Serivive Learning Project

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happening in Philippine society today. The inequalities brought about by poverty have become so pronounced that our poor have never really felt any improvements in their lives. To read about it the newspapers or watch on T.V. is one thing but it is quite a different feeling if you experience it firsthand. Each and every member of the group had a wakeup call and was touched by the experience. We were not only made aware of the plight of our participants but engaging with them gave us a purposive encounter of knowing and feeling of oneself and others. In the process, it also opened more nagging realizations and questions, mixed emotions, disorienting dilemmas, and the longing for clearer answers and clarifications. It gave way to the realization as to why do those who have less still have less in opportunities, why do we have very little time to spend with those who need attending to, and why are we not doing enough to remedy such a problem.

2. Analysis and Reflection

2.1. First visit – Orientation and interviews

2.1.1 Acting upon one’s Passion

Passion is a compelling enthusiasm or a deep desire to change and to liberate action; a goal that a person will joyfully pursue even without being compensated for it. That’s what we have perceived with the coordinators of DLSU and PJPS during our first visit in Muntinlupa. The details of the inmates and the situation of their families has been communicated to us with such zeal that you would really want to be part of such advocacy. We were able to view the situation of these people in a different perspective; that these prisoners may have done something wrong in the past, but they are still human beings, who have rights, sentiments and most importantly, families.

Indeed, passion is a powerful emotion that should be acted upon to be able to make a difference in the lives of others. Thank God for activities that serves as a medium in connecting people, in such a way, that bridges gaps of our society through constant collaboration, and community service.

2.1.2. Awakening consciousness about social realities

During the first visit, we had the opportunity to interview some of the wives of the inmates. We actually expected them to tell stories of how hard it is to live with a husband who’s in prison or how difficult it is to visit the polls every so often. We were mistaken when we’ve heard them say that their main problem is how to be able to meet the financial needs of their children, having been taken the responsibility of the fathers who are supposed to be the providers.

The time spent in PJPS opened our eyes to what these families are experiencing and gives us a picture of what needs to be done to bring back balance to the inequitable distribution of the country’s resources.

2.1.3. Rebuilding Lives and Rekindling Hope

PJPS’ mission and goals focuses on Rebuilding Lives and Rekindling Hope, it is to promote prison awareness, advocate active involvement of the free society, provide sustainable programs that assist in the total rehabilitation of the inmates and their families, build a community of spirituality mature volunteers, collaborators and benefactors, and gather development and judicious administration of resources.

We are just grateful for organizations such as PJPS which bring hope to those who most need it. They provide a venue to make us and the participants to our activities mutually empowered and it gave us the chance to derive joy and fulfilment all the while inducing social change.

2.2 Second visit – actual seminar

2.2.1. Freedom from poverty through financial literacy

Most Filipinos are already ok with “makaraos lang sa pang araw-araw” and no longer thinking about what will happen in the future, if whether they can send their children to college or not, or whether they have the resources for emergencies like health related issues. The group thinks that this wrong perspective is the main source of poverty not the lack of resources or the absence of opportunities. This is a mind-set that is hard to change but through seminars like financial literacy, we believe that we can encourage people to save, invest into small businesses and therefore be financially stable. We were glad that the class have chosen topics which can help them be free from the bondage of poverty instead of choosing activities that will encourage dependency

It is not far from our knowledge that what they really need is not short term solutions so what we imparted to them through additional livelihood programs, no matter how small, will give them more opportunities to earn to provide for their families in the long run.

2.2.2. Effecting liberating action

Awareness should capacitate them to effect liberating action. The participants were very active in raising and asking relevant questions, on the application of what we are teaching in their daily lives. It is evident that they have the desire to change their current situation. There may be insufficiencies now but with the desire and acceptance comes the flashpoint of change. Indeed, a hard life can teach you life’s hardest lessons but we cannot use that as an excuse to stop striving for a better life and a better society.

2.2.3. Able to serve

Being part of the Lasallian community, we are privileged and expected to immerse ourselves in the present social conditions pervading the country. The service learning activity is God’s way of reminding us that we are capable of touching others’ lives, maybe in not so enormous ways yet, but a simple gesture of kindness with sincerity can ignite hope to somebody else daily. Therefore having lived the Lasalian mission of bridging faith and scholarship in the service of Church and society, especially to the poor and marginalized.

3. Committed Action

With all the things observed by the team during the first visit, the whole class came into a commitment to take action by means of creating and conducting a program, departmentalized into different topics but still somewhat interrelated with each other to fully utilize each one’s full potential, on what we can do and what we can offer to the said community. We have identified that the community or at least the wives and families of the inmates, lacks concrete knowledge on finance, and means or sources of income, thus, the team conclude to focus on it. One team, was

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