Young Focus

Counting Flowers supports underprivileged children

The profit Counting Flowers made in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 has been used to support underprivileged children living on a garbage dump in Manila, Philippines. Through an education project, the children are being motivated to go to school. They are supported from elementary school all the way up to vocational education or even university.

The Dutch Foundation Young Focus supports the children. Paul and Ann van Wijgerden together with a team of Filipino colleagues, work in Tondo. This is one of the poorest districts of Manila and home to the infamous Smokey Mountain, the city’s largest garbage dump.

Smokey Mountain is home to three thousand people. They survive by collecting dirt and by burning waste wood and timber for the production of charcoal. Even children as young as four years old are helping by collecting nails that fall out of the burning wood.

These children do not attend school for several reasons. They cannot afford their school uniforms, nor the (low) school fee. Also their parents want them to contribute to the family income and put them to work. Most parents have never attended school themselves and in many cases do not see how education could benefit their children.

At this moment Young Focus supports 275 children who go to school every day. The children can visit the foundation’s Student Centre to do their homework, use computers and borrow books. The children cannot study at home since entire families live in tiny huts on the garbage dump.

After having visited Smokey Mountain ourselves, we were convinced that Counting Flowers' first profit should be used to help these children (especially the girls) to go to school. Even then, their road remains long and hard, but at least the children will get a chance to leave the garbage dump.

A warm thank you to our customers!

Young Focus newsletter 2012:


 

Life at Smokey Mountain