Classes return to normalcy after Yolanda

MANILA, Philippines - Students in typhoon-hit schools in Leyte now enjoy their classes with the prefabricated classrooms donated by Tzu Chi Foundation.

Starting last December, at least 30 classrooms have already been installed by the volunteers while 160 others are pending completion this month. The beneficiaries for these makeshift classrooms are students from the municipalities of Tunga, Sta. Fe, Alang-alang, and Jaro, and the cities of Ormoc and Tacloban.

In Gregorio Catenza National High School in Tunga, 16-year-old Shy Marice Edang could not help her tears seeing the classrooms now erected in their school grounds. “These classrooms meant bright future for us. We will remember your kindness as we reach our dreams,” she said with tears.

Principal Nicerato Gonzaga related that the provision of prefabricated classrooms addresses the problem of congestion in their school, as some teachers are forced to have around 50 students in one class.

“We are very lucky because even though we are a small town, Tzu Chi has decided to help us through relief activities and this kind of donation,” he said.

Sacred Heart College, a Catholic school in Tacloban City, is also among the beneficiaries. “We are grateful because they have extended help to us. We should not be separated by religions,” said the principal, Rosa Zhang.

“The most important task is to help the students return to school as soon as possible,” said Yang Guanxin, one of the Tzu Chi volunteers who have travelled from Taiwan on their own expense to personally install the makeshift classrooms.

Prior to this project in the Philippines, the Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation has also already donated same prefabricated classrooms to other disaster-hit countries. These state-of-the-art classrooms have brought hope and inspiration to students in Haiti in 2010, El Salvador in 2011, and Zimbabwe in 2012.

Tzu Chi volunteers have worked on improving the classroom structure year after year to serve the needs of the disaster victims. “Our goal is not just to provide them with what they need, but it must also be suitable and comfortable for them as well,” said another volunteer Hong Wuzheng.

The classroom can last up to five years and can contain as many as 75 students. It has windows on both sides and doors at the front and back. The roof has exhaust vents to increase air circulation.

“Master Cheng Yen thinks that these pre-fabricated classrooms can help disaster survivors so we are making these available for them,” he said.

Dharma Master Cheng Yen founded Tzu Chi Foundation in 1966 aiming to alleviate the suffering of the poor and sick.

Aside from the 190 classrooms being donated to schools in Leyte, Tzu Chi Foundation is also giving same prefabricated classrooms and shelters to schools in the conflict-affected region in Mindanao.