Community center for scavengers opens

CEBU, Philippines – A community center has just been constructed in a new village in Bagalnga, Compostela town that will soon be home to 50 scavenger families currently living at the Umapad dumpsite in Mandaue. The center was inaugurated September 26.

It was constructed by hand by scavengers from Umapad and 17 Fellows representing 13 countries of the Dekeyser and Friends Foundation's (D&F Foundation) Fellows Program.

The building marks the beginning of the village that will have 50 houses by 2011.

D&F donated the land for the new village, as well as the community center through its partner NGO in the Philippines, the Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation - Integrated Development Center (JPIC-IDC), represented by Fr. Heinz Kulueke, SVD, of the University of San Carlos.

The building, as well as the houses was designed by celebrated French architects Jean-Marie Massaud and Daniel Pouzet of Studio Massaud in Paris, free of charge.

All the structures will have woven panels provided by DEDON, a German luxury brand for furniture which has its main manufacturing facility in Mandaue City, Cebu.

The collaboration for the project started when DEDON Founder, Bobby Dekeyser saw the dismal situation of the families living at the dumpsite.

What started as a small social project which consisted of feeding sessions and donations to the families developed into a full-scale relocation project for Bobby who would visit the dumpsite every time he is in Cebu.

He has brought his family there to see the harsh realities that scavengers face every day, teaching them compassion for the less fortunate and also for his children to appreciate what they have in life. Aside from family, Bobby has also invited friends from all over the world to support his advocacy of helping the families regain their dignity by giving them a new beginning in Compostela.

The Fellows in the Cebu Rehousing Project lived in Cebu for six months, from April to September 2010, learning from the experiences of the families in the existing relocation sites, and understanding the needs of the community in Umapad. The Fellows came from different backgrounds and professions; entrepreneurs, engineers, teachers, graduate school students, journalists, cabinet maker, and CSR practitioner, to name a few.

Their fellowship aims to inspire them to establish their dream plans, mostly social projects that they can implement in their respective countries, and possibly funded by the D&F Foundation. The Cebu Fellows Program was successfully completed under the leadership of its Project Manager, Ty Buckelew from New York, USA. (FREEMAN)