The heart of GK is not the house, but the family, community, and the faith in the nation.”
In saying this, Fr. Bienvenido Nebres, SJ opened Gawad Kalinga (GK) Ateneo’s first bayani (hero) assembly themed “Towards New Frontiers for Nation Building.”
Gathering students, faculty, staff, alumni, GK Kapitbahayan leaders, caretakers, and school partners from Metro Manila and nearby provinces, the assembly honored and recognized its volunteers and residents.
The assembly was an avenue for them to be acquainted with each other, and possibly collaborate for future efforts.
It was held at the Leong Hall Auditorium on July 31, as part of the university’s 150th anniversary celebration, and in commemoration of the Feast of Saint Ignatius.
Not just about houses
Senior Marco Ordoñez said that the assembly was about GK going deeper than constructing houses and more into developing communities.
“GK is helping people grow in faith, leadership and other aspects and inspiring them to make a difference through projects like social entrepreneurship and others,” Ordoñez said.
In a separate interview, event organizer Leigh Hernandez said that Ateneo’s efforts have gone beyond housing.
One of these efforts was SOM’s LS 125: Strategic Management class, which studies how productivity and livelihood initiatives can work among different GK communities.
“Groups like the High School and our [National Service Training Program] provide tutorials. Youth for Christ-Ateneo, and the Performing Arts Cluster Organizations provided personality development trainings. We are moving towards the next phase of development,” Hernandez added.
Got Heart, a non-profit organization for farmers, out-of-school youth, and indigenous people, Rags2Riches, a social business enterprise of women recycling cloth for designer accessories, and Bejeweled, a brand of flipflops made by mothers of GK Molave Village, are some of the Atenean-handled orgs established to help GK.
Other representatives from the Grade School, School of Management (SOM), School of Social Sciences, and School of Government also discussed their involvement in GK.
Grade School Parent Mylene Mandanas, together with the Parent-Teacher Association, initiated a fun run to raise 12 houses, instead of the proposed 10 houses to be built.
Loyola Schools Maintenance Staff were also given certificates for building a schoolhouse in Gabaldon, Nueva Ecija. “It’s good to know that all their hard work is being recognized and praised by people,” said sophomore Alyssa Campena.
Despite the ‘holiday’
Sophomore Raisa Luis attended the talk because she wanted to know about Ateneo-GK’s advocacy to help unprivileged Filipinos. “[I want to know] the part that I, as a student, can play in this nation-building campaign.”
Tony Meloto, GK father and founder, expressed his gratitude to everyone who engaged in their activities for they have, in their own little way, contributed to GK’s prime goal, which is to make the Philippines a first world country come 2024.
“GK is about hope, hope for every Filipino,” Meloto said.
