Volunteerism
in Action, volume 6
Recently,
Pahinungód launched the sixth volume of Volunteerism in
Action (VIA) book series. This series chronicles the anecdotes
of the volunteers who served in the communities under the Pahinungód
program. It also includes the reflections of some UP officials
and professionals regarding the nature and performance of the
program.
On
September 23, 2005, the launching of VIA6 was done during the
anniversary celebration. Advocacy Program Chairperson Prof. Celia
Bonilla, presented the book, along with the Annual Report. This
volume is subtitled “The Next Mile.” After a decade
of community service, Pahinungód continues to travel to
the next miles. The contributors of the book wrote about their
journey in the past, in the present and on to the next miles.
The
Next Mile
The
miles that Pahinungód had traveled seemed too much already
but the truth is, it is never enough. So long as the world continues
to revolve, there will always be less advantaged and the fortunate
ones who may or may not be willing to contribute to the society.
That is why Pahinungód continues to the next mile, and
the mile after the next, and the mile after…
In
chapter one, Pahinungód views things from a peak. In moving
forward, it needs to look back. It sees how far it had gone and
how difficult the path it had traveled—surmounted challenges;
lives touched and made different; way of life inspired by the
community; lessons learned; and hopes rekindled. Ah! Pahinungód
will continue to live. But from that peak, it also realizes that
there are still higher peaks to reach and broader seas to conquer.
It shall not stop there. There are more places to visit and challenges
to face. But what is this? Along the way to the higher peaks is
a dangerous terrain that threatens both the volunteer program’s
implementation, and its existence. With the multi-sided crises
that the country is facing, the program’s resources are
almost exhausted. What must be done?
In
chapter 2, the leaders of Pahinungód, in response to the
challenges, set directions and guide the way. They lay down their
plans for the programs so that other volunteers will be directed
and strengthened in scaling the next miles. Pahinungód
must carry on.
The
third chapter shows the response of the volunteers to the challenges
they encountered in the past. It shows how they carried on what
has been started. They share their hopes, enjoyment, learning,
passion for and ideas on volunteerism as well as Pahinungód-accounts.
All these inspire more people to volunteer and reaffirm the reasons
why Pahinungód should continue the journey up to the last
mile (if there ever will be a last).
