Blessing of Angels Project

August 23, 2018

Once in a while we go to the National Children’s Hospital in Quezon City to have the sick children blessed.

The first two times we had Baptism of Angels, actual baptism rites not mere blessings. Edmund and I stood as impromptu Godparents. I learned kasi in the past that many of the kids haven’t been baptized kasi syempre walang pera ang mga magulang. Magastos rin magpa binyag. We encountered some logistical issues after that such as the kids must be registered first before they could be baptized by the priest. The priest must also come from the parish that has jurisdiction over the barangay where National Children’s Hospital is located.
Also after the baptism, it took some time to produce the baptismal certificates and by that time, the kids had either gone home or gone to heaven which was more common.

So I decided to change the name of my project to Blessing of Angels, no longer Baptism of Angels. We could still do baptism but we need more preparations.

Fr. Bok

You can never go wrong giving out Jollibee or McDonald’s. Kids and parents love this.

First time Fr. Bok joined us in our charity events. He’s the one celebrating the First Friday Mass at Makati Ford for the past 10 years I think. He was surprised that we do this pala. He told us when we do something good to others, we also become good persons. Aba Father, talaga namang mabait kami.

The set up is now different. Before, we were allowed to use the top floor for our prayers, blessings, and short party. For several years now, the hospital has been saying that the top floor is under renovation. How long does it take to finish that hall? I now doubt their story. When I asked one of the nurses, she said it’s the decision of the hospital director or some official not to let us use the hall. So this is selective. What would the government lose if they allow us to use the hall for one and a half hours once or twice a year?

This time around, we were the ones who went to the hospital rooms to bless the patients and to distribute food packs. This set up is totally fine with me also because some patients are so weak and sick to leave their hospital bed.

May the blessing of God descend upon this sick kids.

Instead of just food, we brought Jollibee mascot along. You should see the faces of both parents and sick kids when they saw the mascot. Smile!

When we first entered the hospital ward, this cute boy was laying down and I could tell he was in pain. He forced himself to get up after he spotted Jollibee. Look at that smile. Seeing them smile even for a few seconds is worth every cent, time and effort we spent. That was the goal, it has always been. If only we would be able to make the sick kids forget how they are feeling even for a few seconds, then it’s all worth it.

I brought along some staff to assist us. After the patients and their families’ interaction with the Jollibee mascot, two guys would come into the room to give spaghetti, then two would give out burgers, then the soft drinks, juices.

Don was part of the delivery crew but ended up staying for an hour at least to help us go around and distribute the hamburgers. You see the sincerity in his smile and wholehearted willingness to be a part of what we do. He was happy to be there with us.

Last to enter the rooms were Sgt. Pepper and two others. They gave away bath soaps. My strict instruction was to make sure the parents know those are soaps. Baka mapagkamalan na pagkain, biglang kagatin.

Most of the moms are very young, like teens. When I see young mothers I always conclude that the baby is her first but I am not always right. I asked one mom here, she’s 19 with two kids. Meron yung isa 15 lang. Naku po.

Free soaps

Happy to be with Jollibee. It’s amazing how this mascot is able to put smiles on people’s faces, including Oyen’s.

Let’s all be mascots, let’s make people smile. Ako nga laging nakasimangot.

Some Makati Ford employees who helped prepare for this day. They also printed the photos and went back to the hospital after two days to deliver the photos to the parents. Good job guys. Special thanks to Kay-Anne and Joralyn.

Ruan and Christopher. Chris is the fellow sweating inside the heavy Jollibee mascot costume. He got free soaps too.

There were still a lot of food left so we went to another ward to distribute the merienda.

I try not to get carried away when I visit hospitals. I refrain from carrying the kids or touching them. I might get attached and when I get home I would be bothered and sad. I would want to bring them home.

I wanted to touch her cheek but I controlled myself. I instead silently offered prayers “Sana ho Lord gumaling na sya at makauwi na sila”.

There was a very pretty one year old baby with a cancerous mass growing inside the right side of her face. Her ear is already deformed. The mom left to work abroad so she could sustain her daughter’s medical expenses. Tila single mom.
Some do gooders say that cancer is karma because you did something bad that’s why God is punishing you. Some say God lets you get sick so you would be more prayerful. But how about babies born with cancer? Are they being punished for their sins too? What sins? So the one year old girl with cancer would learn to be more prayerful to God? That’s ridiculous.

My impulse was to go inside and carry the baby. But I stopped at the door. I spoke to a very young looking girl, she’s the mom daw.
A—–“First baby mo yan?”
Mother—–“Panglima”.
A——“Ha? Ang bata mo pa, ilang taon ka na?
Mother—–“Beinte tres (23)”.
She and her boyfriend or husband don’t have jobs. They live with the boy’s parents somewhere in QC. Tila sa Payatas. I advised her not to have anymore babies, tama na lima. Pero malabo yan, eh 23 lang sila pareho, maiinit pa mga dugo at balahibo nila, isang kulog at kidlat buntis na naman yan. Baka maka isang dosena pa yan, nay ko po.