Christmas Village Gives Hope to Children with Cancer

SM City Cebu recently launched the Christmas Village of Hope at the Northwing Atrium with a mission to help children with cancer under the care of Kythe Foundation, Inc. The occasion also was the lighting of the mall's beautiful Christmas Tree, with SM VP Marissa Fernan leading the affair.

The enchanting Christmas Village of Hope, now a prime attraction in SM City Cebu, was first conceptualized by Mr. Clayton and Mrs. Joji Tugonon from Cebu City. The couple has been collecting Christmas Village houses for a long time and intends to keep doing so as the Christmas spirit lives on in Filipinos, most especially those celebrating within the Kythe community.

The Tugonon couple's first meeting with the pediatric cancer patients from Cebu Cancer Institute, Kythe partner hospital in the Visayas, opened up something in their hearts and spurred change for future beneficiaries of a major fundraising project. Clayton and Joji proceeded to share their collection for the benefit of the child-patients' medical needs.

Donors may visit The Christmas Village of Hope - a whimsical miniature village of snow, houses, and train tracks festively decorated with snow and tinsel - for their donations and pledges, or check the Facebook account bearing the name "Christmas Hope" to choose the "Christmas Houses" they wish to adopt or sponsor.

Each of the miniature houses costs P5,000, big and moving figures at P10,000, train carriage at P20,000, and billboard at P25,000. Names of sponsors are placed on the miniature figures they adopt.

The Christmas Village of Hope aims to raise funds for the indigent children with cancer under the care of Kythe Foundation Inc. The funds are for the laboratory, chemotherapy and medicine needs of the children, and the Kythe-sponsored "celebrate life" parties and events.