Melinda J. Irvine

Travelling back to Estancia, Iloilo for Christmas was absolutely worth every late flight, every noisy airport and every dodgy boarding house. It was great to see my friend Matt Kennedy again who is now working with Australian Aid in Iloilo City. The spirit of the Pinoys is inspiring and infectious. They sure know how to party.

Christmas lights in Iloilo City: after shooting this video I shared the back seat of my four and a half hour bus ride to Estancia with six baskets of fighting roosters.

My message of help for this family was answered by my very beautiful Jac Gallagher and her family. I climbed the muddy hill to their tiny bamboo home which houses 7 kids (1 significantly disabled), mother, father and mother-in-law. The video below was taken on Christmas Eve 2014 and a thank you to my friend Jac and her family after I had given them some money she sent for Christmas. Nida (mother) had been scolding her eldest son for his lack of enthusiasm for the photo and demanding his gratitude as the sponsorship money means that Roseanne (4 years) can now attend school. This hardworking family live in the province of Estancia, Iloilo and suffered significantly following Typhoon Yolanda.

Preparing food for our Pinoy host families on Christmas Eve 2014 who we had come to know and love over the past 11 months since Typhoon Yolanda was a heap of fun. I just had to have the entrance filmed to this dodgy boarding house (ravaged by Yolanda) and the big party that was happening in the streets of Estancia.

How can you not fall in love with the kids and people who tell you they just had the best December of their life?