From the Street to the Classroom

by John Coffey

Education is empowering. I first joined IT Tender because I admired their fight for the basic human right of education - a right effectively denied to the poorest in Manila. Even public schools with free tuition are a privilege reserved for families who can afford school supplies, packed lunches, and transportation to and from school. This reality in Manila challenges our belief that we value education for all. Is there something we can to do change this situation?

At IT Tender we empower the poor by providing an education to all ages. By God's grace and the support of volunteers and donors, we already have an early childhood education center (SMART Kids), a preschool (Simula Learning Center, or SLC), a sponsorship program (Sponsor-A-Child Now, or SACN), and a tutoring program for out-of-school youth (Alternative Learning System, or ALS). We also partner with the government to connect our high school graduates with opportunities for technical schools and higher education.

Providing an education for the poor is just the beginning. At some point I realized that if I truly care about long-term empowerment of the poor then providing an education is the minimum we should do. Providing a quality education is what we should strive for. Children of any background deserve to experience the best curriculums, enriching field trips, out-of-school tutoring, and more. All of these must also be combined with programs that address the nutrition, hygiene, and financial needs of the poor. This is what we strive for at IT Tender.

Lovely and Lucy (sisters and clients of IT Tender) stop by the IT Tender Center to say hi on their way home from public school.

Reynalyn is also excited for the first week of school. She regularly attends our Night Life program after school.

June marks the beginning of the school year in Manila. Each of our educational programs thus begin again this month, including our SMART Kids program for toddlers and youth mothers. SMART Kids is an opportunity for mothers to bond with their children in a safe environment and to be a part of their early education.

Meeting the mothers at a two-day trial and orientation kicking off the new school year of SMART Kids

 The two-day trial was packed with excited children and eager mothers ready to enroll

At SMART Kids, the mothers themselves are empowered to teach and learn with their toddlers

Jam watches over one of the infants so a mother can focus on her toddler

The new school year of our ALS program also started this month. Through ALS, Gabby helps to prepare out-of-school youth to pass their high school equivalency exam. When Gabby isn't busy in the ALS classroom, he can be found on the streets mentoring and leading bible studies with our Night Life youth and encouraging street youth to join ALS and complete their high school degree.

I share a brief message of encouragement in Tagalog for the new ALS enrollees

Gabby mentors street youth in Putatan who make a living sifting through garbage piles along the railway

Our short-term missionaries from Denmark, Janne & Martin, led an activity that broke barriers and strengthened relationships with the Putatan street youth whom Gabby is mentoring. This activity of service and humility was modelled after Jesus washing the feet of his disciples. Jesus said to his disciples "You call me teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them" (John 13:13-17, ESV).

Jesus modelled the example of a teacher and leader who is willing to get his hands dirty and serve the very people who look up to him and follow him. We should have the humility and grace to do the same. Many of the youth were nervous at first to let Martin & Janne touch their street-worn feet. But their initial timidity was replaced by smiles and laughter when they saw how easily and joyfully Martin & Janne stooped down to wash their feet.

Jomel giggles as Martin scrubs his ankles

Gabby washes the feet of his disciple Javar

A memorable moment of humility - Javar himself chooses to wash the feet of his younger brother

Finally, I want to leave you with photos from our recent field trip to the Mind Museum in Manila. This unforgettable experience was enjoyed by the children in our Sponsor-A-Child Now program and our Food for Life nutrition program. Thank you to all of those who sponsor a child at IT Tender for contributing to this event through your monthly support. Thanks also to Adam Hussey, Karin Jose, my personal supporters, and the staff and volunteers of IT Tender for their contributions. Finally, we want to give special thanks to Children's Hour and the Extreme Response Children's Home for partnering with us to make this event possible.

Please enjoy the pictures from this fun and enriching experience for our children...

On the bus ride to the museum the staff (behind) are just as excited as the kids

Upon arrival we are greeted by a friendly robot named Aedi

The kids enjoy some very advanced, interactive exhibits

Cecille and Gabby get "re-energized" to keep up with the kids all day

Just some of the "wild creatures" you can study at the museum 

We enjoyed meals from the Filipino-favourite "Jollibee" on the bus between our museum tour and a stop at a local playground

As if we didn't have enough fun at the museum, we ended our adventure-filled day at a giant playground

Thanks for reading. Please remember these children in your prayers for the new 2014-15 school year.

Take care!

Gabby is Going to College!

by John Coffey

Please enjoy this brief, 2-minute video of our very own Gabby Malquisto sharing his exciting news...

https://vimeo.com/95975803

Gabby seeks to improve himself and also to improve our programs for out-of-school youth by getting a degree in education and becoming our own licensed high school teacher at IT Tender. Growing up in poverty himself, going to college is a huge challenge for Gabby. He has already enrolled by faith, using his personal funds for the enrolment fees and entrance exam (which he passed!). We now need to raise $500 per semester to cover his tuition and school expenses. An additional $200 per semester would cover his transportation for the long commute each day. His first semester is in June, so the rally for support is urgent. Donations of any amount will greatly help Gabby’s education.

For more information on how to support Gabby's college, email John Coffey (Director of IT Tender) at johndlcoffey@gmail.com

Gabby currently mentors and prepares out-of-school youth for their high school equivalency exam

On May 1st, IT Tender hosted our annual "Family Day" at a swimming resort for 250 children and parents from our education and nutrition programs. For many families, they were experiencing this kind of outing at a nice swimming pool for the very first time. The joy in their faces is evident from the photos. It's also our joy at IT Tender to encourage families to bond and develop relationships within their community. Filipinos are a resilient people who understand the importance of family. However, the strain of poverty still threatens to disintegrate relationships and ultimately lead to broken families. While this Family Day may seem like such a simple event, it is actually an unforgettable day that these families will cherish forever.

Theresa (from our Sponsor-A-Child program) enjoys a dip 

Catherine (from our preschool) enjoys the free photo booth where each family got to take home a framed family photo

Adorable smiles from some BFF's in our FFL (Food For Life) nutrition program 

From April 28 to May 1, I joined the "Leader Mundial Summit" in Atlanta, Georgia. This was an incredibly edifying and empowering retreat for global leaders from organizations around the world. I'm thankful for the things I learned from one-on-one coaching, group seminars, and plenty of free materials and resources. Please continue to pray for me as I gain more experience as a leader and strive to constantly improve myself for the benefit of my team and our clients at IT Tender.

This is what a group of global leaders, pastors, and CEO's looks like.

...and this is what a group of global leaders, pastors, and CEO's acts like.

Bridging Cultures and Meeting Minds in Vietnam

by John Coffey

Earlier this month Jamielyn and I were honoured to represent IT Tender at the 6th IT East Asia Conference in Saigon, Vietnam. Hundreds of missionaries serving across East Asia travelled to the conference to encourage and teach one another. As one of the speakers, I had the opportunity to share what God has been doing through our programs in Manila. I taught a session on community transformation, summarizing much of what I've learned over the past few years regarding long-term empowerment through education and skills training. Thanks to the mentoring of much wiser and more experienced leaders than myself (such as Pastor Joshua & Anne Benavidez, Pastor John & Gela Basiwa, and Hart & Ginny Wiens), I can't overstate the importance of passing on our experiences and effective practices to others.

I'll keep this post brief so you can catch a glimpse of the inspiration and encouragement we experienced at the conference from this video:

Highlights from the 6th International Teams East Asia Conference

In other news, please pray for the following upcoming events:

-April 28 - May 1, "Leader Mundial Summit" in Atlanta, Georgia; I will attend a training for global leaders from various organizations

-May 1, "Family Day"; IT Tender will host a family outing at a swimming resort for over 250 people (children and families from each of our education and nutrition programs)

-May 24, "Museum Field Trip"; IT Tender will bring children from our sponsorship and nutrition programs to a world class science museum in Manila

Stay tuned for updates and stories from those events.

Take care!

School is Out and Summer is In for Filipinos!

by John Coffey

It's hotter than ever right now in Manila and thus the best time to give our students a break. Congratulations to all of our students for their hard work in the 2013-2014 school year. Special congrats are in order for each of the graduates of our preschool program, our elementary/secondary sponsorship program, and our ALS high school equivalency program. We enjoyed a memorable ceremony and dinner for these graduates on Saturday, March 29th. I was moved by the tears of many proud parents witnessing their children receive certificates and various medals for their successes in completing their preschool or high school education.

We were also honoured to have some guests from the city's Department of Education. After the ceremony, they had a private chat with the five passers of our high school equivalency exam where they offered opportunities and scholarships to technical schools and colleges for those motivated to pursue higher education. Gabby and I continue to encourage our graduates to pursue such dreams and not to give up hope in the face of the adversity they've experienced most of their lives. The fact that they've made it this far is a testament to their perseverance and of God's faithfulness.

The five latest passers of the high school equivalency exam (front row)

Our preschool graduates came "dressed to impress"

Our vision at IT Tender is to empower children to become educated and responsible leaders in their community. Encouraging children and youth to join our educational programs begins with going into the community and building relationships with those on the street. Our Night Life program does just that, reaching out to children and youth accustomed to living and working in the street. Some of these youth have yet to discover the hope and inspiration needed to pursue their education. Nevertheless, we are amazed by the resiliency and perseverance of our clients who earn a living sorting through junk and selling what they can. Please pray that we can deepen relationships to inspire these youth to go back to school, to attain more sustainable work, and to believe that God can use them to become leaders.

Our Night Life clients in Putatan sifting through garbage piles 

Gabby mentors these youth through a weekly bible study on Mondays

Besides the graduation ceremony and our regular weekly programs, the last month has been packed with special activities and events. I'll leave you now with a brief summary of these...

We brought each of our Night Life Putatan clients to the drop-in center where Gabby interviewed them to attain more information on their education, family situation, dreams and struggles. Janne - our social work intern from Denmark - carefully crafted the comprehensive survey and will also report the findings to her university.

The children from our Food for Life program took the initiative to create their own rules of conduct for the nutrition sessions

Health workers from the local government came to our drop-in center and led a Hygiene and Nutrition Seminar for the parents of our clients

The Hygiene and Nutrition Seminar was a great success and we're already looking forward to our upcoming Family Planning Seminar

I brought a handful of our workers to assist the Hygiene Day of our partner ministry "Batang Matinik" in rural Tiaong, Quezon Province

Martin and Gabby (in the mirror) joined me in reminding the boys at the Hygiene Day to brush their teeth and bathe every day

The vice mayor of the city invited our team to his home for food and fellowship!

Teaming up with our partners at Jesus Our Hope Church in Sucat, I helped organize a seminar about "Working and Earning" led by entrepreneur and pastor Dino Yupo and social worker Gela Basiwa 

As you can see, there's a lot of exciting things going on at IT Tender! By God's grace, we are privileged to experience every trial and success along the way in transforming communities in Manila. As the team leader, I'm constantly seeking ways to improve our programs and also myself as a leader. I'm thus thankful for two exciting opportunities that are coming up in the next month. Firstly, on April 10-12 Jamielyn and I will be in Vietnam representing IT Tender at the 6th East Asia Regional Conference of International Teams. We will learn from other IT missionaries and also share what we've learned serving the poor in Manila. Then, from April 28 to May 1 I will attend a forum for global leaders in Atlanta, Georgia. This leadership summit is called Leader Mundial and is run by one of our partner NGO's at Extreme Response. The purpose of the summit is to help leaders become more effective in leading and developing their organizations' vision, objectives and impact.

Thanks again for reading my updates, and I look forward to sharing more pictures and news soon.