Who would have thought in January 2020 that we would later be faced with a national pandemic essentially changing life as we know it? As the world continues to adjust to a “new norm”, many are trying to find a sense of normalcy and figure out what that even looks like. According to NPR, the Philippines currently has the largest number of COVID-19 cases in Southeast Asia. The cases have soared to 202,361, with 5,277 new cases reported on 8/26/20. In Metro Manila where the population is 12 million, social distancing becomes challenging. Naga City, the largest city closest to Minoro, has seen fewer number of cases, but testing is more scarce as resources pertaining to health care are not as accessible in the more urban areas.
As many schools districts here in the USA are scrambling to figure out how to continue to teach students while also minimizing the spread of COVID-19, Minoro Elementary and school districts abroad are in the same boat as well. The Minoro school year runs from June through March, but this year that is not the case. Minoro is working towards re-connecting with students in October, and have been working hard on figuring out logistically how this will work. Here in the US many school districts have gone to virtual/online learning, while in countries such as the Philippines, technology and resources are practically non existent. And as we know, Minoro rarely has the bare minimum resources needed to provide the students during a normal school year. While many areas of the world have been heavily impacted by the COVID-19 virus and even you, yourself has been affected in more ways than one, put yourself in the shoes of others who live in a country where health care and resources are scarce.
What does this mean For the Kids? It means, they need support now more than ever. In recent conversations with the Administration at Minoro, their plan is to prepare and print the lessons and parents will come to the school and pick up the packets for their children. I know we have fancy copiers here, but for Minoro that is not the case. Imagine printing daily, weekly, and even monthly lessons for 110 students using a single copier? Below is a photo of Ms. Mary Jane doing exactly that.
So, other than needing an industrial sized printer, they are in desperate need of paper and ink. An initial supply of paper and ink was sent over, but we believe this to be an ongoing need as long as students are not able to be in school.
For the Kids 