October, 2007
 


Welcome New and Renewing Donors
FHM is delighted to welcome Ronald McDonald House Charities as a new class sponsor. Navitaire recently embraced its second class of students. The class they began sponsoring three years ago graduated and moved on to good Manila high schools. Automatic payroll contributions from global employees provide the needed high school scholarships.

FHM in the Philippines has also been the beneficiary of donated audit and legal services from KPMG and Sapalo, Velez, Bundang, and Bulilan Law Office. A generous individual donor has made it possible for Hilda Cleofe, former Executive Director of the American Chamber of Commerce Foundation, to support and lead growth initiatives in Asia.

  

In this Issue:

  • FHM Students Clear Challenging Hurdles
  • 60 New Families Join FHM Community
  • Parents Report Impact of Participation in FHM
  • Developing Spirit So Children Can Thrive
 
 
   

FHM Students Clear Challenging Hurdles
Overestimating the challenges that FHM children face would be difficult.

  • A Manila Science High School student cares for her paralyzed sister’s needs on a daily basis.
  • Now that his mother works in Kuwait, a 13-year-old graduate lives all alone.
  • A student’s mother decides to pull her daughter out of high school when the family has no food to eat. After listening to this distraught mother, FHM graduate support mentor Zena asked, “If your daughter leaves school, does that mean you will have enough to eat next week? Are your daughter’s school fees paid for the next quarter?” In the end, the distraught mother agrees. It makes sense for her industrious daughter to continue her studies.

Will every student make it? The hurdles are high. Daily, FHM students and families clear many.

 

60 New Families Join FHM Community
In two different locations, 30 new 4th graders started their intensive 3-year FHM program. One new student introduced herself to a crowd of Navitaire employees. Teacher Candy asked her how she had prepared for her English speech. After a thoughtful pause, she answered, “I shined my shoes.”

The students’ new self-confidence is mirrored in the leadership skills that emerge from their parents. Together teachers, parents, students, and employee sponsors start out in a shared experience to forge dreams and the skills required for making them reality.

  

Moms get assignments
 

My son used to just follow. Now he asks good questions. He asked his older brother who works, ‘Why aren’t you helping mom so she can provide for us?

  

Parents Report Impact of Participation in FHM
Parent focus groups were part of a recent overall program evaluation.

  • I’ve interacted with people from all levels of society. I am so much more confident.
  • As the bus driver, I’ve learned how to discipline kids. Sometimes you just have to stop at a corner and wait for them to get quiet.
  • I’m amazed at how we finish our tasks while having fun. There is camaraderie, caring, and support. We knew when one mother had a stroke so we made sure she had the lighter jobs.

Parents also shared wise strategies they had used to mitigate jealousy of non-scholar siblings. Changes observed in their FHM children included their becoming more inquisitive, self-disciplined, studious, helpful, and competent in handling conflicts.
 

Developing Spirit So Children Can Thrive
Academic scores matter — a lot! But FHM children need more. They must be able manage family challenges and being teased as “squatters” by wealthier high school students. Contacts with sponsoring companies open up the world. New morning meetings build bridges between home experiences and school. But what happens in two nights of camp is unique and invaluable.

  • A Cargill employee led one of this year’s most popular camp breakout sessions. She taught the kids to dance! Yes, they did ethnic and modern dance. But picture groups of kids learning to cha-cha! Can you hear the giggles? Asked to introduce themselves in high school by naming a talent, some now named “dancing.”
  • General Electric volunteer Jodl loves the stars and kids. With friends from The University of the Philippines Astronomical Society he brought along, Jodl helped FHM children use star maps and telescopes to see and imagine the vast universe. The memory will last a lifetime!
  • Science is everywhere. Several Cargill men invested a day to drive kids home from camp and included a detour for a visit to an experimental farm. The kids donned white coats and saw the biggest pig they had ever seen!
 

Children from the provincial town of Malolos had a grand adventure when they sang for Cargill dealers. The kids saw Manila and experienced the Sofitel. Many who stopped in to say hello before the children’s performance received “praise notes,” as the kids practiced the habit of noticing the positive in people.

Science scores continue to lag behind reading and math. Thanks to two individual donors, FHM can begin investing in science kits to help teachers give students hands-on science experiences. More are needed!
 

Learn more about the Food for Hungry Minds community at http://www.foodforhungryminds.org.

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