, field research, com-munity-based enterprise development,and conservation education. The PEF

star ted community-based resourcemanagement even before it caught fireamong other environmental groups.They worked with upland communitieswhere the idea was to get the localpeople out of kaingin (swidden farm-ing) and illegal logging by providingalternative forms of livelihood.

In 1992, PEF caught the attentionof the nation when it introduced Pag-asa, the first eagle bred in captivity. Itattracted support for their organiza-tion. Salvador says, “I like to think thatpeople want to join us because theirmoney goes where it should go, thatis, direct conservation action. You willnever see us involved in a lot of policydiscussions. We’re not so much on ad-

vocacy. We have linkages with otherNGOs who do the lobbying.” He alsobelieves that people are attracted to theFoundation because of the results theyproduce: “Our philosophy is to concen-trate on action and not on advocacywork.”

Over the course of time, work onthe Philippine eagle became associatedwith PEF. They were able to link up withother organizations dealing with birdsof prey such as the McArthur Founda-tion, whose support they got for eightyears.

PEF’s work with community-basedconservation was later developed intoa full blown program. This was sup-ported by the Philippine AustralianCommunity Assistance Program(PACAP). PACAP’s grant of P794,000 in1999 was directed at building the localcapacity of a marginalized Bagobofarming community in Mitondo, Mt.Apo National Park. The project focuseson strengthening the local communityorganization through training, seedcapital build-up, and income generationthrough enterprise development. It will

“It is heartening to note thatthere is now an increasingawareness among our captainsof industry that profitabilityneed not conflict with the needto protect our environment.”


also be made to improve agro-forestrymanagement practices and generalfarm-to-market operations of the localfarmers.

The Philippine Eagle Center inMalagos serves as an educational re-source for furthering public awarenessand understanding of wildlife and thenatural environment. In 1998, visitorsnumbered 194,595. While the primarytarget of education programs at theCenter is the youth, adult visitor traf-fic has increased and now represents52 percent of total visitors. In 1994, gatereceipts represented 17 percent of to-tal annual revenues, and in 1998,around 11 percent.

The Foundation also operates anumber of training and production fa-cilities—one in Davao and two inBukidnon. The funds generated arechanneled to general operations. “Weneed to develop these centers becausewe realize that we cannot rely on grantsforever,” says Salvador.

Contributions from funding orga-nizations such as the McArthur Foun-dation, PACAP, and the Foundation forthe Philippine Environment, formed asubstantial part of PEF’s revenues forsome time. In 1995, however, fundingcame primarily from the private busi-ness sector, as the result of an inten-sive fundraising compaign initiated byPEF’s board of trustees.

The Foundation notes that work-ing with the corporate business sectorcan be very rewarding. “Indeed it isheartening to note that there is now anincreasing awareness among our cap-

tains of industry that profitability neednot conflict with the need to protect ourenvironment,” says Jose Facundo, PEF

Treasurer.

Facundo further reports that dur-ing the fiscal year of 1995, revenuesamounted to P8,531,355, a 40 percentincrease from 1994. Seventy-three per-cent of total income came from grantsand donations, 14 percent from gatereceipts of the Philippine Eagle Cen-ter, and the rest were from fund raisinginitiatives, membership contributions, andothers.

PEF continually targets thecorporate sector to expand themembership base. An example ofcorporate support to the Foundation isa project undertaken by Del MontePhilippines. Packaging labels carriedinformation about the Philippine Eagle,and every peso raised by PEF wasmatched by Del Monte. Anotherexample is Pilipinas Bank’s “Wildlifesaver’s account.” For every P1,000deposit to the bank, the bankcontributed P100 to the Foundation.

PEF has also established the“Adopt an Eagle/Nest” Program,which raises $600 to $800 each, and thePag-asa Support Fund, which raises$2000. Recently, the PhilippineNational Bank adopted Pangarap(Dream), the latest Philippine eagleborn in captivity, and the first naturalpairing at the Philippine Eagle Center.The Bank agreed to provide themaintenance and upkeep of Pangarapand the construction of its breedingenclosure.


PEF is optimistic about the sup-port of companies, especially thosewhose operations af fect the environ-ment. “We’re working towardschanging the scene in society [but]a lot of things never happen becauseNGOs get into conflict with the busi-ness side. [My attitude is] Let usengage their par tnership and seewhere it goes, and hopefully in the

process, change will occur withintheir organization. By workingthrough their principal, we hopeawareness will really come to theorganization.” ◗

Salvador, Dennis. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. Davao City. 15 March 2000.


In the early 1960s, Dr. Leopoldo V.Toralballa, a Filipino mathematician,lobbied with the highest levels of gov-ernment to establish the PhilippineScience High School (PSHS). Afterstudying the educational system of theBronx High School of Science in NewYork City, where his son was enrolled,he realized that there should be sucha school in the Philippines. His ideawas readily endorsed by the American-Philippine Science Foundation, thenheaded by Dr. Carlos P. Romulo. Giventhe nature of its organization and func-tion, the Science Foundation of thePhilippines, headed by Dr. JuanSalcedo, Jr., became the logical coun-terpart entity. The act establishing thePSHS was passed by the Philippine Con-gress in 1963 and signed into law in the

same year by then President DiosdadoMacapagal. The National Science De-velopment Board (NSDB) under theleadership of Dr. Juan Salcedo, Jr.implemented the law when it openedthe PSHS on September 5, 1964.

PSHS became the country’s pre-mier science and technology highschool for gifted youth. An attachedagency of the Department of Scienceand Technology (DOST), it offers afour-year secondar y education pro-gram with great emphasis on scienceand technology. It admits a select num-ber of grade school graduates into itsannual scholarship program—240 atthe Diliman campus and 90 in each ofits regional campuses in Davao, Iloilo,Leyte, Nueva Vizcaya, Camarines Sur,and Lanao del Norte.

PHILIPPINE SCIENCE HIGH SCHOOL FOUNDATION, INC.

Involving stakeholders

Case 4

The Foundation recognizes the important role that the PSHS plays in preparing the gifted Filipino

youth for a Science and Technology�driven global environment.

Working on the premise that Science and Technology hold the solutions to many ills of this

age, it is committed to support the vehicle that will provide the country its future scientists,

engineers, science teachers, health workers, computer specialists, inventors, agriculturists,

and the like.

The Foundation is tasked to help bridge the gap between available government funds and the

actual financial requirements needed by the PSHS to maintain its educational excellence.

Thus, its two basic functions are fund raising and fund management. It raises funds by tapping

external sources of assistance, and it prudently invests and manages these funds so as to derive

maximum benefits from them.


Suppor t from the Philippine-American Science Foundation ended in1974. There was a move among the fac-ulty and staff to start a new foundationbut it was not until three years later thatthings started taking shape: At a meet-ing of the school’s Parents-TeachersAssociation (PTA), a parent asked, “Forsuch bright young scholars, is the PSHS

able to recruit and retain the best teach-ers?” Concerned with helping the PSHS

maintain its tradition of excellence, theparents organized the Philippine Sci-ence High School Foundation, Inc.(PSHSFI) and incorporated it in Decem-ber 1978. Augusto L. de Leon, the par-ent who star ted it all, was electedchairman of the board of trustees.

The Foundation’s primary con-cern during its early years was theestablishment of “Teaching Chairs” tohelp the school attract and retain thebest teachers. It provided grants tosubsidize faculty research, textbookwriting, and other activities that enhanceprofessional growth. After “TeachingChairs,” the Foundation launched thefollowing chairs and programs:

◗ Ser vice Chairs benefit facultymembers who assume temporaryadministrative functions sinceteaching chairs are given to onlyfull-time teachers.

◗ Activity Chairs augment the fi-nancial requirements for facultyand student developmentprojects—seminars, school exhib-its, field trips, interscholastic com-petitions, sports and recreationalfacilities, among others—andgrounds improvement.

◗ Special Faculty Chairs benefithighly qualified PSHS teachersbridging the gap between the sal-ar y paid by excellent privateschools and what the school canoffer.

◗ the Godparent Program benefitsscholars through private scholar-ships, stipend supplementation,student assistantships and sum-mer internships.

◗ Special Studies Programs incorpo-rate funding for special courses inareas of national development in-terest like energy, environmentand ecology, electronics, manufac-turing and telecommunications.

◗ the Special Projects Program aug-ments the government budget inupgrading the physical plant facili-ties such as laboratories, thesports complex, and dormitories.

The PSHS Foundation describes itsfunds accumulated over the years as“little drops of rain that gradually filleda pond.” From a capital fund of P4,500in March 1978, the Foundation wasable to raise P32,412 at the time of in-corporation in December 1978. After21 years, its assets totaled P20,520,297.This fund was generated from mem-bership fees, proceeds from raffles andmovie premieres, endowments fromphilanthropic individuals, businessfirms, and socio-civic organizations inthe Philippines and abroad, donationsfrom parents and alumni, and invest-ment income.

Donations to the Foundation areused to support the different programs.


Among the most popular is the God-parent Program.

Dr. Cleofe M. Bacungan, PSHS di-rector for 19 years and concurrentpresident and vice chairman of theFoundation, relates how this programbegan. “Before the regional campuseswere established, PSHS Diliman hadstudents from the provinces. Many ofthem were children of fishermen andsmall-time farmers.” Bacungan esti-mates that around 25 percent of PSHS

students today belong to low-incomefamilies in need of financial support.

A socioeconomic crisis plaguedthe country in 1983, severely affectingthe families. “The students’ stipendswere not increased and many studentshad to skip meals. Some parentsthought of pulling their children out ofthe school. Others asked the PTA forloans and financial assistance, butthese were not available,” Bacunganadds. The problem was brought to theattention of the PSHS Foundation, andthe Godparent Program was set up.

The board’s friends from the cor-porate sector became the first batch ofPSHS “godparents.” It turned out thatsome of them had actually been NSDB

(now the DOST) scholars in their col-lege days.

“Many other ‘godparents’ havesince joined the program,” statesBacungan. “Some of them are also ex-ecutives of companies; others are PSHS

parents who simply would like to giveback their own children’s stipends tobenefit the more needy students.” Sup-port from corporations and groups was

solicited mostly by the trustees, par-ents, friends of the school, and alumni.

The Foundation enjoys continuoussupport for its Godparent Program. In1994, the program was strengthenedwith a scholarship donation from the LaTondeña Foundation, Inc. The com-pany sponsored five scholars up totheir graduation from PSHS, with thenumber of scholars increasing everyschool year. By school year 2000–2001,its total outlay will be P5,348,242. Oncethe project ends, the PSHS hopes thatanother company would follow suit.

PSHS Class ‘80 likewise pledgedto sponsor around 70 godchildren inschool year 2000–2001 on its 20th an-niversary. Support for each “godchild”is P4,000 a year. With this pledge,Bacungan feels that the burden of so-liciting is shifting to the alumni whowant to give something back to theirschool.

Funds sourced by the Foundationare likewise used for the different chairprograms. The Foundation also givesFaculty Merit Awards—a monthlyhonorarium for PSHS faculty based ontheir per formance rating. Theseawards benefited 70 teachers in schoolyear 1999–2000.

Support for the Foundation’s pro-grams comes from individuals, fami-lies, corporations, and alumni classes.“They give because they believe inwhat the school is doing, or as a signof gratitude for what the PSHS has donefor them,” Bacungan explains. Some-times donations are made as Honor-ar y/Memorial Gifts—to honor or


remember a teacher, student, relative,or friend. It is described by the PSHS

Foundation as “a generous andthoughtful way to recognize a person’slife and accomplishment.”

The PSHS Foundation has found aseemingly irrepressible source offunds—the PSHS alumni. PSHS Class ‘69began the tradition of giving class giftsto the Foundation on its 20th gradua-tion anniversar y. They donatedP103,217 for a Professorial-ResearchChair. Succeeding 20th jubilarians fol-lowed suit, raising a minimum ofP100,000 for the school. Class ‘72, how-ever, donated P360,000 in cash andcomputer equipment when their turncame.

Graduating classes sometimesraise funds under the leadership ofthe senior class or student govern-ment adviser. As students, Class ‘91donated P50,000 and Class ‘93 raisedP30,500, both for an Activity Chair inresearch. The 1995–1996 Student Al-liance raised money for an ActivityChair in research in the amount ofP35,000.

Another source of income for theFoundation is the interest earned fromits investments. The Foundation’scharter mandates that the capital fundscannot be touched: “Only the interestearnings from the investments thereofcan be utilized for the specifiedprojects. The unswerving policy for theinvestment of funds has always beenand continues to be ‘security overyield’.” A Finance Committee overseesinvestments. In 1999, 39 percent of the

Foundation’s resources came from itsincome on investments.

The Foundation conducts a mem-bership drive among PSHS studentsand their parents, alumni, and PSHSFI

friends. Life membership costs a mini-mum of P2,000, while annual member-ship costs P250 for regular membersand P150 for students.

The board of trustees is made upof eight PSHS alumni, five parents, andtwo present and former staff members.In recent years, PSHS alumni have beengradually taking over the reins of theFoundation. With most of the pioneerparent-trustees now either busy withother concerns or retired, the mantleof leadership has passed on to thealumni and some younger parents.

The families of PSHS students arethe major fund givers and fund raisersof the Foundation. How did the Foun-dation encourage them to become suchstrong supporters?

Bacungan recalls, “Bonding isver y impor tant. We had yearlythanksgiving celebrations during theawarding of the Faculty Chairs towhich the donors were invited. Astrong camaraderie and fellowshipdeveloped among the families through

The PSHS Foundation has founda seemingly irrepressible source

of funds—the PSHS alumni.


the years, until all parents became partof the Foundation.”

The PSHS community recognizesBacungan’s efforts. The PSHS FamilyYearbook reads: “One valuable legacythat has endeared Dr. Bacungan tomany PSHS families is her recognitionof the role of parents as partners of theschool in the education of their chil-dren. The PSHS is one school where thedoors are always open to parents, andtheir involvement in school activitiesis earnestly encouraged.”

“Our parents have friends in thecorporate world, so they are the oneswe encourage to solicit,” Bacunganstates. Indeed, solicitations come fromPSHS families, alumni, their friends,and the network of their friends. “Sowe have many sources of solicitationwho have a stake in the school. We al-ready have alumni who have childrenin the school, but there are others whohave no immediate stake except thatthey believe in the PSHS cause oftraining gifted children in scienceand technology.”

During the early years, the Foun-dation ran the usual fund raisingprojects—raffles and movie benefits.But it eventually veered away fromthese since they entailed much work—selling tickets and accounting for themwith very little returns. The Founda-tion now concentrates on personal so-licitations, supported by media articlesand advertisements.

Donations can be in cash, kind,and service. Material donations canbe:

◗ office furniture, equipment, andsupplies,

◗ laboratory equipment and supplies,◗ recreation facilities for dormitories,◗ printing supplies,◗ school and office supplies,◗ construction supplies for physical

plant facilities, and◗ plants and gardening supplies for

school surroundings.

Service donations can be:

◗ the development of ideas relatedto educational excellence atPSHS,

◗ project study preparation, prepara-tion of engineering plans andspecifications, and legal adviceand assistance,

◗ project management or leadershipin specific PSHS projects,

◗ funds solicitation, and◗ establishing contacts with agen-

cies such as:• Congress for reasonable budget

allocation to the PSHS,• the Department of Budget and

Management for fund release,• the Department of Public Works

and Highways for the construc-tion of physical plant facilities,and

• local government for security.

The Foundation’s rules on dona-tions are as follows:

1. Donors may specify their intentthrough a deed of donation. Unlessspecified to be otherwise, cash do-nations are treated as capital fund.


Only its interest income is spent insupport of programs.

2. A donor is tapped only once unlesshe indicates willingness to donatemore.

3. Alumni (especially jubilarianbatches) and their parents areencouraged to raise capital fundsto car r y out their priorityprojects.

4. Every graduating class and thebatch parents are encouraged togive to the PSHS, through the Foun-dation, the amount of P100,000 as aclass contribution to help maintaineducational excellence. ◗

Bacungan, Cleofe. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. 1999 and 2000.


In 1998, more than 9,325 cases ofbreast cancer were reported in thePhilippines. With 3,057 deaths attrib-uted to breast cancer alone, it is theleading cancer killer among women.Like most diseases, early detection canlead to better chances of survival.

An organization that provides in-formation on the early detection of can-cer is the Philippine Cancer Society,Inc. (PCSI). Its mission is “to advanceknowledge about cancer, combat thespread of the disease, and bring reliefto those afflicted with cancer.” It wasregistered with the Securities and Ex-change Commission on 22 December1956.

To attain its objectives, the PCSIcarries out a program of activities in:

◗ Education and Information – tocreate awareness of cancer pre-vention and control in the generalpublic through film showings, lec-tures and conferences;

◗ Service–to provide pain relief andpsycho-social support for the ter-minally ill, indigent cancer patientand his/her family, free breast andpelvic examination through mo-bile clinics, and consultations/re-ferrals for patients needing furthermedical attention; and

◗ Research–to support cancer con-trol programs through the collec-

tion and recording of facts aboutcancer incidence, and other data.

The Society’s board of directors ismade up of eight doctors and seven lay-men. The board, as well as the councilof advisers and committee members,are all volunteers.

PCSI envisions itself to be “an or-ganization nationally known, nationallyrecognized and nationally situated asa provider of education, informationand training for cancer prevention andcontrol.” Two major areas of focuswere identified—strengthening theSociety’s existing nine provincial chap-ters, and promoting stronger linkageswith individuals and agencies withsimilar concerns. Anti-cancer mes-sages are relayed across the countrythrough radio,television, and print me-dia. The Society also has a CancerHotline and a Website.

The PCSI is financed and main-tained through membership dues, do-nations, and contributions to annualfund campaigns. In 1998, it had a totalrevenue of P12 million.

One of the pioneer members of thePCSI was the late R. R. dela Cruz.Trained in the United States in fundraising, he was the Society’s main fundraiser for almost 40 years. When hedied of prostate cancer, his wife, Myrna

PHILIPPINE CANCER SOCIETY

Connecting with experience

Case 5


dela Cruz, joined PCSI as its fund cam-paign director. Her team of four istasked with preparing and following upsolicitation letters, placing advertise-ments, and collecting—in short, shesays, “everything.”

Dela Cr uz says, “In 2000, westarted a campaign for the PerpetualEndowment Fund. What we did was todonate in small amounts every monthand specify where this is going to beused. In my case, [because] my hus-band died of prostate cancer, my fam-ily donated [to help] people withprostate cancer.”

“We wrote to people [whose] fam-ily members died of cancer, but the re-sponse was not so encouraging. Ouradvertisement at the Philippine Starcomes out every other day. But we re-ceive very few responses,” she adds.

Currently, their endowment fundhas reached the amount of P172,000collected from 33 donors givingmonthly, yearly, or one-time donations.

There have been instances where fami-lies whose loved ones died of cancerrequest relatives and friends to donateto the PCSI instead of giving flowers.

Dela Cruz’ extensive experience infund raising—not just for the PCSI butfor other organizations as well—hasproven to be invaluable. She is able toidentify what causes donors wouldmost likely support. “It seems difficultto raise funds for organizations whosecause is not health-related,” she opines,saying that people would give if theysee that the result is something as con-crete as the saving of a life.

There have been people who sup-port the PCSI for a curious reason—they think their help will somehow“immunize” them from cancer. DelaCruz recalls a singer who would offerher help for free, singing at specialevents because she did not want tohave cancer.

Dela Cruz stresses the importanceof the board in raising funds, saying that

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it is not just the organization’s cause thatmatters, but the people behind the or-ganization. She states, “The boardshould be influential and should haveconnections. Today so many people areasking for funds. A secretary who doesnot recognize the signatory’s name in asolicitation letter will just throw the let-ter in the trash can.”

A strategy Dela Cruz employs isto tap volunteer fund raisers. These areoften friends of the board who knowprospective donors. As an example, sherelates, “Every other year, this womanwill help us in fund raising. The nextyear, another woman will do it for us.They do this so there will be no con-flict in fund sourcing and no duplica-tion of efforts.”

Similarly, major donors shift theirfocus to other organizations once in awhile. Dela Cruz explains, “[Whenthey do this] They are saying, ‘I’ve beengiving you every year. I want to take abreak in giving to your organizationbecause I received a request which Icould not refuse.’”

She also realizes the importanceof cultivating working relationshipswith their fund raisers. She and herstaff go out of their way to providewhatever the volunteers need. “Since

they were the people who bring inmoney and also devote their precioustime to raise funds, we have to do ourbest to accomplish the work that is ex-pected from us.”

Most companies have included thePCSI in their charity budget—some, infact, have been supporting them forabout 40 years. According to DelaCruz, however, the economic crisis hasmade fund raising difficult. “The firstthing that corporations do [is] to cutcharity funds. When you send 500 let-ters, you are lucky if you get a responseof 70. Those who were giving bigamounts before would give very littlenowadays. Others begged off and de-clined this year, but probably they willgive next year.”

In exchange for these companies’support, the PCSI conducts free infor-mation dissemination for them. “It is agive-and-take relationship,” Dela Cruzexplains. “Regularly, our doctors visittheir offices. They bring our films andgive lectures.”

The PCSI seeks to make its ser-vices available in as many places as pos-sible. In 1998, there were already nineprovincial chapters throughout Luzon,Visayas and Mindanao. Like themother society, they were formed andare being maintained by civic leadersin the communities. Their goal is tohave at least one chapter in every re-gion in Luzon within the first decadeof the twenty-first century. ◗

Dela Cruz, Myrna. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. 1999 and 2000.

It is not just the organization’scause that matters, but the

people behind the organization.

57

Part 17 | Raising Money from the Sale

of Products and Services

AN ORGANIZATION’S INCOME from the sale of products and services canbe allocated to programs and operational costs that are not shoulderedby major donors. Generally, the cases show that the budget for staff sala-ries has to be sourced outside institutional grants—oftentimes, it comesfrom earned income.

When clients pay for services, they appreciate the programs more,and they become part of their own development. The experiences ofmost NGOs show that the cost of services can be shouldered by:

◗ individuals requiring the services;◗ individual donors cultivated by the NGOs themselves; and◗ the community from which the clientele come.

When NGOs market their services to a wider community, they havethe opportunity to shape or influence consumers’ attitudes. Their advo-cacy work could be infused with their services or products. Generally, allcases with earned income as an alternative source of funds have donemission-related services or sold products that were the result of theirprogram activities. ◗


ASSUMPTION SOCIO-EDUCATIONAL CENTER

Re-orienting people to pay for services

Case 6

Barrio Obrero in Iloilo City, alsocalled the “Working Man’s Village,”was the relocation site for the victimsof a series of fires that razed that areain 1961. During that time, some womenfrom the Auxiliary Missionaries of theAssumption, Inc. (AMA), composed ofalumnae of the Assumption Iloilo andtheir friends, were contemplating start-ing a project. They thought of buildinga retreat house but when they heard ofthe relocation of families in BarrioObrero, they shifted their focus andinstead put up the Assumption Socio-Educational Center (ASEC) in Bo.Obrero.

ASEC started as a pre-school in1967. The Assumption sisters, whomanaged the school, deemed theproject so successful that they set upthe next grade level, until the childrencompleted their elementary education.The school buildings were establishedthrough the donations of the alumnae,their friends and the families of theAssumption sisters.

In 1977, the Christian Child Wel-fare Association (CCWA) of Japan, anorganization that implements educa-tion and nutrition programs for chil-dren, chose to support Bo. Obrero.Funding from CCWA supported pro-grams like sponsorship for children’seducation, feeding, health education

for parents, and basic needs assistance.When CCWA withdrew its support as amajor donor in 1996, ASEC turned overmost of their programs to the localpeople’s organizations such as theGugma Kabug-usan Sang Kabuhi, Inc.(GKKI), a people’s health organization,and the Barrio Obrero Multi-PurposeCooperative, Inc. (BPMCI). ASEC’s edu-cational program has continuedthrough a sponsorship program sup-ported by a French NGO, and a social-ized tuition fee scheme.

“Although we lacked connectionswith people or agencies, we eventuallydeveloped our skills, credibility, andour own links,” says Heide Gustilo-Foulc, ASEC’s executive director, andone of its first graduates. She alsoheads the center’s fund raising office,which pools the efforts of their boardmembers, many of whom are alumnaeof the Assumption.

Foulc herself raises funds with herhusband, a French national and ASEC

volunteer. “I think we have manyFrench supporters because there is aFrenchman at the center. He becomesa ‘way’ to make this French group cometogether. It was easy to write to theFrench NGO and ask them to sponsorour children because a French personis present in the area.”

THE SALE OF PRODUCTS AND SERV ICES 59

“They have to do their share ifthey believe in the work of theschool.”

The French NGO started support-ing ASEC in 1989 by sponsoring 10 stu-dents. From 1989 to 1994, theycontributed P60,000 a year. From 1995to 1999, their contribution was aroundP500,000 a year. They are currentlysponsoring 186 children.

Every child enrolled in ASEC isincluded in its sponsorship program.The Sponsor Child Office (SCO) fa-cilitates the sponsor-child relation-ship. “We noticed that letter-writingenhances the relationship. Maybethe French sponsors are attracted toour program because it has a system andcommunication is regular. When wesend proposals and children’s lettersto France, they are already translatedin French because we have a French-man here at ASEC,” offers Foulc.

“We also implement strict rulesregarding the sponsor-child relation-ship. We do not let our families ask di-rectly for money and things from theFrench sponsor.” Letter-writing be-tween the child and his/her sponsor isa regular activity. The SCO sends spon-sors a letter at the start of the schoolyear, mid-year updates, Christmascards made at the center, and a year-end report (the children’s report cardsand ASEC’s annual report).

At one time, a class of French chil-dren sponsored 10 ASEC children.Sometimes these children would com-municate through overseas calls, withthe ASEC staff acting as mediator. “Weexhausted all possibilities for sponsor-ship—whether individuals, groups, ororganizations sponsoring a child, or

groups of children, or the center.” Foulcrelates.

A scholarship standard has beenset to motivate the students. A sixthgrade student should have a grade av-erage of at least 80 percent to get a highschool scholarship.

AMA members have also spon-sored ASEC’s students through theyears. The ASEC alumni of Bo. Obrero,for their part, have helped in the build-ing and repairing of classroom wallsand playgrounds, aside from sponsor-ing children. With the restructuring ofthe Alumni Association of ASEC (AAA),Bo.Obrero chapter, in December 1999,it has become easier to update thealumni and invite them to support theschool.

“Giving service to the communityis in our blood because we were ASEC

scholars from preparatory until gradesix. Every year we had sponsors andfriends who visited us, so we were re-minded that some people have helpedus to finish school. So when we grewup, we also wanted to do [the same]thing,” says Foulc.

Sponsorships by the French NGO,AMA members, and ASEC alumni haveenabled the school to survive withoutcharging full tuition fees to its students.For almost 25 years, each family who


had a child enrolled in ASEC contributedonly P50 a year. However, in 1994, ASEC

started to socialize its fees. “We decidedto [do this] since the families’ incomeshave increased and their living condi-tions have improved. But many familiesresisted because they think [the edu-cation provided by] our school is sup-posed to be free. Some parents movedtheir children to public schools, but af-ter one to two years some families re-enrolled their children in ASEC becausethey realized the difference in our in-struction. I think our curriculum is bet-ter than the government’s,” Foulcmaintains.

ASEC currently has an annual bud-get of P2.3 million for its education pro-gram. Of this amount, the family’scounterpart fund is 21 percent. “In 2000,our student population increased andhopefully it will increase further.” Foulcadds that re-orienting the parents ofASEC’s students to the socialized feeshas been a challenge. “But we wereconsistent and determined that this willbe a part of the parents’ education. Theyhave to do their share if they believe inthe work of the school.” ◗

Gustilo-Foulc, Heide. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. Bo. Obrero, Iloilo City. 9 Febru-ary 2000.


EMMANUEL FOUNDATION FOR SPECIAL CHILDREN

Socializing pricing

Case 7

When the baby of Dr. LQ1, anIloilo-based pediatrician, was diag-nosed with Down’s Syndrome, she didnot know where to go for help. Withher one month-old child, she went toManila. It was a trip she describes asfor the baby and for the mission. At thetime, she wanted to put up a specialschool. But being a medical practitio-ner, she decided to start with a diag-nostic center that could also of fermedical, paramedical, counseling andsupport services.

Dr. LQ recalls, “My husband andI put together all the circumstances ofour life—my profession, the level ofour economic stability, our position inour community where we can influence[people] and start something.” Citingthe absence of support services in theircommunity, she adds, “We wanted tohelp families in the same situation whowould not know what to do.”

The Emmanuel Center for SpecialChildren opened in September 1992.After six months, Dr. LQ teamed upwith a special education (SPED)teacher, and the center was able to offerspecial classes. At first, the centercatered only to children with Down’sSyndrome. Later on, children withother conditions—autism, cerebralpalsy, and hearing impairment—wereadmitted to the center.

The center charged a minimalmonthly fee, but it was sustained forsix years by Dr. LQ’s medical practice.She was idealistic in the beginning. “Ipresumed that if I provide something,the families will do their part,” shesays. “I thought that even withoutmoney, this could be done. If you hadtalked to me three years ago, perhapsyou would be hearing nothing butcomplaints.”

Maintaining the center became aproblem, but limiting enrollment wasnot an option. Finally, Dr. LQ’s SPED

consultant advised her to turn the cen-ter into a foundation to be supportedby the parents of the very children thecenter helped.

The parents were asked to investand contribute to the maintenance ofthe Foundation. They agreed, and in1998, the center became the EmmanuelFoundation for Special Children.

The Foundation has a five-memberboard composed of parents of the chil-dren enrolled in the special school.Most of them are also members of Ro-tary clubs and church groups in Iloilo,while others are engaged in variousbusinesses.

The Foundation is staffed by 12SPED teachers, six of whom were vol-unteers at the old center. Dr. LQ recalls


“We’ve been functioning like awelfare agency. It can’t go on

like that anymore.”

that as a private school, they were de-pendent on volunteers who, “even withno allowance, were very committed. “

At present, their teachers are re-ceiving salaries that are not only com-petitive but commensurate to theireducational attainment. Most of thefees paid by the students’ parents goesto teachers’ salaries—a total of aroundP80,000 a month.

The Foundation has Manila-basedvolunteer-consultants assisting in thedifferent programs free of charge. Dr.LQ considers the Foundation’s ser-vices unique in that they integrate func-tional, academic, and rehabilitationareas. The teacher also acts as a thera-pist. For children below six years old,stimulation is included in the rehabili-tation package, while for those over sixyears old, the focus is on functional aca-demics. The Foundation caters to chil-dren within five disability groups—Down’s Syndrome, autism, hearing im-pairment, cerebral palsy, and learningdisabilities.

Dr. LQ realizes that theFoundation’s financial problems stemfrom the very fact that it serves differ-ent disability groups. She has, in factbeen advised to focus on a specificgroup. Her response: “Nasa probinsiyakami, ‘di puwedeng mag-specialize (we

are in the province, we cannot afford tospecialize). But the crux of the prob-lem is just that—because we’re cater-ing to so many needs, our resources areso little, and we [run the risk] of drain-ing our resources.”

The Emmanuel Foundation hastwo sources of income—operatingfunds from monthly fees, and capitalfunds from annual membership feesand fund raising activities. Theoperating fund is around P120,000 amonth computed at 40 children payingthe full amount of P2,400 each, and 20children paying a subsidized fee. Theircapital fund amounts to P200,000 whichcomes from annual membership feesand fund raising activities. Of the totalannual capital fund, an estimated 60percent comes from the parents’ fundraising ef forts (special events), 20percent from individual donations andorganizations, and 10 percent from theboard members.

Special events organized by the par-ents of students enrolled in Emmanuelraise not only funds but awareness forthe Foundation and its cause. A recentbelen (nativity scene) presentation in alocal department store produced roughlyP40,000 and the commitment of the storeowner to continue with the activity in thecoming years. A Valentine’s Day eventin 1998 raised P30,000. Occasional per-formances by the children themselves atRotary Club events have raised P15,000to P60,000, what Dr. LQ describes ashulog ng langit (blessings from heaven).

Capital expenses like school re-pairs and materials, teacher training,


seminars for caregivers, and plane faresfor consultants are paid for by an an-nual membership fee of P1,200 to theFoundation. As per policy, the parentsof every child enrolled in the schoolbecome members of the Foundation.In addition, they pay a tuition fee ofP2,400 a month per child for theschool’s monthly operating ex-penses—salaries, bills, and materials.The estimated cost is pro-rated amongtheir average enrollment.

The tuition fees cover the child’sspecial education which focuses onfunctional living towards indepen-dence. According to Dr. LQ, the fullcost of taking care of a special child can-not be estimated as each child isunique, and thus his/her needs vary.

Aside from this, Emmanuel’s stu-dents incur other expenses. There arechildren who have to see the doctorevery week. There are others who haveto commute to school. Some childrenwho come from faraway towns, suchas Capiz, have to pay for their boardand lodging during weekdays.

There have also been instanceswhere children could not return toschool because of medical problemsand the Foundation had to forego col-lecting their tuition fees. Families whocannot pay the whole amount are re-quired to pay 50 percent of the fees, todiscourage a dole-out mentality. TheFoundation plans to look for sponsorsto pay for the monthly fees for thesefamilies. Those who cannot pay eventhe counterpart fund are referred togovernment facilities.

The board has adopted a strategyto control delinquent payment—fortwo months of non-payment, the SPED

programs for the child will be stopped.Dr. LQ feels that parents become re-miss in paying the fees because theyknow they can always plead or bargainwith the Foundation. “It pains us tocarry out the penalty. But we have somany children on the waiting list.”

“The realities of replacing [non-paying] families with more responsibleones are very harsh but they have tobe addressed—otherwise, there willcome a time when the Foundation willno longer be viable.” Dr. LQ asks,“Why is it [that] in a regular school, achild cannot take an exam if his/hertuition was not yet paid? Why can’t wedo it here, when in reality we are aschool?”

Dr. LQ laments the fact that theeducation of children with specialneeds is not a government priority, say-ing, “We’ve been functioning like awelfare agency. It can’t go on like thatanymore. Otherwise, we should havebeen a government agency receivingsubsidies.”

Leniency with the families reacheda point that the very existence of theFoundation was already threatened.“We have only so much and we canonly handle this number of students.If enrollment increases, [we] have tohire more teachers to maintain thestandard of service.”

Dr. LQ adds, “We have to think ofthe time when we are not here


anymore. We need to look at thefuture.” The Foundation is still in itsearly stages, and she wants to ensurethat they do things right from thebeginning.

The board members are nowactively mapping out their plans for thenext five years, considering staf fdevelopment and physical planning.The Foundation looks for ward tohaving its own building to establish anidentity and to lessen expenses inmonthly rentals.

Recently, the Emmanuel Founda-tion got the commitment of the First

Lady to assist with the construction ofa school building. Both the Rotary Clubof Iloilo, headed by a parent-memberof the Foundation, and the local gov-ernment of Iloilo will help acquire theland for the new school. ◗

Notes1 Respondent requested anonymity.

Dr. LQ. Interview by Melinda A. Bonga. IloiloCity. 9 February 2000.


INSTITUTE FOR STUDIES IN ASIAN CHURCH AND CULTURE

Moving towards professionalism

Case 8

The Institute for Studies in AsianChurch and Culture (ISACC) traces itsbeginnings to the late 1960s, when theFirst Quarter Storm was brewing. Atthe University of the Philippines–Diliman, a group of student activists,led by Melba Maggay, converted to theChristian faith. They decided that afaith-based community of peopleshould advocate social justice.

ISACC was formed in 1979 with thesupport of an American institution,Par tnership in Mission. It is pres-ently engaged in various activities—training and research, publications,creative media, and radio editorials.The institute is involved in directgrassroots development where localcommunities are organized into a co-hesive whole, enhancing their capa-bil ity to determine their owndevelopment under God’s design. Ithas also established the MustardSeed Community for those who wishto deepen and grow in their perspec-tive and faith, and for pastors, Chris-tian workers, and other professionalswho wish to rest and reflect in moresilence with fellow believers.

For its first year, ISACC was sup-por ted by Par tnership in Mission.Maggay recalls, “It was not difficult,money-wise. Marami kaming peranoon (we had a lot of money before).”

However, after a year of financial sup-port, funding for ISACC was cut off un-expectedly when Par tnership inMission’s own funding was withdrawn.

Maggay was determined to makeISACC survive even without Americanmoney. From 1981 to 1986, ISACC sub-sisted on “tent-making” activities, allud-ing to the biblical practice of St. Paulsupporting himself as a preacher by histent-making. ISACC has had many cre-ative media people among its membersso they got media projects. “Mediaprojects sustained ISACC in the earlyyears,” Maggay states.

“We got the media projects throughreferrals and the recommendations ofour friends. This is the advantage ofchurches—there is brotherhood. Theyhave many contracts, and some wereeven international,” she adds.

ISACC’s survival during the earlyyears was due to the generosity andvolunteerism of people. Maggay recalls,“We survived with the help of highlygifted people. They were very generous(with) their training and professional

“People will come to us becausewe are good at what we do andwe do it with integrity.”


service. We had very little money butthe volunteerism was very strong dur-ing the early years. In the early 1980swe had only five people but there weremany volunteers and we mounted hugeventures like an art festival at the Cul-tural Center of the Philippines.”

ISACC was kept afloat through in-dividual donations from some 50 to60 friends in the academic and busi-ness community. Local individualsand corporations, inter nationalchurch-based organizations, andfoundations from Germany havesince contributed in various forms(financial and non-financial) to sup-por t the Institute’s activities. It isestimated that 80 percent of its an-nual fund comes from grants, and 20percent comes from its own publica-tion, training, research, and otherservices.

ISACC practices two-tiered pric-ing for its services, charging higherrates for big organizations and sub-sidizing smaller organizations andchurches.

ISACC’s annual budget is P5 mil-lion—hardly enough for an organi-zation whose employees andactivities have been increasing innumber. With the drying up of for-eign grants, it is truly a challengingsituation for the Institute. Maggaysays, “It is important that ISACC isable to ‘break out of the old wineskin’for it to be able to attain sustainabilityin funding. This would mean veeringaway from the model of scarcity andraising funds from grants and dona-

tions to doing work that will befunded because it is good.”

In January 2000, Maggay assumedthe position of chief executive officerbesides being president of ISACC, afteralmost 10 years of absence in theleadership. She called for a re-assessment of ISACC’s values andaspirations.

ISACC was previously guided bytheir mission: “To stimulate and sup-port the Asian Church, in particular theFilipino Church, in her effort to give aclear biblical witness to faith in Christby means of education and develop-ment work to the end that the Gospelmay be more rooted in the Filipino con-text, lived and communicated more au-thentically, joyously and winsomely bya people whose individual and corpo-rate life demonstrates the power andpresence of God’s Kingdom.”

A new mission was formulated inFebruary 2000: “To creatively witnessto the Lordship of Jesus in all of life bypenetrating culture with the values ofthe Kingdom and engaging the powerstowards social transformation.”

Maggay observes, “For as long aswe cannot market what we do, ISACC

cannot survive. ISACC is unique be-cause it has tremendous technicalskills that can easily be mainstreamed.We have highly committed people whoat the same time have marketableskills.”

The Institute has moved fromvolunteerism to professionalism, andthe original staf f of five in the earlyyears has grown to 30 presently.


“[The situation] is more manageableand we are moving. [The staff] areexcited because they are going toearn their own money. We’ve set ourfinancial policies—same salary stan-dard, and having an equity fundwhere ever ybody contributes. Sothey will help each other and every-body gets fed,” Maggay concludes.

Presently, ISACC is movingtowards having self-sustaining sub-organizations in the areas of

development, media, publication,research, and training. It is hopedthat these organizations will becomemore and more independent in thefuture, having their own income-generating projects.

The Institute also aims to decen-tralize operations, so that each organi-zation independently develops its owninternal policies and plans. This is partof the vision for a new ISACC, to becalled the ISACC Group of Ministries.

ISACC�s Services

1. Training-Seminars

� Gospel, Culture and the Filipino Church

� Cross-Cultural Orientation Seminar

� Basic Christian Writers� Seminar

� Discipling the Mind Seminar (How to think biblically in the Marketplace)

� Obra-Maestra Art Seminar

� Hasik-Unlad Training on Wholistic Development for Local Churches

2. Publications

� PATMOS, a tri-annual journal magazine

� Books, monographs, and occasional papers on culture and social transformation

3. Audio-visual shows

� Filipino Religious Beliefs

� Rainbow of God�s Care, a series of AV shows on development

� Hasik-Unlad, a series of video shows in Pilipino on Development

4. Creative Media

� Compilation of street theater scripts for use of churches in outdoor evangelism

� Multi-image evangelistic show

� Compilation of original Filipino hymns

5. Research

� Kultura at Pananampalataya

� 100 Years of Protestantism

� Value Education in Homeroom Activities of Filipino Schoolchildren

6. Public Fora, Kapihan, Round Table discussions on current national issues

� Occasional papers and position papers on national issues from a biblical perspective


Aside from organizational re-engineering, the Institute’s objectivesfor 1999 to 2005 include building astronger and wider donor base offriends and church organizations, anddoing development consultancy work.There are also plans to target corporateand business entities as clients—to gomainstream with their professionalservices.

Maggay says, “We are developingour services so we can best market ourskills. We are doing this for long-termsustainability. People will come to us

because we are good at what we do andwe do it with integrity, and they [will]pay us for it. So we [will be] able to doour work with dignity and not [have to]always ask funding agencies forgrants.”

ISACC looks forward to the timewhen it will be earning income fromits professional services to support itsother activities. ◗

Maggay, Melba. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. 1999 and 2000.


KALIWAT THEATRE COLLECTIVE, INC.

Valuing identity

Case 9

The people behind the KaliwatTheatre Collective consider them-selves collectors of stories—stories ofthe lumad or indigenous people livingin Mindanao and of their land.

Kaliwat is a cultural organizationbased in Davao City, Mindanao, en-gaged in cultural productions, promo-tional, and advocacy work for thelumad. It has set up linkages with othertheater and cultural groups for thetraining of artists, trainors, communityorganizers, and researchers.

When Kaliwat was organized in1988, it identified as its mission the“defining and popularizing [of] a liber-ating Mindanaoan dramaturgy that rec-ognizes and respects the diversity ofcultures in the island, towards enrich-ing a national Filipinian [sic] culture,which evolves with and for the people,and instills pride among the indig-enous and indigenized Filipinos/Filipinas.”

Among its goals are to innovatefrom and popularize the Mindanaoancultural traditions through the produc-tion and dissemination of theatricalpieces that are drawn from contempo-rary issues, local history, and folklorematerials of Mindanao; to strengthenand expand the linkage withcommmunities and organizations, lo-cal, regional, national, and interna-

tional; to further enhance the people’smovement for creativity and culturalaction; to conduct advocacy work forpolicy development within, betweenand among communities and organiza-tion in the local, national, and interna-tional levels; to conduct communitybase cultural action programs withemphasis on participatory approachesin building and strengthening of localsupport structures for programs inculture and development; and to sup-port the indigenous people’s assertionand claims for ancestral domain andparticipate in inter-organizational ef-forts for the recognition of indigenousterritories as cultural sanctuaries.

It has four key programs:

1. Cultural Action in the Grassroots–to enhance the cultural assertionof people and reinforce theirongoing efforts towards buildinga popular movement for cultureand development, this programshall popularize, refine, andsynthesize the pedagogy incultural action work within thebasal communities.

“We come from various placesbut what unites us is our race.”


2. Dramaturgy and Theater Pro-ductions–to package the outputsand stories drawn from the cul-tural action experiences into ex-citing theater productions thatare made available for theaterseasons and performance tours.

3. Exchange and Linkages–to sub-stantiate the development of popu-lar education pedagogy anddramaturgy by accessing other ex-periences and shared praxisdrawn from a variety of contexts.This program facilitates the col-laborative efforts of individuals,groups, and communities that aredesigned to strengthen their ca-pacities and/or generate re-sources for cultural action work.

4. Generation and Management ofCultural Resources–to strategizethe long-term resource generationscheme and chart a regular sourceof resources and fund for Kaliwatand its partner communities. Itshall also help formulate workingpolicies and guidelines for a viableand functioning culturalenterprise.

Kaliwat was formed by a smallgroup of Mindanaoan theater artistsand cultural workers from theMindanao Community Theater Net-work (MCTN) secretariat. RichardBelar, Kaliwat’s program director, re-calls that as members of the MCTN sec-retariat, they were tasked to documentcultural events and cultural produc-tions, and coordinate workshops andtrainings among the members of the

network. This work afforded them theopportunity to visit the different com-munities of indigenous people inMindanao.

“When our group went toMatalam, Cotabato, we stumbled on toa community rich in stories. We feltthat it would be sayang (a loss) if thestories just remained there. Wethought that it was a good idea to sharethe stories with other communities. Soaside from doing secretariat work forMCTN, we produced per formancepieces based on the stories we gath-ered,” Belar relates.

During that time, the monthlyDavao Forum was meeting to discussissues like ecology, Third World debts,and military bases. “We became theofficial theater group that performedto wrap up the issues at each forum.”The MCTN secretariat was then receiv-ing support for their research, asidefrom generating a small income fromper formances and trainings. “Ourgroup was earning around P500 a per-formance. We solicited donations fromour friends but what we received wasnot that much,” Belar explains.

The period from 1986, with themany changes taking place in the coun-try after the EDSA Revolution, was abusy time for the MCTN. Different fora,training activities, and cultural produc-tions were taking place almost monthly.It was at this time that the group de-cided to organize Kaliwat.

“Kaliwat was formed in 1988 intransition but we still worked for MCTN.We were in demand so we survived,”


says Belar. But in the group’s earlyyears, the members had to pool theirindividual resources together to comeup with a group fund. “We were luckyif we had P1,000 a month.”

From 1988 to 1989, Kaliwat devel-oped a cultural production whichtoured in five areas of Mindanao. Thetouring production involved aminimalist design. The group receivedP30,000 from the Bugkos National Net-work but Belar says, “We did not wantto spend so much for stage props andcostumes. We borrowed and beggedfor materials. We could not afford tobuy.”

At this time, Kaliwat was contactedby a group of artists, writers and direc-tors from Adelaide, Australia whowanted to interact with Mindanaon art-ists because they saw a similarity be-

tween Mindanao and Adelaide, both“being in the fringes,” as Belar puts it.After the cultural exchange, the Aus-tralian group became one of Kaliwat’smajor donors. They organized a tourfor Kaliwat in Australia in 1990.

Kaliwat received funding in 1991from Oxfam, an NGO based in theUnited Kingdom engaged in social de-velopment work in the Philippines.Oxfam wanted a theater piece touredin the UK that would present its pro-grams in the Philippines. The result-ing production was shown in variouscommunities in the Philippines andpresented at the Cultural Center of thePhilippines, before it was brought tothe UK. Both the Manila and UK pro-ductions were funded.

After the UK production, Oxfamexpressed interest in sustaining the

1998 Financial Data

Operating revenues 970,000

Grants

Foreign Grants

Oxfam 1,700,000

Helvetas 400,000

Government Grants

NCCA 434,900

Special Income

CCP (tours) 460,000

FPE (yearly convention) 95,000

Centennial Celebration 96,000

Expenses

Administration 882,000

Cultural Production 1,600,000

Parks (Sentrong Bayan/PTA Exhibit) 463,000

Institute (women�s program) 330,000

Cultural promo/marketing 159,000


par tnership and asked Kaliwat tosubmit a 3-year proposal for a culturalaction program for the Manobos inArakan Valley. “We researched on theirhistor y and what we gathered wasmade into a production,” says Belar.Oxfam sustained Kaliwat’s programand other area-based programs, but cutof f funding for their Davao-basedproductions.

Funds for area-based programscame not only from Oxfam, but alsofrom a grant from Helvetas Philippines,and from the National Commission onCulture and the Arts (NCCA). However,these groups no longer supportedKaliwat’s cultural productions in DavaoCity. “The foreign donors consideredthat our productions could generatefunds, so we focused our fund raisingand marketing efforts [in Davao].”

Among the possible activities thatKaliwat has identified as income-generating activities are the following:

◗ Januar y–per fomances duringconventions

◗ February–Arts Month◗ March–NGOs requesting training;

Davao’s Day◗ April to May–Summer workshops◗ June to July–per formances in

schools◗ August–Davao’s Kadayawan

Festival◗ September to October–confer-

ence/walk-in or a major produc-tion for 3 to 5 days target wasdif ferent private schools; TribalFilipino Month

◗ November to December–paid per-formances; Christmas celebration

Kaliwat’s paid performances sup-port their production component. In-vitations to perform come from NGOs,hotels, and other tourism-related busi-nesses. Fifty percent of the fees fromthese performances go to productionexpenses, and the rest constitutes theirincome.

Kaliwat has 16 people on its staff,some of whom are assigned to area-based projects, and others, to their pro-duction arm, taking care of props,equipment, lights, and sounds. “For theyear 2000, we assigned a person to bein charge of marketing our major pro-ductions. We are planning to tour themajor cities in Mindanao so we needto get sponsors from the business sec-tor. We are targetting 12 donors/spon-sors who will commit P30,000 each. Wehope to have a capital outlay ofP500,000 to sustain the production forone year. We need to earn P2 millionin a year from the tour/tickets,” Belarstates.

“We arranged with local govern-ment units (LGUs) [for] our project tocoincide with the festivals in Mindanao.We also sought the endorsement of theDepartment of Education, Culture andSports (DECS) since our major marketis the public schools. We need to en-sure that there is a market for our pro-duction, so aside from selling theproduct, we have to do advocacy work,”he adds.

Belar estimates that a productiontakes about three years to yield prof-its. “In 1994, our major production wasOya, Arakan! which was based on thestories told by the Manobo of Arakan.


It had a production cost of aroundP500,000 because we invited big artistslike Joey Ayala and Lolita Carbon.”

Oya Arakan! was endorsed by theDECS and marketed to students.Tickets were sold at P30 each. “It wasbetter to have cheaper tickets so wecould sell them,” says Belar. “Duringthe second year, we were alreadyearning, and during its third year, wereally earned a lot. Until now, there arestill some groups like schools,parishes, women’s organizations, LGUsthat request [that] the production beshown in their communities. Theproduction went as far as Surigao. Itwas through word of mouth that ourproduction was promoted.”

Kaliwat also put up minor produc-tions like Biyaya ng Buhay and IisangMundo, which were part of their The-atre-in-Education Mobile Team, a com-ponent of the Mindanao Heritage andArts Schools Development Program.

Kaliwat continues to immerse it-self in the different indigenous commu-nities of Mindanao which have provento be a rich source of inspiration. SaysBelar, “Why the term kaliwat (race)?Because we come from various placesbut what unites us is our race.” ◗

Belar, Richard and Liza Palarca. Interview byMelinda A. Bonga. Davao City. 14 March2000.


NEGROS CULTURAL FOUNDATION, INC.

Fund raising for art and culture

Case 10

The dream of restoring Silay as thecenter of culture and arts in Negros—truly deserving of its fame as “TheParis of Negros”—led Agustin MontillaIII, L yn Gamboa, and CristinaMontelibano to establish the NegrosCultural Foundation, Inc. (NCF) in1987. The Foundation embarked ontwo major projects: Balay Negrense(Negrense House) and the NegrosMuseum.

Balay Negrense aims to fosterawareness of the artistic and culturalactivities in peoples’ daily lives, to pro-vide an alternative channel for creativeexpression, and to develop programsdesigned to tap the creative potentialsof the people, especially the youth.Putting up Balay Negrense involvedthe restoration of the ancestral houseof Don Victor Gaston in Silay City. Withthe donation of the ancestral housefrom the Gaston family, P5 million fromthe Philippine Tourism Authority(PTA), and furniture contributionsmade by private individuals, the house,built in 1898, was converted into a turn-of-the-century lifestyle museum.

The Negros Museum, on the otherhand, claims as its mission “dedicationto promoting and sustaining a deepunderstanding of local culture, history,artistic practice, and ecology, primarilyamong the children and youth of the

island of Negros, and also amongpeoples visiting various areas of theprovince.” It focuses on educating theyouth, assisting local artists, and pre-serving Negros history and culture.

The Negros Museum was estab-lished in the former Provincial CapitolBuilding in Bacolod City, and entailedpartnerships with government, univer-sities, artists, individuals, corporations,and organizations. Among these orga-nizations are:

◗ the University of St. La Salle,which has par tially fundedresearch and has lent theFoundation one of its professorsto become the Musuem’s firstcurator;

◗ local government units who haveassisted the foundation in procur-ing items and information for thearchives;

◗ Black Artists of Asia, Associationof Artists of Bacolod, and local art-ists and artisans who are commis-sioned to do the different exhibitshoused in the museum; and

◗ private individuals, corporations,and organizations, who under-stand that having a museum forthe province is essential and ben-eficial to both present and futuregenerations of Negrenses.


To tell the story of Negros’ his-tory and culture, the museum makesuse of original contemporar y ar t-work as well as quality reproduc-tions. The museum’s lobby is oftenused as a venue for cultural activities,such as plays and concerts. A galleryon the third floor is open to local art-ists and artisans to sell their work. Asouvenir and cof fee shop are beingbuilt.

The cost of maintaining the twomuseums forms the bulk of NCF’smonthly operational expenses. Asidefrom this, they have to pay two mu-seum directors and the museums’ staff.The provincial government has a com-mitment of P25,000 a month for the mu-seums’ operations, but a governmentruling prohibits the use of these fundsfor staff salaries. Raising funds is thustop priority for the board and museumdevelopment staff.

NCF President Lyn Gamboa andExecutive Director Jenny Lizares haveexpressed the need for a professionalmarketing director whose main job willbe to raise funds for the Foundation.According to them, they cannot offer avery high salary since the museumsare not earning much. Lizares says,“How can you attract [the right person]if you cannot pay that well? How canyou pay well if you don’t earn thatmuch?”

Balay Negrense subsists onearned income from entrance fees tothe museum. Local Negrenses andtourists alike contribute to the fundraising efforts of NCF whenever they

buy from the souvenir shop, which of-fers regional crafts such as woven bas-kets, ceramics, T-shirts, the famousSilay delicacies, handmade paper, andart prints.

Help is also being solicited for thecontinuing restoration and mainte-nance of the Don Victor Gaston House.A Website has been set up atwww.lasaltech.com/~rhgaston/balayto accept donations in any form. Somecontributions have been non-financial,as when the local public school stu-dents helped by cutting grass andcleaning the walls of the Gaston Houseduring its restoration.

The Negros Museum has taken adif ferent approach—it raises fundsthrough its educational programs. TheSponsor-a-Visit Program for PublicSchools was launched in June 1997 andsolicits donations through direct mail.The target amount of P500 enables 50public school students to tour the mu-seum for free, inclusive of their trans-portation. The response to this hasbeen very positive, considering thatP500 seems a small amount to give forthe education of these children. Thank-

Despite the fact that not allprojects earn much, these areways in which they haveachieved their mission whilecultivating relationships withart and culture patrons.


you letters and class pictures of thechildren are then sent to the donors.

Another educational program ofthe museum is the Summer Art Work-shop for Children, already on its thirdyear of implementation. From onlyP2,279 in 1998, the workshop gener-ated P62,000 in 1999. The success ofthe program is attributed to the im-provement of courses offered, involve-ment of more local artists, satisfiedparents who were looking for activitiesto occupy their children with duringsummer, and support from sponsorswho donated art materials among otherthings.

Not all of NCF’s fund raising eventshave been successful. A single projectcan raise as much as P52,000 or as littleas P1,450, as the Foundation experi-enced in 1998. Despite the fact that notall projects earn much, these are waysin which they have achieved their mis-sion while cultivating relationshipswith art and culture patrons.

Fund raising has become part ofthe lives of the Foundation’s board andstaff. The president, vice president andthe two museum directors (who are ex-officio board members) are currentlyinvolved in fund raising work, much ofwhich entails personal visits to indi-viduals or corporations. To supplementtheir efforts, Lizares intends to focusfund raising efforts in Manila. Plans offorming a Manila board—apart fromthe current eight-member board—arebeing firmed up.

Lizares notes that capital cam-paigns—soliciting for museum con-str uctions and renovations, forexample—funded by corporations andfoundations are the easiest and mosteffective means of raising funds for theFoundation. According to her, theseare better than small monthly activitieswhich, despite the effort invested, donot ensure profit.

NCF’s donor pyramid ischaracterized by the presence of

Cost and Benefit Analysis of Fund Raising Activities (1996-1999)

Year Event Cost

In pesos

Revenue

In pesos

Net Income

In pesos

1996 Noli Me Tangere Musical

at La Salle Coliseum

250,000

1196 Villegas Jewelry and

Painting Exhibit/Sale

1,301 57,000 55,699

1996 Pitoy Moreno �

Phil. Costume Show

497,710 754,340 256,630

1996 Fourtissimo Concert 72,428 125,940 53,512

1997 Pangabuhi sa Uma �

Prado Exhibit/Sale

2,000 12,000 10,000

1998 Fund Raisers

Events

93,258

126,638

146,250

181,295

52,992

54,656

1999 Cecile Licad Concert 118,380 162,200 43,819


donors, repeat donors, and upgradeddonors. This may be attributed to thepersonal touch—letters sent out by theFoundation, whether invitations orsolicitation letters, are accompanied bypersonal notes. This approach hasensured financial contributions as wellas good attendance in their events andactivities.

All donors receive thank-you let-ters from NCF. Donors to the continu-ing restoration of the Don VictorGaston House are given complimen-tar y admission tickets to BalayNegrense and a 10 percent discount atthe museum shop. At the Negros Mu-seum, plaques list the names of allthose who have contributed to the es-tablishment of the museum. Gallerieshave also been named after those who

have donated sizeable amounts for therenovation of the building.

The NCF has been in existence for13 years and continues to hope to be acatalyst in the revitalization of the artsand other cultural activities in the re-gion. The Foundation continues toraise funds to support the two muse-ums to achieve its mission of “promot-ing social understanding through thesharing of information on the historyand culture of the province; and creat-ing a hub around which a variety of live-lihood and arts development effortscan gravitate and flourish.” ◗

Gamboa, Lyn, Jenny Lizares, and Lilibeth La’O.Interview by Melinda A. Bonga. BacolodCity. 10 February 2000.

79

Part 18 | Managing Volunteers

THE CASES IN THIS CHAPTER demonstrate that volunteerism is cost ef-fective. By enlisting the aid of volunteers from among students, profes-sionals, and community workers, NPOs are able to expand their serviceswithout incurring high operational costs. This further enables them toto make a greater impact in society.

The growth and sustainability of the organizations presented herecan be linked to their leaders’ efforts to nurture a strong sense of com-munity among volunteers. Various tasks were accomplished out of asense of camaraderie, a common purpose, similar interests, or the reci-procity of favors among each other.

This is part of their distinct character as non-profits. By nurturingvolunteers, NPOs are able to develop people to be part of their mission,thus sharing the challenge of sustaining their organization. ◗


DAVAO JUBILEE FOUNDATIONFOR THE REHABILITATION OF THE DISABLED, INC.

Building from within

Case 11

Davao Jubilee is the social con-cern arm of the Conservative BaptistAssociation of the Philippines (CBAP).It started in 1986 as a “sheltered work-shop” providing vocational skills train-ing and livelihood opportunities inrattan handicrafts to 10 paraplegicyouth and adults. The Cross Founda-tion Agency for the Rehabilitation ofthe Disabled (CFARD)—a Manila-basedcharitable organization engaged in thetrading and marketing of handicraftsof small-scale producers all over thecountry—initiated the project with Ger-man funding. To manage the project inDavao, CFARD worked closely with agroup of volunteer pastors, churchleaders, and lay workers belonging tothe Conservative Baptist Church. From1986 to 1994, the project was under theauspices of CFARD. In 1996, CFARD

turned over to Davao Jubilee Founda-tion the full responsibility of managingthe projects.

Davao Jubilee’s vision is “a trans-formed society where individuals ex-perience an abundant life in Christ.” Itsmission is “to improve the spiritual,physical, economic and social condi-tion of man for the advancement ofGod’s Kingdom on earth by adoptinga wholistic approach to development.”Their goals are:

1. to promote the general welfare and

uplift the living conditions of theeconomically underprivileged ordisadvantaged people, particularlythe disabled, abandoned and ne-glected, through the extension ofservices such as eyework, prosthe-sis, vocational and/or agriculturaltraining, research, education, man-agement training, therapy, medicaland psychological counseling;

2. to develop and promote self-helpand self-management among com-munities, with special emphasis onthe handicapped, by equippingsuch groups with the necessaryskills, assets access and training;and

3. to cooperate with CBAP and otherevangelical churches/groups,civic action groups, foundations,government agencies, and otherinstitutions pursuing similar orcomplementary objectives.

In 1999, Davao Jubilee received atotal of P1,414,302, 80 percent of whichcame from foreign grants, 12 percentfrom local income, and eight percentfrom local donations.

Davao Jubilee maintains fourprograms and ser vices—the Voca-tional Training Workshop-IncomeGenerating Project (IGP), Prosthesis-Making Workshop, Cataract and

MANAG ING VOLUNTEERS 81

Eyework Program, and Community-Based Rehabilitation (CBR).

Community-based approaches areadopted by most NGOs to have relevantand sustainable programs. The idea isto work with the community, identifyits needs and problems, and then to-gether with the people, come up withsolutions to address them. The solu-tions take into account the community’sresources, whether human or material.

As an officer from the CristoffelBlinden Mission (CBM) put it,“Community-based approaches to therehabilitation and reintegration ofpeople with disabilities can createpermanent partnerships at the grassroots level which make our work morecost-effective and relevant, and enableus to expand services in previouslyunder-served areas.”

Davao Jubilee went into CBR in1990. The move was pushed by CFARD’s

and CBM’s joint thrust to reach out andserve more disabled persons. EvelynCabigon, the Foundation’s project man-ager for the past seven years, was thena part-time volunteer secretary. She wasamong the first CBR workers to undergotraining in Manila.

When she returned to Davao Cityafter the training, she started the pro-gram. “We met with the barangay cap-tains and introduced the conceptbecause most people in Davao did notknow about it. We explained thatthrough CBR, we would help the com-munity take care of its handicapped andcope with disability. It took us a longtime,” Cabigon recalls.

“When the health workers heardabout us,” she adds, “many of them werevery interested in our training on disabil-ity—its causes and prevention, and howCBR works.” They recruited volunteersfrom among these health workers, and

Sources of Revenue, 1999

Sources Revenue, in pesos Percent

Foreign Grants/Donations 80

CBM 1,100,018

Others 30,000

Individual 5,535

Local Donation 8

Prosthesis 68,100

Patient counterpart

(cataract program)

26,190

Other 19,719

Local Income 12

Vocational products 129,968

Interest income 24,638

Others

(Jubilee Day, Christmas party)

10,132


after a four-day training session at thecenter, the volunteers were certified CBR

local supervisors (LS).

LS are given a T-shirt and vest astheir uniform. “It’s very important in acommunity that our volunteers areknown and identified. They will be in-troduced to the support-referral net-work composed of GOs and NGOs.Basically, they should feel [that theyare] people with some authority in thecommunity.”

LS work is purely voluntary—assuch, they do not receive any compen-sation. Cabigon says, “Contrary to theconcept of volunteerism, many LS ex-pected some honoraria.” They are,however, provided with transport faresand food for meetings or during quar-terly outings, aside from the uniformsthey receive each year. There is also asmall cash incentive awarded eachquarter to three of the best LS.

Many volunteers have dropped outsince the program started, but eachyear a new batch comes in. Some vol-unteers drop out because of conflictsin time and responsibility. Others leaveto find paying jobs.

In the past nine years, seven train-ing sessions have been conducted, with

20 to 25 LS participants for each session.When these sessions started, Davao Ju-bilee had four trained rehabilitationworker-trainors conducting free train-ing sessions for the LS. The four reha-bilitation workers were deployed in thebarangays, each leading a team of twofield workers and a volunteer LS. To-gether, the team worked with disabledpeople in their homes, providing home-based therapy, and training families tocope and care for the disabled.

Even with the challenges of CBR

work, Davao Jubilee considers this aturning point for their work with dis-abled persons, paving the way for amore holistic rehabilitation. From 1986to 1989, the Foundation was able to helpsome 24 disabled persons each year asa sheltered workshop. By 1999, theFoundation had assisted a total of 1,173people.

Cabigon attributes this growth toCBR: “With CBR, we grew tremendouslybecause of networking and we becameknown to the communities. With thisapproach, we cannot stand alone, be-cause we have to find volunteers in thecommunities, and doctors and hospi-tals to help.”

Davao Jubilee’s board is made upof five members, all leaders of CBAP

churches, who have been active sincethe Foundation started. They act asadvisers on administrative, legal, andspiritual matters. They also activelycampaign for suppor t for DavaoJubilee.

Twelve project workers run work-shops and conduct CBR and eyework

Community-based approachesare adopted by NGOs to have

relevant and sustainableprograms.


programs. There are only three admin-istrative workers—a cashier-secretary,a bookkeeper, and Cabigon, the projectmanager.

Aside from her of fice duties,Cabigon has recently been tasked toraise funds for the organization—aseemingly dif ficult job, consideringthat she has always taken for fact thelack of funds. However, she is quickto say: “Fund raising is not only aboutmoney but resource mobilization andappropriation.”

The CBAP churches—there arefive in Davao City—have been verysupportive. “Our board members arefrom different CBAP churches. Theyknow what our needs are and theytalk with their congregation aboutour projects. They are the ones whoask for funds,” Cabigon relates. Atfirst, the churches would give onceor twice a year. “Maliit lang peroregular (they give in small amounts,but regularly). They also support usthrough prayers.”

Through their board members,the Foundation eventually asked thechurches to commit one Sunday—called Jubilee Day—to their cause.Cabigon explains, “It is like MissionSunday which is done once a year. Wego to the church and help conduct theworship service. We bring some of ourclients to share their testimonies. Thenwe ask the church for a specialoffering.”

She continues, “In January 2000,we started [Jubilee Day]. We intro-duced our organization and challenged

the church to support the work be-cause this is the ministry or the workof the church.” By September 2000,Davao Jubilee had visited threechurches and raised around P4,200from the visits.

They also asked the churches toidentify families within their congrega-tion who have persons with disabilities.“We did not want [to] overlook our ownmembers. Most of our patients and cli-ents are Catholics, but we do not mindthis.”

In facing the challenges of helpingthe disabled, Davao Jubilee has in-volved not only CBAP churches, orchurches in general, but other NGOsas well. These groups help implementthe Foundation’s programs.

For example, Davao Jubileeteamed up with the Lions Club to con-duct a Vitamin A drive with the help ofbarangay health workers. Another ex-ample is a Davao-based NGO, theMabuhay Deseret Foundation. DavaoJubilee complements their program oncataract operations by providing theneeded staff and medical supplies.

Davao Jubilee has also coordi-nated with other CBM-funded organi-zations—the Our Lady of Victor yand the UCCP Social Concern Foun-dation, Inc. According to Cabigon,they pool resources to implementcommon programs. For the pastthree years, for instance, Davao Ju-bilee has been involved in UCCP’s Op-eration Smile program.

Davao Jubilee is also part of theDavao City Council for the Welfare of


Disabled Persons composed of variousGOs and NGOs that meet once a monthto talk about programs for the disabled.It is through this council that Cabigonis updated on rehabilitation servicesand is able to establish ties with pro-spective donors and funding agencies.

Cabigon cites an instance inwhich Davao Jubilee received assis-tance through this agency. “[When]our prosthesis program star ted in1993, a politician coursed his P10,000donation through the government’sRegional Council for the Welfare of

the Disabled Person (which has linkswith the Davao Council). Aside fromcash, we also received in-kind dona-tions like wheelchairs and other re-habilitative devices.’

The Foundation has also workedwith the DSWD–City Social Develop-ment Services Office. “The DSWD as-sisted us through their social aidmobilization which amounted to P1,500per case. In addition, the local govern-ment provided us airfare when I andthe technician went to Manila for train-ing,” Cabigon says.

Total Number of Beneficiaries, 1986 to 1999

Kinds of Disability Surgery Rehabilitation Training and

Employment

Education Prosthetics

and Orthotics

Visual impairment

1,142 21 14

Hearing impairment

31 1

Mentally retarded

82

Physically

handicapped

14 489 76 4 61

Cerebral palsy/

meningitis/

hydrocephalus, etc.

112

Fits

22

Mute/

Speech problem

10

Multiple

handicapped

6

No disability and

medical problem

17 1

Total 1,173 782 131 4 61


During Disability Week, Davao Ju-bilee had the opportunity to inform thepublic about their programs on the ra-dio and on television. As a result ofthese media plugs, some people visitedtheir center and bought products fromtheir workshop.

One of Davao Jubilee’s consistentdonors is the Alumni of PhilippineWomen’s Association. This group hasbeen giving P5,000 a year for the pastthree years. The Foundation has alsoreceived donations from the staff’s per-sonal friends. “Individual donors werecoming from dif ferent religious de-nominations,” Cabigon says. “In 1996we started counting the donors and wehad around 30 donors. We kept a do-nor register to keep track.”

During the last quarter of 1999,they sent out letters of solicitation to 10business establishments and 20churches nationwide. They wereaiming for a minimum pledge of P5,000.Their board members provided thenames of business contacts, whileCabigon identified the names ofchurches. Some letters were sentpersonally by a board member. Cabigonrecalls, “Only one responded out of the30 letters. I think we did not receivefrom the churches [in] Manila becausethey did not know us or the DavaoJubilee. However, we are planning torepeat this activity [and have] our boardmembers personally deliver the letters.”

She continues, “Our great need issustain staff salaries and administrativecosts since it is easier to find sponsorsfor patients and for direct support ser-vices. For the next five years, our goalis to grow in terms of areas and thepeople we serve through communityorganizing. We would like to developnew partnerships and increase our lo-cal funding.”

To face these challenges, theFoundation is conducting a JubileeMembership Campaign. The idea is torecruit 1,000 lifetime members in 5years who will contribute P1,000 each.The amount that will be raised will gointo their trust fund.

Says Cabigon, “The rationale forthis campaign is that some profession-als would like to build a track record[as] members of an organization. Oth-ers would need credentials when theyseek elective positions. Others wouldqualify for our services once they be-came our members.”

Davao Jubilee’s future plans con-sist of preparation of project propos-als for funding agencies abroad.There are also plans to have morejoint undertakings or agreementswith the LGUs and NGOs in imple-menting their programs. ◗

Cabigon, Evelyn. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. Davao City. 14 March 2000.


The Emergency Rescue Unit ofMandaue City, Cebu, was organized bythen Mayor Demetrio M. Cortes to pro-vide emergency medical and rescueservices to the city’s residents. The unitwas disbanded in 1986, but realizingthe need for emergency medical andrescue services, members of the de-funct group and some civic-spirited citi-zens decided to continue providingefficient and effective rescue and emer-gency medical services (EMS) to theresidents of Metro Cebu. The Emer-gency Rescue Unit Foundation (ERUF)was thus formed in 1988.

ERUF started with less than 60members, including 13 of the displacedparamedics. There was very little cashavailable. Equipment and vehicleswere either donations or restored fromsalvaged junk or scrap materials. Workdone by the paramedics during theearly months was purely on a voluntar-ily basis—nobody received monetarycompensation.

Herminio C. Cortes, the currentoperations director and a former vol-

unteer of the Mandaue Fire Depart-ment enthuses, “I am really sold onthe EMS program. For us, savinglives is not an accomplishment—it isa way of life. It also prepares oneselffor disasters.”

Cortes recalls ERUF’s early years:“Then, we felt that our country’s am-bulance ser vice was like a funeralhearse service. We did not have stan-dard equipment and we lacked propertraining. So we had to pattern our pro-gram after those in the United Stateswhich have been found to work. Ini-tially, we tried asking for help from lo-cal doctors but no one was willing tohelp—probably because they did notunderstand the concept and most ofthem were afraid that they might becreating quack doctors.”

Fortunately, Cortes met someyoung doctors who were more open-minded and willing to help. There werearound 20 to 25 of them with differentspecialties who came together and vol-unteered with the Foundation, conduct-ing EMS trainings for free.

EMERGENCY RESCUE UNIT FOUNDATION, INC.

Training volunteers

Case 12

ERUF saves and mitigates loss of lives and properties against accidents and calamities through

the setting of a nationwide paramedic network that competently provides emergency medi-

cal, rescue, and pre-hospital care, rehabilitation services, as well as training programs that

can effectively respond to the needs of the community.


According to Cortes, it was a verysuccessful program. “Half of the firstgroup of trainees were pirated by pri-vate companies right away. This cre-ated some problems [for us] but atleast we also knew that we were doingsomething good for those volunteers.”

The doctors have become ERUF’smedical advisors, assisting in trainingprograms and monitoring the paramed-ics to make sure that they do their workaccording to set parameters—such aswhen to do intervention during cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, or when togive medication. They also evaluate thevolunteers’ per formance to seewhether they were doing the rightthing in assessing patients’ conditionsand helping them. “We have to remem-ber that there is no law that governsand protects emergency medical treat-ment (EMT) in our country,” Cortes ex-plains. “The ‘legality’ of doingintervention work in emergencies is abig question due to lack of correspond-ing laws on EMS in our country.”

After two years of operation, hos-pitals began to acknowledge ERUF’squality emergency medical service.“Initially, it was very difficult consid-ering that we did not have money [and]equipment, and our only assets werepeople. But with God’s blessing we[managed to] overcome all our prob-lems and [gain] acceptance in the com-munity,” Cortes states.

In its early stages, ERUF wasspending around P200,000 a year.Currently, its annual spending isaround P5 million. Of this amount,

P4 million is subsidized by the citygovernment. “The rest is from ourearnings,” Cortes declares. Raising[an] income of about P1.2 million ayear is quite something.”

In 1991, ERUF received an ambu-lance from the Netherlands with a cor-responding subsidy of P1 million. TheFoundation has since acquired modernequipment and vehicles including fullyequipped trauma vans, fire trucks,communications equipment, searchand rescue apparatus, and nine ambu-lances based in different strategic lo-cations in Metro Cebu.

ERUF now has three operating cen-ters—two in Cebu City and one inLapulapu City—conducting emer-gency medical services, rescue opera-tions, medical back-up, safetypromotion and disaster preparednessseminars, and training.

In 1999, ERUF’s revenues camelargely from subsidies from Cebu City(58 percent) and Lapulapu City (19percent). Ambulance services for a to-tal of almost 4,000 patients accountedfor 14 percent of their income, whilethe rest came from membership dues,donations, and paid lectures. On theother hand, the bulk of disbursementswere for operational (78 percent) andadministrative (14 percent) expenses,

“I would say that our mostimportant asset is our people.”


with acquisitions accounting for onlythree percent of the total.

Cortes compares ERUF’s fund rais-ing to an orchestra, “with the membersplaying by ear.” He continues, “Even-tually, the board took over. Now, ERUF

is getting assistance from groups basedin Australia, the United States, andGreat Britain to put up a training cen-ter to be based in Cebu.”

Cortes adds, “I wanted to raisefunds for this training center. But as itis, I feel I do not know how to do it.There were some who were saying thatthere is donor fatigue. Even our mem-bers don’t want to sell tickets anymore.I told them we have to look for othermeans.”

ERUF has formal arrangementswith the cities of Cebu and Lapulaputo provide free emergency medicalservices to its residents in exchangefor a subsidy. Cortes says, “Dependingon government subsidy is not veryideal but this is the best there is for themoment in order to provide qualityemergency medical ser vice to the

community.” He stresses that CebuCity, which used to provide 70 percentof their income, now gives only 58percent.

“Our only advantage is that wehave proven ourselves not only to thembut to the whole community, that wehave operated professionally. This wegained after so many hours of respond-ing to rescues, emergencies and ma-jor disasters,” Cortes elaborates. “Somore or less the city is helping us, butthe city also gets something from usthat is very important.”

The emergency rescue work ishandled by two shifts of paramedics onduty 24 hours a day at its main head-quarters in the Cebu Medical Societycompound in Banilad, Cebu City, andat sub-stations at the Cebu City SportsComplex and Lapulapu City. To aug-ment the manpower requirements ofERUF, there are over a hundred volun-teers who have been trained for sev-eral hundred hours on a broad rangeof subjects in EMT. The training of EMT

volunteers includes physical condition-

Classification of ERUF Membership

Members Number

Full-time paramedics 32

Paramedic volunteers 152

Operations personnel 10

Communication personnel 26

Lawyers 6

Medical Doctors

(Board certified and specialists in the following

fields: Orthopedic surgery, Cardiology, Pulmonology,

Gastroenterology, Pediatrics, Surgery, Nephrology,

Opthalmology, OB-gynecology, Radiology, Urology,

Psychiatry, and Neurosurgery)

60


ing and lectures by the members of theMedical Advisory Council and otherexperts in the field of rescue opera-tions. This takes about six months andcontinues every weekend thereafter.To become a full-fledged paramedictakes around two years.

To qualify for EMT training, ap-

Stories of ERUF�s Rescue Operations

When the Ormoc disaster occurred, we were the first to respond with all our disaster teams

and supplies. The group was composed of doctors, nurses, and SAR Teams. We also set up a

communication network that facilitated relief and public service for the persons in the local-

ity. During those times, we brought 15 tons of food and 5 tons of medicines. That�s one of the

things that Cebu can be proud of.

An advance team of communications and SAR specialists went with the PAF at the initial

stage. The second batch of responders was supposed to be only 15 people but we ended up

[with] 45 in the group since there were so many eager doctors and nurses who just joined us

in the boat. This situation really gave us a problem since our food supplies and utensils were

only good for 15.

Those non-volunteers and non-ERUF members who went to Ormoc were not equipped with

basic supplies like sleeping bags and utensils�we therefore had to share our supplies with

them. Furthermore, we did not have any transport and we had to walk during the whole nine

days that we were at Ormoc.

During disasters, we can sustain [operations] for one week without outside help. It will take

us five hours to mobilize for dispatch to other regions in our country. We also always bring our

own shelter, food, disaster supplies, and equipment because we do not want to burden the

officials in the disaster area to supply us during the operation.

Modesty aside, if there is a disaster they will always think of us during those moments.Though

we are just a small group, we have the capability to respond. In fact, during the visit of Pope

John Paul II, the DOH asked me to go to Manila for a meeting but fortunately we were already

in Manila to provide medical back-up for the 5,000-person Cebu contingent. During the meet-

ing, the people in Manila could not believe that we brought along two ambulances and one

supply vehicle with enough medical supplies to service 500 trauma victims.

Herminio C. Cortes, from an interview by Melinda A. Bonga.

plicants are required to attend a firstaid course. They must then pass aone-month Basic Fire FightingCourse. “However, often times, ourtraining [is] just used as a steppingstone for some of our volunteers foremployment opportunities. We knewthey were going to work with other


companies after their training. [Whenthey mention] in their applicationforms that they were trained by ERUF,it is a big advantage, especially if youare a nurse [with] special skills in re-sponding to emergencies.”

“I would say that our most impor-tant asset is our people,” says Cortes.“We invited volunteers by advertisingin the local newspapers. We also an-nounce our request through the radioand television.”

He continues, “When we started,

we recruited [volunteers] among theout-of-school youths because we feltthat they can do something useful,and become better citizens.” Now,however, Cortes would like people tostay with them longer, getting volun-teers among jobless high schoolgraduates. “We will encourage themto finish a college course and try tohelp them get a job.” ◗

Cortes, Herminio. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. 1999 and 2000.


Project Luke started with a groupof volunteer doctors engaged in vari-ous surgical missions in the CordilleraRegion, especially in Bontoc, Mt. Prov-ince. In time, the doctors focused on aPrevention of Blindness Programthrough a grant from the ChristoffelBlinden Mission or Christian BlindMission International (CBM) of Ger-many. Its first official mission was inAtok District Hospital, Benguet in 1986.

After the July 1990 earthquake, theCommunity-Based Rehabilitation Pro-gram for the visually impaired wasopened. Activities in the succeedingyears included coordination with theDepartment of Health (DOH)and otherNGOs. Project Luke was registered withthe Securities and Exchange Commis-sion on June 17, 1986 and accreditedby the Department of Social Welfareand Development (DSWD) on 6 Janu-ary 1995.

Project Luke’s vision is “a societywhere the common man’s right tohealth is upheld; various health careservices are accessible, available andaffordable, and the Gospel is shared tobring well-being and wholeness.” Itsmission is “to serve as a channel forvarious health care services with amandate to share the Good News.”Their goals are:

1. to train community health workersenhance their knowledge, skills,and attitude on primary healthcare, especially on primary eyecare;

2. to facilitate medical interventionsand make eye operations acces-sible and af fordable in areaswhere such services are eithergeographically inaccessible, orsimply unaffordable to those whoneed them the most;

3. to rehabilitate the visually im-paired through the Community-Based Rehabilitation Approach;and

4. to make the less fortunate knowthat they too are loved by God.

These are translated into the fol-lowing Christian commitments: “Healthe sick say unto them, the kingdomof God is come nigh unto you,” (Luke10:9) and “The blind receive sight, thelame walk, those who have leprosy arecured, the deaf hear, the dead areraised, and the Good News is preachedto the poor.” (Mt. 11:5)

Project Luke’s board of trusteesconsists of seven well-known and re-spected members of the community, allof whom are active with civic organiza-tions in Baguio City. There are eightfull-time personnel—three (a secre-

PROJECT LUKE CHRISTIAN HEALING MINISTRIES, INC.

Cultivating volunteers

Case 13


tary, cashier, and nurse) are office-based, while the rest do field work.

Based in Baguio City, ProjectLuke’s mission areas are Baguio,Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija, La Union,Ilocos Sur, Ilocos Norte, and Isabela.The project went as far as Basilan,Palawan, Zamboanga, and Cagayan deOro for some time, until they decidedto concentrate on a particular place sothe program would have more impact.“We wanted our par tnership withpeople to be strengthened,” ExecutiveDirector Florita Paragas explains.

Initially, funding for Project Luke’sprograms came mostly from CBM

grants. Their equipment for cataractoperations was also donated by CBM,with subsequent grants for itsmaintainance. A gradual decrease offunds in the past years, however, haspushed Project Luke to initiate ways tokeep the project sustainable.

Paragas relates that they now re-quire counterpart funding from the pa-tients and the communities duringtheir medical missions. “Patients giveaccording to their ability—some giveP250, while others P1,000. All funds arereceipted. Then we get from this fundthe expenses incurred by our medical

missions that cannot be shouldered bythe office.” She adds, “If our servicesare given as a 100 percent dole-out, weare stepping on the patients’ dignity.”

Patients are screened to assesstheir economic standing. “Kasi kungpuwedeng magpalibre, magpapalibreiyan (if they know that they can availof our ser vices for free, then theywill),” she says. The patients wouldhave to shoulder expenses like theirfood, transportation, and laboratorycosts, while Project Luke would offerthe doctors’ services and medicine.The patients would also be asked fordonations. Paragas explains, “We[would tell them we] need donationsso we could buy medicines for the nextpatients. It is worth explaining the ideaof counterparting. All our patients inBaguio City have given counterpart.”

Indigent patients are advised to goto the social welfare office with a so-licitation letter for their barangays. Ifthey belong to a religious fellowship,they would be asked to go to their pas-tors and have the church sponsorthem. “Indirectly we are telling thecommunities that they have this re-sponsibility to their members. The cul-ture of giving is there,” says Paragas.Patients are then encouraged to findother cataract patients in their commu-nity. She adds, “These people wouldshare their blessings in their barangayand [bring] patients to us.”

According to Paragas, a certainlevel of community support is neededto sustain Project Luke. Attaining thislevel entails much public relations

“Even if the donations aresmall, what is important is

building the consciousness thatthey are partners in this cause.”


work—whether it is called social mar-keting or simply selling the program.For a medical mission in Pangasinan,for instance, she wrote the mayorsthere and told them how their missionswould benefit their constituents. Themessage was, “Let’s work together forblindness prevention. We cannot do italone.” They approached municipalhealth officers, barangay officials, andchurches for support.

Paragas recalls that at one pointthey had budget constraints for the

mission in Pangasinan. “It camethrough because the community, theRotary Club, and the barangay officialssponsored the activity. The people ap-preciated the services because they par-ticipated in the process. They felt it wastheir own program and we just encour-aged them. More doctors volunteeredafterwards,” she relates.

“We concluded that the cataractprogram should be sustainable,” shecontinues. “Our role was to bring theequipment and medical supplies. The

Programs and Services of Project Luke

Preventive Health Care

1. Primary Health Care

� Training for Community Health Workers especially on Primary Health Care for the Eyes

� Screening of Eye Cases

� Vitamin A distribution for the prevention of malnutrition and blindness for the children

� Deafness Prevention Program

� Facilitate the construction of eater systems and waste disposal system in under serve

communities

2. Curative Health Care

� Surgeries of indigent cataract, glaucoma and pterygium patients

� Referrals of other indigent surgical cases (e.g., cleft lip/palate cases)

3. Rehabilitation

� Community based rehabilitation for the visually impaired persons

� Training of community based rehabilitation workers for the blind persons

� Sign language

� Multi Disability community based rehabilitation

4. Christian Impact Program

� Distribution of Bibles and Christian literature

� Bible studies

� Values formation


rest was the communities’ responsibil-ity. The most important thing was tomaintain the trust and respect of thesepeople who supported us.”

Before the actual medical missionis carried out, Project Luke holds train-ing sessions on blindness preventionand primary eyecare. Initially, the train-ing was free. Now they request that theLGUs provide things like the venue orfood for the trainors and participants.“When they provide lunch ormerienda, we would put [the LGU offi-cials’] names on our training certifi-cates. We make them guests of honorduring the closing ceremonies and[tell] the participants that their mayorsupported the activity. [The mayorshould know] that this is good public-ity,” Paragas says.

They have also formed partner-ships with government hospitals andhealth agencies. In exchange for theuse of their facilities, Project Lukeshares with them a portion of the pa-tients’ donations.

It is on the volunteer opthal-mologists, however, that the projectrelies most heavily. They have linkedup with a number of opthalmologiststhrough one of their volunteer doctorswho is a member of the Society ofOpthalmologists. “We asked for a listof opthalmologists in our target areas.Then we wrote the doctors and ex-plained the need of our foundation [for]their voluntary services. When theyagreed, they would say which days theycould offer charity work.”

It was not always this easy. Paragasnarrates, “In the beginning someopthalmologists felt threatened by ourmedical mission. They said they weregoing to lose their patients, and wewere going to kill their source of in-come. So we talked with the opthal-mologists in our project areas. We toldthem, ‘The more you do charity work,the more the Lord will double your in-come. The patients that you have oper-ated on will [spread the word] in theircommunities that you are a good doc-tor. People will go and line up in yourclinic.’”

Project Luke’s volunteeropthalmologists have become well-known in their communities. In addi-tion, with constant practice in cataractoperation, they have become evenmore skillful. They can perform a cata-ract operation in 15 minutes when be-fore it would take them 45.

Patients are encouraged to giveP30 to P50 to the doctors as consulta-tion fee. Paragas says, “People wouldunderstand and show their apprecia-tion to the doctors. One time, a doctorbrought us to his home and told us tocapture ducks and chickens in hisbackyard. They were gifts from hispatients.”

Project Luke has enlisted the helpof students taking up social work in St.Louis University (SLU) in Baguio City.As par t of a course requirement,students work in the communities topractice the theories learned inside theclassroom. Paragas, who is a schoolsupervisor at SLU, handles the student


volunteers. SLU pays Project Luke aminimal affiliation fee—70 percent goesto the general fund and 30 percent goesto the person who super vises thestudents.

Paragas recalls a par ticularinstance in which they got help fromstudent volunteers. She enthuses, “Thestudents were a big help to us. Theyhad to work together with the groupand with a community. They organized,coordinated, and mobilized resourcesin the community. We provided themthe learning opportunity and theyhelped us in our work. They alsoconducted training on primar y eyecare and cataract screening. We justmonitored them. It was a give-and-takerelationship.”

She adds that the students alsosometimes help source funds locally.“For [one of] our Christmas parties,the students helped in fund raising.”

Fund raising requires teamwork,stresses Paragas. She observes, “Mostof the people here are fed up [with]solicitations or raffle tickets. We have

to think of other ways [to raise money].”They do not put up special events be-cause it does not seem to be a feasibleoption.

“In fund raising, the credibility ofthe organization and persons workingin the community are very importantto us. So we are very careful. For ex-ample, if you are a social worker, it iscrucial that in your own professionalgroup, you are well respected andtrusted. They will recommend you toothers if they see you are giving goodser vice to the community,” saysParagas.

She continues, “Some of the doc-tors who were helping us for years alsohelp in fund raising. They get dona-tions in cash or in kind from medicalrepresentatives. Even if the donationsare small, what is important is build-ing the consciousness that they arepartners in this cause.” ◗

Paragas, Florita. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. Baguio City. 3 December 1999.


The Remedios AIDS Foundation,Inc. (RAF) began in 1991 as a drop-in/resource center on Remedios Street,Malate providing information on HIV-AIDS. At that time, it was supported bythe Academy for Education Develop-ment, a US-based donor agency sup-porting the Depar tment of Health(DOH). The increasing incidence ofHIV-AIDS in the country caused RAF toexpand its services and by 1995, theywere providing integrated reproductivehealth services to clients. In 1997, RAF

put up a health clinic in Tondo, Manila.

The Foundation, along with itsstaff and board members, recently re-vised its thrust to reflect its broaden-ing service scope. Its mission is “asociety where all people, regardless ofgender, age, sexual orientation,ethnicity, religion, or economic statushave access to quality and reproductivehealth care and are able to exercisetheir sexual and reproductive rights.”Its vision is to provide “quality sexualand reproductive health informationand direct services to people with popu-lar focus on vulnerable individuals andcommunities affected by the HIV/AIDS

pandemic.”

The Foundation identifies as itsgoals:

1. empowered individuals and com-munities practicing healthy

lifestyles and behavior throughprovision of quality sexual and re-productive health information,education and communication(IEC) programs; and direct ser-vices (clinical/medical); and

2. sustained, functional, and efficientorganizational mechanisms thatwould respond to the needs of RAF.

For the past three years, RAF haschaired the HIV-AIDS Network Philip-pines (HAN), an umbrella organizationof more than 40 local NGOs working onHIV-AIDS preventive efforts. It has alsobeen instrumental in having the AIDS

Bill passed in Congress. Republic Act8504, or the AIDS Prevention and Con-trol Act of 1998, was signed into law onFebruary 13, 1998 by then PresidentFidel Ramos.

The work of the RAF is to educatecommunities about their vulnerabilityto HIV/AIDS in order for them to reducetheir risks. Targeted are members ofthe gay community (“gay” beingbroadly defined as men who have sexwith men), sex workers, and all thoseaffected and infected by HIV-AIDS. Toreach out to these groups, the Founda-tion has linked up with the followingorganizations:

◗ Gay Pinoy is a peer support groupformed through the Internet Re-

REMEDIOS AIDS FOUNDATION, INC.

Fund raising for a difficult cause

Case 14


lay Chat (IRC) channel with thesame name. Its membership con-sists of Filipino gay men. It is oneof the strongest supporters of theFoundation’s advocacy and in-volves the Foundation in fund rais-ing campaigns.

◗ The Youth Zone is a resource cen-ter for the youth based within theshopping mall complex of TutubanCenter. Their activities tackle ado-lescent health sexuality conductedthrough peer counseling, Internetchat room counseling services,group dynamics, seminars/train-ing, and various outreach commu-nity missions.

◗ The Training Institute of RAF is theeducation arm of the Foundation.Various training modules on repro-ductive health are developed andused for seminars/workshops andtraining among their targetgroups. The Foundation has beenrecognized by the ProfessionalRegulations Commission (PRC) forconducting educational activitiesamong medical and paramedicalprofessionals for purposes of licen-sure renewal. This makes RAF oneof the lead institutions providinginformational services in the fieldof reproductive health.

◗ The Clinica Remedios is an inno-vative community clinic based inTondo, Manila. It was establishedwith the support of the AustralianAgency for International Develop-ment (AusAID) and serves the dif-ferent health needs of thecommunity, primarily the

freelance sex workers of Tondo.They offer various health-relatededucational services, reproduc-tive health and family planningcounseling, as well as directclinical ser vices such as basicmedical/obstetrical/gynecologi-cal/surgical procedures, HIV-AIDS counseling and testing, andSTD case management.

The Foundation provides the fol-lowing services:

◗ Counseling—phone counseling,face-to-face counseling, YouthZone chatroom—is conducted bya pool of 50 youth volunteers.

◗ Training is done through lectures,workshops, seminars, symposia,post-graduate courses, and annualconventions on sexual and repro-ductive health.

◗ Confidential and anonymousmedical assistance is providedthrough Clinica Remedios and theKalusugan@com clinics.

Funding for ser vices was ini-tially solicited by the board fromtheir personal contacts. Over time,they began collecting fees for theirser vices. At the Clinica Remediosand Kalusu-gan@com clinics, P30 ischarged for ever y consultation.Medicines and laboratory examina-tions are charged under a socializedfee scheme. A one-hour lecture forcompanies costs P1,000, while thefee for schools and universities isP500. Two– or three-day seminar/training workshops on counseling or


reproductive health may go up toP10,000 to 25,000 depending on thescope of work done. For other ar-rangements, par ticipants may payP200 to P400 each. At the YouthZone, there is a P20 per hour chargefor Internet access.

The Foundation, however, is sup-ported largely by donations and grantsfrom both local and internationalsources. Information campaigns gen-erate interest and appreciation for theircause both here and abroad. Their Website at www.Remedios.com.ph linksthem to a network devoted to HIV-AIDS.

International agencies are still theFoundation’s main source of funds.Notable among the Foundation’s inter-national donors are the AusAID, JapanInternational Cooperation Agency(JICA), Japanese Embassy, Levi-Straussand Company (USA), UNAIDS, UnitedNations Population Fund (UNFPA),Ford Foundation, and the World HealthOrganization (WHO). At present, 80percent of their funds come from in-ternational agency partners. They sup-port the Foundation because of theprofessional standards it maintains inkeeping commitments. Transparencyin funds usage assures donor agenciesthat whatever they give is channeledto the proper beneficiary.

Some 42 local partners—both gov-ernment agencies and NGOs—also sup-por t the Foundation. A number ofprivate companies have tapped the RAF

to train their medical support staff.Whenever a local company helps theFoundation, however, it is usually in ex-change for services. For example, theRAF was given business space at theTutuban Center in exchange for a ba-sic lecture series on HIV-AIDS for theshopping center’s staff. Rent and otheroperational expenses were waived forRAF to implement the Youth Zoneproject. Advocacy activities are some-times conducted with the help of theTutuban Center.

The gay community supports theFoundation through fund raising activi-ties—movie premieres, concerts, andplays—conducted by diversity@gay-pinoy. These activities benefit the Foun-dation financially while raising awarenessfor their cause.

The Foundation sees the need tomarket and promote its services moreto achieve financial sustainability. Pres-ently, however, there is no departmentor group within the Foundation whosesole task is to raise funds. The pointperson for fund raising activities, NenetOrtega, is also the Foundation’s clinicmanager. She handles clinical serviceprograms as well as advocacy and link-ages with agencies. Other staff mem-bers need to be trained in marketingand performing tasks such as planningfund raising schemes and preparingproject proposals.

The fact that the Philippines is a

The Foundation must find theright partners.


predominantly Catholic country pre-sents challenges for the Foundation.There is a stigma on their advocacy,HIV-AIDS, and on their target audience,which is made up of groups that areoften marginalized in our society. TheFoundation must find the right part-ners, as religious groups and conser-vative businesses maintain aconservative stand on issues such ascondoms and sexuality—issues whichare openly tackled by the Foundation.

Furthermore, most local compa-nies feel that conducting training/workshops on HIV and AIDS com-petes with their productivity. “Mostof the companies feel that it is nottheir priority need and they willnever be af fected by HIV/AIDS,”notes Dr. Jojo Secson, an obstetrician-

gynecologist and executive directorof the Foundation.

Lastly, persons with HIV/AIDS findthat people tend to exploit their suffer-ing and refer to them as “victims.” Anexample of such exploitation is thesculpture “Pain” at the Fourth AsiaPacific Congress on AIDS in Manila.Persons with HIV/AIDS staged a protestrally in front of the sculpture and re-placed it with a quilt sewn together byfamilies of people with HIV. The quiltdramatized their sentiments in relationto HIV—love, care, struggle, pain—asexpressed in their own terms. ◗

Secson, Jose Narciso Melchor, and NenetOrtega. Interview by Melinda A. Bonga.1999 and 2000.


How do you promote the use of atraditional dialect? This is the chal-lenge that faced Paranubliun-Antiquewhen it embarked on a campaign topromote the use of Kinaray-a, the dis-tinct dialect of Antique, WesternVisayas.

For many years, Kinaray-a was notwidely used in Antique because it wasassociated with the sacadas or sugar-cane workers, and thus, with poverty.Most Antiqueños preferred to commu-nicate in Hiligaynon (or Ilonggo), thelingua franca of most of the provincesin Western Visayas. “If I go to Iloilo, Ispeak in Ilonggo. If the Ilonggos come[to] Antique, they speak in Ilonggo,and we are forced to speak their dia-lect. I think we [Antiqueños] have aninferiority complex,” quips Florentino“Nonong” Egida, Paranubliun’s execu-tive director.

The idea of reviving Kinaray-a wasconceived by Norma Javellana, a train-ing consultant of the Antique Inte-grated Area Development (ANIAD) andthe Antique Federation of NGOs(AFON). Javellana, together with vari-ous artists of Antique, thought of tap-ping local artists to harness Antique’scultural heritage and indigenous cul-tural expressions to complement thework of GOs and NGOs. The birth ofParanubliun-Antique in 1993 was the

offshoot of a strategic planning work-shop facilitated by AFON under its In-stitutional Building Program assistedby the ANIAD Foundation.

Paranubliun became a legal entityin 1995. As an organization, it envisions“communities and groups that are cre-ative, critical, self-sustaining, pro-na-tion, gender-fair, and actively involvedin addressing development issuesthrough the use of existing traditionaland contemporary art forms and cul-tural expressions as media of change.”

Its objectives are to promoteKinaray-a art and culture, and to linkcultural expressions to important de-velopment concerns. To achieve this,Paranubliun focuses on an art and cul-ture movement based on education andon grassroots development. It haspushed for cultural activities in theprovince, like fiestas, to move towardsdevelopment concerns. It has providedtraining, educational trips, andconsultancy services to communitiesand groups. It has actively organizedcommunity-based cultural groups inAntique. In 1994, it embarked on an an-nual literary contest in Kinaray-a. It hasalso produced educational materials inKinaray-a for children.

In 1997, Paranubliun set the follow-ing goals:

PARANUBLIUN-ANTIQUE

Rewarding volunteers

Case 15


1. to have communities that are ableto manage cultural events andmobilize resources in partnershipwith local governments, people’sorganizations (POs) and NGOs;

2. to see Kinaray-a mainstreamed inthe development plan of NGOs,GOs, and POs; and

3. to sustain and institutionalizeParanubliun through a sustainableresource generation scheme.

After only three years of imple-menting the above programs,Paranubliun is beginning to see thefruits of their labor. Egida observes,“The Kinaray-a language is now becom-ing popular in our schools. There aremore people using Kinaray-a duringcommunity programs. Even in litera-ture, more poets are using the dialect.”

He adds, “We now see organizedcommunities [managing] their own cul-tural events that are linked to their de-velopment issues. Some people weretrained in leadership skills and wereable to link with the local governmentfor support. We can say that we wereable to conduct all the activities relatedto our objectives.”

In Paranubliun’s bid formainstreaming Kinaray-a into theschool system, they have developededucational materials in the dialect likecoloring books, an epic book, and acompilation of poems. Some schoolsupervisors appreciate the materials.Egida relates, however, that they haveencountered problems with dissemi-nating the materials. “We cannot push

[for] our materials [to] be used morewidely because we cannot give themfor free. Our Kinaray-a epic book evenhas an English translation because wewanted to sell it to a wider audience togenerate income.”

In 1999, their income from salesincreased by around 30 percent. Outof their budget of P112,000 from Janu-ary to August, P36,000 came from salesand fees from performances. Egidaestimates that earned income fromtheir children’s publications and cas-sette tapes will fund 40 percent of theirbudget in the following years.

Paranubliun started operationsmainly through volunteers—a handfulof writers, visual artists, and art patronsfrom institutions and the religious sec-tor. Javellana acted as the volunteercoordinator from 1993 to 1997, and asa major resource mobilizer with herhusband. Together, they helped con-ceptualize activities for Paranubliunalong with some volunteers and mem-bers of their Board of Trustees. From1993 to 1995, Paranubliun subsisted onvoluntar y contributions from indi-vidual sponsors, and support fromANIAD.

Their first volunteers came fromschools. Some were students who wereinvolved in theater, while others werepoets and writers in Kinaray-a.Javellana also found people in thebarangays who were inclined to cul-tural activities and later volunteered intheir cultural events.

Egida describes the volunteers as“come and go.” At present, Paranubliun


has 15 to 20 “permanent” volunteerswho join them in cultural events. Egidaobserves, however, that there is volun-teer fatigue. “We felt [that] the artistswhose skills were honed, aside frombeing volunteers, should be given re-muneration.” Most volunteers wereusually paid P50 for every theater per-formance plus snacks; skilled musi-cians, P200 a per formance. Somevolunteers also act as resource personsduring workshops and are given rec-ognition for their efforts; financially,however, they do not get much.Paranubliun tries to give the volunteerartists more. Egida says, “Right nowwe see a little satisfaction from thembecause we’re giving them biggeramounts compared to previous years.”

Volunteers continue to supportParanubliun’s efforts for many rea-sons. They enjoy the camaraderie, forone. Some see it as part of their com-mitment as artists. Others come for thefee, whatever it is—but Egida pointsout that this is not the main reason.“One of the bigger reasons is to honeand express their own artistic ability,like acting, scriptwriting, and poetry.For visual ar tists, Paranubliun is ameans through which their artworkscan be exhibited,” he says.

Paranubliun has been supportedthrough the years by a number of enti-ties in both the public and private sec-tor, among these are:

◗ the Antique provincial govern-ment, which has been alloting anannual budget of P25,000 forParanubliun since 1994.

◗ the Catholic Organization for De-velopment Cooperation (CEBEMO)—an organization linked with theCatholic community in the Neth-erlands—was a regular donor forthree years from 1995.

◗ the Children and Youth Founda-tion of the Philippines (CYFP)funded the improvement of theirmonitoring and information sys-tems. In 1998, CYFP supportedtheir culture and arts program forchildren and youth.

◗ the Coca-Cola Foundation fi-nanced one of Paranubliun’s pub-lications, the first illustratedKinaray-a epic. The book won anaward from the Cultural Center ofthe Philippines (CCP).

◗ the National Commission on Cul-ture and Arts (NCCA) supportedthem in the production of cassettetapes of Kinaray-a children’s songsfor the children’s art festival in1998. It also suppor tedParanubliun’s cultural festivals inAntique.

Paranubliun has put up culturalfestivals in partnership with the munici-pal government. Although differentfrom their usual grassroots organizing,Egida thinks that this linkage is betterbecause it results in a higher turnoutof participants from the barangays.“We are able to inject our purpose,[our] love for Kinaray-a. Aside frommounting a festival, we try to put mean-ing [into it]—it is a means to enhanceour use of Kinaray-a.”


He continues, “Working for a causelike arts and culture is much more dif-ficult in our poor communities. Thesebarangays would have to prioritize eco-nomic activities before cultural perfor-mances. How could they perform ifthey are hungry? Now, if the initiativecomes from the municipality (top tobottom approach), achieving our goalsis not that difficult.”

Egida says that the communitiesthey deal with respond favorably totheir work. “They know that nowadayswe are unable to support our commu-nity activities. Most of them would feelsorry if we disband as a group. This[is the] sentiment of elementar yschoolteachers who have realized theimportance of the organization in es-tablishing our identity,” he adds.

Paranubliun’s Board is composedof two local government of ficials, ateacher, artists, singers, and writers.The presence of the local governmentofficials has made a big difference inthe organization’s operations, saysEgida. “The influence of the Board’sChairman [has been] far reaching,even up to the provincial level. The pro-vincial governor approved his requestto increase our budget allotment forour administration. It increased fromP38,000 to 50,000 a year.

Other contributions by boardmembers are non-financial, as whenthey recruit volunteers. Egida furthers,“The role of the board is not just tosource funds. They contribute theirtime, ideas, and talents in operationalconcerns and activities. Sometimes

they direct our plays. We are satisfiedwith our board. They are more than justa policy-making or direction-settingboard. They are really involved inParanubliun.”

Despite the stiff competition forgrants on the one hand and donor fa-tigue on the other, Paranubliun feelsthat grants from institutions support-ive of their mandate are still the bestsources of funds. In addition, they aretrying to get more support from theprovincial government.

In the meantime, they have comeup with possible ways to sustain theorganization financially while attract-ing a wider audience and more donors.One is to produce a total of 10 perfor-

mances a year—a combination of the-ater presentations and concerts featur-ing original Kinaray-a music. They alsoplan to publish more Kinaray-abooks—in particular, a dictionary—and to sell them for profit.

Another possibility is to invitemore members into the organization.Egida says, “While this is seen as oneof the potent sources of funds, our ex-perience shows that most of the exist-ing members, mostly ar tists, are

“We felt that the artists whoseskills were honed, aside frombeing volunteers, should begiven remuneration.”


themselves unable to chip in for the or-ganization. Rather, [it is] they who [ex-pect] to benefit from the monetaryresources of Paranubliun.”

The organization also wants to of-fer art workshops for schoolchildren.“This could be another source of in-come for us,” Egida explains, adding,“Our long-term vision is to have aschool for the arts. It’s going to be aschool of living tradition.”

The United Nations Children’sFund (UNICEF) is another possiblefunding source that they have linkedup with in partnership with the provin-cial government. “We have submittedto them a P1.3 million proposal for aone-year plan which was for programs(e.g., production of cassette tape, a dic-tionary, and children’s festival), not forpersonnel services.” Commenting onthe fact that agencies do not fund per-sonnel services, Egida said, “It’s okay.The important thing is that we are still

here, even if we don’t receive salariesfor some months.”

Paranubliun has a regular mem-bership of 31 artists and patrons. Fu-ture plans for the organization includedeveloping their skills in marketingtheir publications and performances.Egida stresses the importance of finan-cial sustainability.

“Focusing too much on grantswhich do not come in as expectedmakes for low morale; thus [we] for-get other strategies to sustainParanubliun’s operations.”

He concludes, “We are still opti-mistic that things will get better, en-thusiasm will again surge, and wewould be able to summon all ourforces towards creating a vibrantParanubliun.” ◗

Egida, Florentino. Interview by Melinda A.Bonga. Antique. 8 February 2000.

105

Afterword

IN CLOSING, the findings of this research have been found to support thekey messages that Venture for Fund Raising has stood by since its incep-tion in 1999.

Filipinos do do do do do give. We have always known this to be true in the smallercircles of our own family and friends, where we experience the giving orthe asking—firsthand. But now the evidence in this book tells us thatgiving is not limited to our own small circles but is in fact something thatbinds Filipinos together. The bayanihan spirit of old is alive and well buthas taken on a different form. Perhaps not all Filipinos have the opportu-nity to lift neighbor’s houses anymore, but many have shown the willing-ness and the ability to uplift other people’s lives.

NGOs play an important role in society and deserve support.The challenge is both for the giving public to exercise careful discern-ment and for the NGOs to take to the call of legitimacy, responsibility,accountability, and transparency. Demonstrating that they (NGOs) canbe effective and efficient in working to fulfill their missions is now recog-nized as only half the battle. Communicating this good work to the pub-lic and giving them an opportunity to do or give their share completesthe picture.

Improving the quality of life is everevereverevereverybody’ybody’ybody’ybody’ybody’sssss business. Never shouldthe interest of making people’s lives better and addressing the problemsand needs of our communities be left to the monopoly of a sector, a branchof government, or that part of the world that has taken to the name “civilsociety.” We all are stakeholders in this process called development, therewards of which will only be bountiful and can only be reaped if eachone plays his or her part.

And so, the challenge remains—to invest in ourselves and in ourcommunities. ◗

supported by

and theASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANKTHE ASIA FOUNDATIONUNITED STATES AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Investing in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in the PhilippinesInvesting in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in the PhilippinesInvesting in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in the PhilippinesInvesting in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in the PhilippinesInvesting in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in the Philippines

provides NGOs and fund raising practitioners with a deeper knowledge of

the fund raising principles and strategies employed in the country. Whether

you’re a small, young non-profit, or a large national or international

organization, you will benefit from the fund raising experiences of the local

NGOs in the case studies. The publication of the book is part of a seven-

country research project spearheaded by the Asia Pacific Philanthropy

Consortium (APPC), and funded by the Asian Development Bank, through

The Asia Foundation, Nippon Foundation and United States Agency for

International Development (USAID).

ISBN 971-92335-0-8

Publication Stock No. 040802

giving and fund raising - Public/Private Ventures

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