Sharing the Happy with 300 Street Children this Christmas

CEBU, Philippines - In 1987, Dominique Lemay visited the Philippines to conduct a study on the situation of street children. What he saw must’ve prompted something in him because by 1992 he founded the Virlanie Foundation, a non-profit organization which focuses on serving children found living in the streets, allocating food, shelter, educational support, and providing a sense of home to underprivileged youth.

So Far, So Good

Currently there are twelve Virlanie homes, housing over four hundred (400) children annually. Aside from the basic necessities, Virlanie makes it a point to provide for the children’s emotional and psychological needs as well as educational support. The foundation, operating for seventeen years now, has long since recognized the importance of a normal, familial environment in the development of children. In contrast to the dangerous elements the children are exposed to in the streets, the homes are designed to work like a natural family unit with the adult guardians acting as parents and the children as each others’ siblings.

Aside from offering residential programs, Virlanie also has support and outreach services for children from poverty-stricken families. Annually, more than eight hundred (800) children benefit from these by gaining opportunities otherwise not available to them. The Mobile Unit, for example, is a health and education program for school-aged children who are not enrolled in formal school. It provides education through an innovative learning system that brings the classroom to the streets. It also provides health services and psycho-social interventions.

Damaging Environments

While the most common and perhaps initial reason behind vagrancy is poverty, other factors also come into play. A number of these children have a history of receiving abuse: emotional, psychological, or even physical/sexual abuse. The Virlanie Foundation aims to address these issues through holistic development programs carefully designed to meet the needs of these children.

“We distribute the children among the homes according to age, disposition, and background. We assign them household chores to instill discipline while creating a warm family environment.” said Dominic Lemay, Founder and President, Virlanie Foundation.

Since its inception nearly two decades ago, the Virlanie Foundation has looked after more than eleven thousand (11,000) children in Metro Manila. Mr. Lemay has been awarded for his efforts; he was one of People Asia Magazine’s “People of the Year for 2008.” He also received the Human Rights Prize from the French Republic in December 2001.

According to a recent report, entitled “Situation of the Youth in the Philippines,” there are approximately 1.5 million street children in the Philippines. Lemay noted that while the foundation is doing its best to reach out to as many children as possible, there is still a need for a concerted effort between private organizations and citizens in helping uplift the lives of these children.

“We are thankful for volunteers who find time out of their busy schedules to help out,” said Lemay. “The time and the resources that they share are very valuable for the children,” he added.

On Sharing

Aside from volunteers, the Virlanie Foundation has also received support from gracious individuals and private companies. “A large amount of our funds come from corporations who want to give back,” Lemay said.

One long-time donor of the institution is United Laboratories Incorporated, a local pharmaceutical company that started in 1945.

“It’s almost tradition for us,” said Jals Tiu, Enervon Product Manager. “We share Virlanie’s mission in providing underprivileged children a boost in life. Family is very important to us and we admire Virlanie Foundation for striving to provide homes to thousands of homeless Filipino children,” enthused Tiu.

This year, however, things are being done a little differently. Enervon, one of Unilab’s brands, just launched a new campaign last Friday called “Share the Happy.” Part of this project is the setup of an interactive billboard along EDSA. The structure has been partially lit, welcoming the public to support the cause via a text drive. The public is encouraged to text “Refill” and send to 2948. Every text message translates to another lit bulb on the billboard. Eventually, when the whole board is lit, Enervon will turn over a donation to Virlanie on behalf of everyone who texted and pledged their support.

According to Lemay, there could not be a better time to start a project like this. “Christmas can be hard for the children, especially those who don’t have families,” he explained. “They have realized at a young age that happiness means more than receiving gifts or toys, it’s being with your family, the ones you love.”

“Through this project, we intend to show our support not only for the cause, but also for the children.” said Tiu. “We know that there are many others who, like us, would like to extend help and care for the plight of these children. Unfortunately, there aren’t many opportunities for them to do it so we decided to come up with this project that will allow everyone to support the cause of street children in their own way.”