Last week in Estancia was one of the best weeks I have ever experienced in my life. So many prayers answered and being around creative energy, music and friendship -- just wonderful.
Music is Magic, Medicine is Expensive
Category: Giving Back
If this is the first time you’ve visited my blog, welcome! It’s great to see you here. My name is Melinda J. Irvine and I’m an Australian freelance writer, poet, and blogger.
Even though I’m Australian, I spend most of the year in the Philippines. I first came to the Philippines in early 2014 to volunteer after SuperTyphoon Yolanda smashed the coastline of the Western Visayas. After only a few weeks I felt a strong connection with the local children, and was inspired by their open friendly nature plus their stoic attitude to extreme poverty and frequent natural disasters.
But it was an orphaned boy (only 7 years old) who captured my heart, and inspired me to sell everything I owned then start a freelance writing business so I could stay in the Philippines and take care of him. So for the last 5 years I’ve devoted myself to caring for Jerry as well as supporting another 20+ kids who live in his home village.
Here on the blog you can read all about my life as adopted mum to Jerry while helping the kids he’s grown up with go to school. I fund and manage all of these projects myself (books, stationery, lunches, uniforms, and clothes etc) and they are my way of encouraging the children to go to school. My goal is to one day operate a dedicated creative learning centre for the kids as well as become Jerry’s legal mum.
While my projects are funded by my freelance writing business (and the support of family and friends), your donations are always welcome too. Please get in touch if you would like to learn more.
We all give back in our own way … and this is mine.
Thanks for reading.
Melxx
- Music is Magic, Medicine is Expensive
- Music Man Project Philippines — Inaugral Concert for Botongon
- Music, Music, Music
- Preparations for the Medical Mission
- Bringing music and medicine to the kids of Botongon (Estancia), Philippines
- Donations: where does the money go exactly?
- Losing Rosemarie
- Website upgrade
- Dengue
- Getting all the kids back to school 2019
Music Man Project Philippines — Inaugral Concert for Botongon
Watch the full Music Man Project Philippines inaugural concert (minus a few speeches) for Botongon (Estancia) Philippines. Held 5.30pm, 15 February 2020 at Barangay Botongon Gym Plaza.
Music, Music, Music
The Music Man Program is fully underway here in Botongon, Estancia. It all seems like a blur the last few days -- cancelled flights, rerouting, airport runs, transferring multiple bags and passengers to buses, and finally the 4 hour drive to Estancia.
Preparations for the Medical Mission
If you read my blog yesterday you'll know that in between writing assignments I'm involved in a music program and medical mission here in the Philippines.
Bringing music and medicine to the kids of Botongon (Estancia), Philippines
Imagine how thrilled I was 6 months ago when a friend in the UK contacted me about coming back to the Philippines and bringing a FULLY FUNDED music program and medical mission. Imagine how thrilled I was on Friday when the first of the music and medical team arrived here in Iloilo City.
Donations: where does the money go exactly?
Maybe you've seen the donation buttons on my website and wonder what I do with the money -- I hope this post will give you a better understanding of what I do, and even inspire you to do more in your own community.
Losing Rosemarie
Our beloved Rosemarie died suddenly on Sunday morning. If you have been following my blog anytime over the past 5 years you'll have seen many photos of Rosemarie and her family. Her mother had taken her to hospital Saturday night,…
Website upgrade
Hi friends. Thanks for stopping by my website. Things are gonna be looking a bit wonky for the next few weeks -- as I upgrade and get it ready for my new online learning centre and digital download service. It's…
Dengue
Yesterday afternoon Jerry's classroom was fogged for dengue mosquitos. The entire Province of Iloilo is currently in a dengue emergency which includes both Estancia (where Jerry's family, all our friends and sponsored kids live) plus Iloilo City itself. All hospitals…
Getting all the kids back to school 2019
Each year (with the help of friends and family), I use the money I earn as a freelance writer to support about 20 Filipino kids in their schooling. Throughout the year family and friends (and even a few people I've…
No Fixers Allowed
This year for World Literacy Day, Jerry and I went back and visited Estancia. We spent Friday night making reading packs for 18 of our friends and put them in shiny bags. It was exciting, though Jerry was feeling a…
Talking About Tuberculosis (TB)
Jerry has officially been on his TB meds now for two weeks so his incubation period is over. We've spent the last fortnight adjusting and falling into a ritual of measuring out pill quantities, cutting and swallowing. Followed by milk…
Everyday Ironies
For the uninitiated, after a flood your deep well needs to be cleaned. We don't drink the water from our well, we buy that. But the deep well feeds our [cold] shower, toilet tap (for filling buckets of water to…
Under the Mango Tree
On Thursday we took the 4 hour bus back to Estancia to visit our friends, Jerry's family, and the kids of Botongon who are getting ready for school enrolment on Monday. We needed to get Jerry's Grade 3 report card…
Ronalin’s Hat
If you remember my tale from last week about a little girl with severe head lice, this is the sequel.
Hello Kitty
This morning I was sitting here at my computer, clattering away at they keys when I was called outside. "Come and look at this," I heard. Outside was a little girl of 6 sitting at the top of the stairs,…
A Little Boy and His Orange
I hope this little post evokes all the joy that a simple act of kindness from a stranger can bring to your day.
My Favourite Photo of 2017
The WordPress daily prompts and photo challenge are among my favourite things to do and I try to participate as much as possible. So it's lovely to share my favourite photo of the year once again. It was watching little…
Adopting Jerry
It was May 2015 that I first met Jerry wandering the dirt backroads of Estancia in the Philippines. Two and a half years later I'm actively working to legally adopt Jerry under the Philippine domestic system. It's known as "expat…
Educating Disadvantaged Kids With ‘Chasing Coral’
Yesterday I screened the new environmental film Chasing Coral at the Tanza Elementary School in the Philippines. Coral reefs around the world are vanishing at an unprecedented rate and this important film follows a team of divers, photographers and scientists on…
Replay: World Literacy Day Livestream
If you missed the livestream of our World Literacy Day celebrations you can watch the replay here. Children's author and poet, Dr June Perkins joined us live via Skype and the children of Botongon sang and performed too. Please note…
Rehearsals Started for Literacy Day Celebrations
Rehearsals for our World Literacy Day celebrations started today and as promised here are the details to watching live on Friday. Today we went back over some materials we learned last year and I also began teaching the kids a little…
Join Us Live with Dr June Perkins and the Children of Botongon
Less than a week now until World Literacy Day 2017 and I'd like to invite all my readers and supporters to join us live via YouTube on Friday, 8 September at 6.30pm AEST. I'm so excited to be hosting an activity…
Read More Join Us Live with Dr June Perkins and the Children of Botongon
World Literacy Day in Purok 4
International Literacy Day is held on 8 September every year and this year I'll be celebrating with the children of Botongon as well as some accomplished artists, writers and musicians from Iloilo City. As a special treat, my friend and…
Panicked
hearts in our bellies baby jyn swallows a coin emergency OP © 2017 Melinda J. Irvine Daily Post: Panicked PS: Stopping by the house after the operation (below) baby Jyn doesn't show any signs of being rushed to the city…
The Greatest Place in the World
The greatest place in the world is always wherever I am standing, and right now that place is Barangay Botongon, Estancia (Philippines). I arrived back from Australia to Estancia last Thursday night and even though it can be such a challenge living…
Her Dream of Medical School
I think this is now one of my favourite videos ever: Eunice greets her sponsors in Australia who are helping her fulfil her dream of studying medicine. Meet Eunice, she's sixteen years old, top of her class, lives in a…
Forty-one Kids
I had to send the kids home today. The cable that connects my tablet to the amp is busted and I couldn't play music or amplify the TV so forty-one kids could hear the movie over the sounds of the…
How to keep kids safe from harm?
Encouraging the local kids to stay away from online gaming dens or roam around the pier is the main reason I invite a small group to the house in the afternoons after school. I see these kids (little kids as…
The Poetry of Ink
Book have always delighted me, not just their words and pictures, but their physical presence in my hand. I am still most happy lost for hours in a second-hand bookshop among the little books of poetry, big books of visual arts,…
What are those ladies laughing at?
I would love to tell you what my friends are laughing at, but that would breach our women's gathering trust (I can tell you though, that it both shocked and delighted them). Yesterday was the first gathering of women on…
The Land of Birthdays
there is something in my heart that make me want to ... give every kid a birthday the way we used to do have all your friends come over and mum’s friends can come too we’ll play a lot of…
Happy Birthday Baby Roseann
Enid Blyton's 'Land of Birthdays' was the most excellent place I could imagine when I was a kid. Climbing to the top of the faraway tree to celebrate your birthday: just awesome. So it's no big surprise that I have created…
This is why i own a TV
I've never been really into TV, and the only reason I bought this one was so Jerry could watch it. My whole view on TV changed when I came up with the idea to take an activity into the kid's home purok.
Please don’t throw your garbage into the sea
Help me collect it instead. Yesterday Jerry and I went down to Gredia Park to start picking up rubbish. There is so much of it. We are going back today at 4pm, along with some the children of Botongon. Sadly…
Free creative activities for impoverished children
© 2016 Melinda Irvine
Tuition and employment
Yesterday some of the dreams and visions for my life here in the Philippines manifested into reality: tuition for street kids and employment for families battling poverty. For the last two years I have been helping Shelia Gedalanga and her…
Rebuilding the children’s playground
Saturday (yeah the next one coming) is the beginning of a series of art and creative activities for the children of Botongon, Estancia. Twister tournaments, giant puzzles, painting and poetry. I really can't wait. For the last few weeks I…
Decisions
Arriving in the Philippines over two years ago to help out after Typhoon Yolanda, I never expected I would still be here. The amazing, crazy and tragic things that have happened over the past two years have left me drained…
Bunkhouse Children’s Christmas Party
Being forcibly relocated away from your birthplace, work and friends due to a natural disaster is hard at any time of year, but maybe even more so at Christmas. It's easy to be forgotten. A big thanks to my friends…
Finding Jerry
I met Jerry on a hot, dirty roadside. He had cut feet and no shoes. He was crying. It was a long time before he trusted me enough to climb on my back so he didn't have to walk on the…
Choices
who do you choose? gifted kids? poor families good grades always in school doctors dentists teachers 'good' boys always in school but what about other kids? poor families bad grades never in school laundry-work cleaners begging 'bad' girls never in…
Finding sponsors for little boys
I have a little boy of seven (7) permanently in my care now. More stories will appear in the blog about him with time. This blog is about finding sponsors for his little friends, there are literally hundreds of thousands…
Smile for a sack of rice
they know exactly why they are smiling why I was arriving at 10.30 in the morning why they had to put on pants and shoes eldest sister points her little brother to the camera light smile for a sack of…
Enough is enough
After more than twenty years of fighting, cruelty, frustration, weapons, bruising: after hearing her children scolded, accused and seeing them hurt; my friend Jing had the courage to leave her husband. This post is in honour of her bravery to…
Returning
I arrived back in the Philippines four days ago after only three weeks in Australia. After such a short time away and such a long time since blogging I have no idea how to begin. I left after a death.…
Remembering Eugene
Maybe one day I will be able to write about you, but for now I will publish this blog post at the time of your tragic death: Saturday, 29 August 2015 at 12.30pm. Words will come in time but for…
Market Day for Neda
Mother of eight (8) Neda is only 40. She is a great mother and both her and her husband love their children so much. I videoed her in the market buying clothes for her youngest daughter Roseanne (aged 4). Having…
Christmas in April
Last November I posted to the Philippines two boxes of relief goods (clothes, swimwear, craft materials, jewellery making equipment). They also included Christmas gifts. Due to some weird miscommunication they sat in the Estancia Post Office for nearly four months…
Humanitarian Aid Work
In February 2014 I arrived in the Philippines expecting to do one month’s volunteer work with an international aid agency in conjunction with CERV Philippines. To be honest I thought I’d have a technology-free 4 weeks and lose a few…
Islas de Gigantes
My first visit to the Gigantes Islands in the Visayas of the Philippines: I'll let the pictures tell the story of how making friends is the best part of my visits.
A Pinoy Christmas
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…
Christmas celebrations in Sawa (Basay) Western Samar
I spent an amazing day celebrating Christmas through music and dance with the people of the rural Barangay Sawa (Basay) in Western Samar. There was no power owing to Typhoon Ruby sweeping through the area less than a week earlier.…
Read More Christmas celebrations in Sawa (Basay) Western Samar
Relief aid in Marabut, Western Samar
ACT Alliance and the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP) have been working on the ground delivering aid to human beings displaced by Typhoon Yolanda. Learn more more about Typhoon Yolanda and the relief efforts in the documents…
My son is dead
Getting out of the car in Marabut (a province in western region of Samar, Philippines) I spot two little girls through a makeshift bamboo fence. I wave and they wave back. I have arrived in Tacloban City only a few…
Tacloban City
I landed here in Tacloban City at midday today knowing absolutely no one. Being in Estancia during Typhoon Ruby and knowing my friends are safe I felt compelled to come immediately to Tacloban and Samar to see if I could…
Tiny children who are sick break your heart
Whenever you see a tiny child sick with a severe illness it will make you cry, but in the Philippines walking around the poverty of Barangy Botongon, Estancia it just crushes your heart. I had taken this little girl to hospital…
Livelihood for a Filipino widow
Ronnie, the man in the photo, died the day I landed back in the Philippines just over a week ago. I went to visit him and check on his family but was greeted by his wife and his body lying…
This little Filipino girl needs a sponsor
This little girl really needs your help. A couple of nights ago a shared a shelter house with family of ten (10) as we waited out Typhoon Ruby. The family live at the top of the hill in a bamboo…
School in a tent
The Botongon Elementary School was almost completely destroyed by Typhoon Yolanda and the oil spill of Powerbarge 103. I shot this video back in May 2014, the Principal of the school lamenting that the school had not received any form…
Return to Estancia (just in time for Typhoon Ruby)
Arriving back in Estancia, Iloilo just in time for Typhoon Ruby was certainly unexpected. When the bus pulled in from Iloilo the streets of this normally buzzing province were quiet as people were preparing for the pounding winds and deluge…
Read More Return to Estancia (just in time for Typhoon Ruby)
Could you give up your woolies animal cards?
Checking out of woolies today and receiving a little pack of animal cards I instantly knew I'd be taking them with me to the Philippines when I return on 29 November. There are so many kids over there who don't own much…
Oil still on the shoreline in Botongon, Estancia
Seven months after Typhoon Yolanda ripped Powerbarge 103 from its moorings, there is still oil on the shoreline of Estancia. I'm not sure how well you can see in my dodgy video, but it upsets me every time I walk…
Another fire in the Estancia public market
Seems to be rather a lot of them ...
Please don’t get the chairs from this ‘room’!
A message from Ma'am Annelyn Tung written on a blackboard in a makeshift classroom at the Northern Iloilo Polytechnic State College. "Please don't get the chairs from this 'room'! We need help! We need assistance! We need classrooms ... The…
Fishing boats donated to local community
On Monday I attended the turnover ceremony as the National Union of People's Lawyers handed over five (5) fishing boats they were donating to fisherman affected by SuperTyphoon Yolanda and the oil spill of Powerbarge 103. The fishing boats will…
Rewards for gifted students with financial difficulties
Yesterday I visited the National High School in Estancia, Iloilo (along with former Vice Mayor Rowena Placencia and Matt Kennedy) to meet with the Principal and twenty (20) gifted students. The students were personally selected by class heads along the…
Read More Rewards for gifted students with financial difficulties
Blackboards for typhoon damaged classrooms
When Typhoon Yolanda smashed the roofs off twelve (12) out of fifteen (15) classrooms at the Tanza Elementary School, eleven (11) blackboards were left either damaged or completely destroyed. For the last seven (7) months teachers have been getting by…
The 5/6 loan
I know you're wondering, what exactly is a 5/6 loan? Well it's something that desperate people do when they are trying to resume a livelihoood in the Philippines after Typhoon Yolanda and the oil spill of Powerbarge 103 have taken…
Living in a bunkhouse
It's hot. It's at the top of a hill. It's miles from the market. It's miles from the schools. The bunkhouse is nowhere near the home you lost in Typhoon Yolanda.
School supplies for bunkhouse kids
When you lose everything in a cyclone such as SuperTyphoon Yolanda you are faced with the immediate crises of what to eat, where to sleep and what to wear. But what about seven (7) months on when school resumes. Has…
Reunited with the bunkhouse kids
On my last day in Estancia, Iloilo before returning to Australia (April 8, 2014), the kids living in the tent city (emergency shelter post Typhoon Yolanda) were concerned because they were being moved to bunkhouses in another local government Barangay.…
Her business was spared from the market fire … but what is the cost?
The "Daisy Carinderia" is an eatery located in the now fire razed market of Estancia. She wants to give up but her granddaughter is intellectually disabled and requires constant care and the expenses are high. Established by Daisy Tabernilla (62)…
Read More Her business was spared from the market fire … but what is the cost?
Estancia public market burned out again
One of the reasons I returned to Estancia, Iloilo (Philippines) was due to the deeply entrenched poverty I witnessed. Typhoon Yolanda only exacerbated the lives of people already living on the edge of desperation. Then on Sunday night at 9.45pm the…
Oil spill victims
Sancho Trogo has skin ulcers related to an oil spill. He also suffered a stroke and lay on a piece of bamboo for two months praying for help. Now in hospital. The photos really don't capture the infected state of Sancho's…
Health advisory ways to cope with an oil spill
I see this banner hanging next to the health clinic every time I go to the market in Estancia. So during one of my market trips I stopped to photograph the banner so I could spend more than a few moments…
Please help my baby …
During my first visit to the Philippines in February 2014 following Typhoon Yolanda, I spent a considerable amount of time in emergency evacuation centre, affectionately known to locals as "the tent city". In western terms, "evacuation centre" doesn't really provide…
Taking action against injustice: the stories of 25 women (part 2)
Despite being dissuaded by local government from taking action against Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management(PSALM) Corporation, a group of brave residents in the Barangay Botongon (Estancia, Iloilo, Philippines) is filing action after Powerbarge 103 slammed into their homes at…
Read More Taking action against injustice: the stories of 25 women (part 2)
The stories of 25 women (part 1)
It has been six months now since the Filipino province of Estancia, Iloilo was overwhelmed by SuperTyphoon Yolanda. The immediate trauma of the cleanup and the loss of loved ones is now replaced by the daily reality of trying to…
This little girl is sick, but it is actually her father who is dying
If you want to help this family, donations can be made by Depositing to this dedicated bank account. Bank: ME Bank BSB: 944600 Account Number: 000153372 Name: Melinda J Irvine Donate via PAYPAL It was so overwhelming shooting this video, I…
Read More This little girl is sick, but it is actually her father who is dying
Ask for help? Yikes …
In just over twenty-four (24) hours I will be on a plane returning to Philippines and the province of Estancia which was devastated in November 2013 by Typhoon Yolanda. I spent nine (9) weeks there earlier this year after volunteering…
Don’t give money to people …
One of the first things I was told when I arrived in the Philippines was "don't give money to people". Actually, during my initial 9 week stay, I was told this many, many times and by different sources. Why? Well they…
Heading South (liberated from possessions)
I'm on the move and less than two weeks till I return to the Philippines on 14 May 2014. I begin the long drive south today stopping off to see friends tonight at the totally awesome Wintermoon Festival (Calen, FNQ).…
Are you from Canada?
The first day I arrived in Estancia, Iloilo (Philippines) with CERV Philippines we were taken to meet the people of the tent city. It was a really emotional day for us seeing entire families compacted into tents manufactured for sub-zero…
Sometimes you hear a story and it changes …
Not this time. You know how sometimes you hear a story from someone and then days or months or years later you hear the "real story". Well this happened to me on one of my last nights in the Philippines…
Canada, Canada, Canada …
One of the funniest experiences I had was in Manila before I even reached the disaster area. Myself and Rahib Chaudry, a Canadian volunteer I had met earlier that day decided to take a walk through the night markets of…
You are never alone in the Philippines …
Sometimes that is great and sometimes it is a bit hard to handle. Like when you're sick. I had the worst flu I'd had in years and had completely lost my voice. I'd range between sleep and sweat. I woke…