00:00 Let's now talk about Hope In Me Club.
00:03 And to explain this to us, we have with us the pediatrician, Dr. Maria Cristina Alberto.
00:10 Doctor, good morning.
00:12 Good morning to all of us.
00:14 Thank you for inviting me to your beautiful show, Rise and Shine, Pilipinas.
00:19 Doctor, for our viewers to know, what is the purpose of Hope In Me Club?
00:26 And how does this help in giving hope to the youth?
00:30 Hope In Me Club was founded in 2016, so more or less 7 years.
00:34 The goal is to provide or to give hope to persons who are in need of hope.
00:38 So these are the persons who are deprived of liberties, our fellow citizens who are in need of freedom.
00:43 Our poor communities, our public school children, who really need education.
00:50 And the communities that are sometimes in the midst of calamities.
00:54 So we try to respond to those people who really are in need of hope.
00:58 Who are the people who are building this club?
01:02 I am a doctor in a small community in Baco.
01:05 And many of us are also volunteers, patients and fellow doctors who want to help the community.
01:12 That's great.
01:14 I mean, being a doctor is a difficult profession, but they have really time to give assistance and help to those in need.
01:22 But what are the programs of Hope In Me Club that really bring hope to the youth and the communities?
01:32 For me, I believe that values for missionaries should really start young.
01:37 So for me, the most important thing is to give value to children.
01:42 So every week we go to public schools, we give donations of school supplies and we teach values to children.
01:47 The importance of giving hope to the community, the importance of staying in school and having the right education.
01:54 And the importance of caring for the community.
01:57 So you have to start children young.
01:59 Because it should not be just the temporary relief of the needs of the children,
02:03 but you have to teach them lifelong values to make them good citizens of our country, the Philippines.
02:10 That's really the basic value that we teach them.
02:13 So looking back, this club was established in 2016.
02:17 You have helped a lot of people, beneficiaries and new residents.
02:20 There are a lot of communities, not just in Bacoor, but in other parts of the Philippines.
02:25 There are communities that reach out to us asking for help, school supplies for the children.
02:31 We try to respond to them to the best that we can.
02:34 And right now, we are happy because Mayor Strike Vila, the mayor of Bacoor, reached out to our club
02:39 to help the programs of HOPE be adopted in Bacoor.
02:43 So right now, we are feeding 5,000 children a day through the local feeding program.
02:48 This is the only feeding program supported by the LGU in the whole Philippines.
02:52 And that's what I wish for all LGUs to have a program like this so that no child goes to school hungry.
02:58 But hopefully, this kind of program will expand.
03:02 But Doctor, how do you ensure that this program is not just temporary for the children?
03:09 It will be sustainable.
03:11 Actually, we've been helping people for 20 years now.
03:14 The club was just founded 7 years ago.
03:16 And right now, I think you really have to rely on the trust of the people.
03:20 And you should show as an organization what your goal is.
03:24 If people see that your goal is really good, that the program is sustainable,
03:29 I think that's also part of your commitment to the cause.
03:33 So as long as the people who are volunteering are committed to the cause of giving hope to other people,
03:38 I think it will be sustainable.
03:40 How can the public help your club?
03:43 Also, we would like to help as well the other children.
03:46 For those who want to help, one, of course, you can also donate to the club.
03:49 Or you can donate to your own community.
03:52 If we were able to do this, you can also do this to your own community.
03:56 You don't have to be a doctor or a professional to help.
04:00 Actually, that's what we always say to Hope In Me Club.
04:02 We don't give hope just to people who are needing hope, who are deprived.
04:07 But also to the common people, that even you can give hope to your own community.
04:13 Do you have any future programs that we can learn about and that the people who are interested can share here?
04:22 We have a Facebook page, Hope In Me Club, so you can see the daily activities that we do.
04:27 First of all, we accept donations of school supplies to children.
04:31 Right now, we're also accepting donations of eyeglasses to children.
04:35 We had a program giving out eyeglasses also through the help of our local government,
04:40 through Mayor Strike Biribid, where we screen the children who have blurred vision.
04:44 There were so many children who entered that they could barely see their eyes.
04:48 It's important that when giving them eyesight, eyeglasses, it's not just giving them the material things,
04:56 but also giving them a brighter future.
04:58 Also, these children are also part of the feeding program.
05:01 There were so many children who entered that they couldn't eat.
05:06 If we give them food to eat every day, chances are they will stay in school and give them a better education.
05:13 Do you have any activities for this Christmas?
05:16 We have so many activities for Christmas.
05:18 Four months ago, we also started the Baco or Hope Children's Chorus.
05:22 These are my babies on the screen. I'm so happy for them.
05:26 They are from public schools and they are working hard to pursue their talents in music.
05:32 We're having a concert on December 19.
05:36 This is the month of Matis. I hope you can be part of our fundraising concert.
05:39 We're also going around communities this Christmas to give gifts and food donations to communities.
05:46 On December 26, we will have an outreach program for senior citizens who are persons deprived of liberty.
05:56 There are so many senior citizens who are in jail.
05:59 The people who are helping Hoping Mikla are so generous.
06:02 Lastly, to those who are interested in joining the program, how can they reach you?
06:15 You can reach us through our Facebook page, Hope Indy Club, or my personal page, Doc Tina.
06:21 I hope you will be a role model for other organizations to help others and give hope, especially to children.
06:34 Thank you very much to Dr. Maria Cristina Alberto, a pediatrician from Hope Indy Club.
06:39 Thank you, doctor.
06:40 Thank you, doctor.
06:41 Thank you for this opportunity.
06:43 eat them.
