Philippine Self-Help Foundation
Richard recalls his first field trip of 2024
I decide on March 19th for my first field trip of the year as the weather forecast is for fine weather. This is an important reassurance as I am heading up to the north of Bohol island on my newly acquired 125cc Yamaha scooter and rain would not be a pleasant prospect.
I start out at 7.15am from my apartment on Panglao island for the 100 km journey to the town of Trinidad. Analyn and Phady will be taking the bus from Tagbilaran city and meeting me at the entrance of Trinidad’s Municipal Hall. We shall be meeting loan applicants and members of Phady’s family.
The main road in Loboc after the floods in January 2015. St Peter's Church, visible in the background was badly damaged in the 2013 Bohol earthquake.
The main road in Loboc on the day of my visit with St Peter's Church now fully retored.
My route takes me across the bridge to Bohol mainland and then along the east coast before turning inland at Loay. I make a first stop in the town of Loboc; I was last here in January 2015 when they were cleaning up after devastating floods with the river bursting its banks. Floods of the same magnitude occurred again in the aftermath of typhoon Odette in December 2021.
My journey takes me past the ‘Chocolate Hills’ one of the geological wonders of the Philippines and now the subject of a major scandal as a resort has been built between two of the hills and is the subject of an investigation. The law stipulates that no concrete structures are permitted in the vicinity of the 1,700 hills.
I reach Trinidad just after 10am and look for a place to park my scooter. I check my phone to discover a text message from Analyn to say that she and Phady are delayed on the bus and won’t be arriving before 11am. I am parked just outside a barber shop so I decide to go in and ask if I can have a haircut. I sit on a bench by the window to await my turn. I am glad that there is an aircon unit as it really is a pretty hot day out there.
When my turn comes, I ask the barber to give me a trim using scissors only. We start talking and I discover that he (Jonathan) is a student of politics at the Trinidad Municipal college and that he works as a barber when he does not have classes. The cashier is the only full-time employee. Jonathan never had any formal training but he does a good job on me and I even get a head and shoulders massage. I show my appreciation with a generous tip over and above the 60 pesos ($1) haircut charge.
Phady and Analyn with Danilo on his tricycle.
I (Richard) arriving in the Poblacion of Humay-humay.
After my haircut, I start looking out of the window for the arrival of my colleagues on the Ceres bus. Soon enough, they arrive as does Danilo our local volunteer and former loan recipient of PSHF. He earns a living from transporting passengers on his tricycle but today, he is spending a half day with us. He takes Phady and Analyn on his tricycle for the 10 km ride to Humay-humay and I follow on behind on my scooter. We are going to the home of Rosario, a recent loan recipient for a rice grinder.
After the initial greetings and introductions, Phady conducts an orientation for the two loan applicants and I take a short nap; I am feeling tired from the heat and the long ride from Panglao. Soon enough, Phady’s orientation is concluded and I join the two applicants at the table for the interview; Analyn is my interpreter.
Eduardo is applying for a loan for his vegetable gardening, specifically to buy seeds and fertiliser. He has two hectares of land, half of which is planted with vegetables, including string beans, water melon, okra, cucumber and eggplant as well as peanuts. I ask him how his vegetables can survive the El Niño we are currently experiencing and he tells me that he has a small reservoir (a big hole in the ground) to capture rain during the wet season. He and his wife spend a lot of time each day collecting water from the reservoir in a bucket and applying it to the vegetables using a kabo (dipper).
Maria Luz, my other interviewee runs a motor parts shop with her husband. She is applying for a loan to enable her to buy some items of stock in bulk so that she can avail of a 5% discount and save on transport costs. Her shop caters mainly to motorcycle owners as the few local car owners go into the towns of Ubay or Trinidad to buy motor parts. The shop has daily sales of 500 pesos a day giving Maria Luz a net profit of 100 pesos ($2) a day. She is hoping to double her income as a result of getting a discount on bulk purchases and having a wider range of inventory.
Junita with her mother Stella outside their home.
Junita, Phady, Analyn, Danilo and Stella in front of the couple's ricefield.
After my two interviews, we bid our farewells to all and head for Danilo’s home as I would like to meet his wife Stella again; we helped her last year with a grant when she was hospitalised with serious menopausal bleeding and weakness. She and her daughter Junita were both at home and gave us a warm welcome. We walk out to the family’s rice field and we are pleasantly surprised to see that it is still green and seemingly thriving.
I (Richard) together with Phady's mother and her two nieces, Avha and Athena.
It was a delight for me to meet Atenadora again; She suffers from osteoporosis but otherwise is in excellent health.
We have one more important appointment before we return to Tagbilaran, namely to visit Phady’s family who live on the boundary of Trinidad. It is my first visit in ten years and I am happy to meet Phady’s mother Atenadora again along with two of Phady’s sisters and two nieces, 12 year old Avha and 9 year old Athena. There is a sad story to tell about the two girls as they have been orphaned in the last five years; their mother died of lupus in 2019 and their father (Phady’s brother) was murdered by a cousin in 2022. Thankfully, the two girls seem to be well adjusted and thriving despite the tragic loss of their parents; I discover that they are both consistent honours students. Avha tells me that her favourite school subject is Filipino and Athena tells me that she likes English.
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And so ends a memorable day in the field for me and my two colleagues. I have a three hour scooter ride back to Panglao awaiting me and Analyn and Phady will be returning on a Ceres bus back to the city.
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​​​Richard John Foster
May 2024