Aton Ini Community Pantry (This Is Our Community Pantry)

The news about 'community pantry' that was set up by Ms. Ana Patricia Non in Quezon City, Philippines, went viral because it was organized by a lone, private individual whose main objective was to help out her neighbors during these difficult times.

The 'community pantry' was a table full of canned goods, noodles and other food items that one would see at a pantry at home. But this one was on the street, open to everyone who was in need of food. It was also open to everyone who would like to add food items to the 'pantry'.

(Rice and shine!)

(Kalamay para matam-is imo yuhum - Sugar so that your smile is sweet!)

(My egg is white!)

In April and May 2020, at the height of lockdowns in cities and towns in the Philippines, our parish, the Our Lady of Victory Parish in Victorias City, Philippines, went around the haciendas and rural areas of the city to give away rice, noodles and food items (read blog here). 

The food items we gave away were from generous parishioners who shared their blessings. We received sacks of rice, noodles, canned foods, taochiam, bottled water, and other items. We then apportioned them in individual packs for easy transport and distribution.

(Arroz caldo for everyone!)

And just four months ago, in January 2021, when some of the barangays of Victorias City were inundated and families had to evacuate and seek shelter at public halls and covered courts (read blog here), we also gave away relief goods to families who lived near the river banks and whose livelihood and properties were damaged by the floods.

So, for us here, it was just 'normal' to organize a food drive. And since I have been part of these drives before, I simply shared a thought of organizing our own 'community pantry' with my fellow Bosconians and other friends.

Donations then started to arrive: cash donations from my fellow Bosconians and food items like rice, canned goods, noodles, taochiam, and eggs from certain anonymous donors.

('Nanay' with her 'balde' full of goods. We asked them to bring clean containers where they could put the food items as we did not pre-pack to avoid using single-use plastic.)

We then went to an impoverished neighborhood in Barangay 6 unannounced as we did not want people to gather in droves as we still needed to comply with social distancing protocols that were still in place.

We started around 8AM and we were able to finish around 10AM. My original objective was to share the goods with the families living near the creek which overflows during high tide but we were also able to share with rest of the neighborhood who later found out we were giving away goods. 

But when the rice was all given out, we decided to transfer to nearby location at Barangay 3 with the sugar and a few trays of eggs. There, we gave them all away.

After the weekday 'community pantry' at two locations, we went further to the rural areas where there were more families in need.

With the help of a team from the 79th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army, we transported six sacks of rice, one big container of pre-packed cooking oil, 20 trays of eggs, packs of vitamins, boxes of canned goods, 300 packs of noodles and taochiam, kilos of dried fish, and a sack of brown sugar.

Fr. Jess Ebro, the priest-in-charge of the Our Lady of Guadalupe at Barangay Estado in Victorias City welcomed us to his community and allowed us to hold the community pantry inside the church compound so as to control the queue. Fr. Jess also prepared a caldero of arroz caldo for everyone.

(Each person who lined up at our community pantry has his or her own story to tell. Maybe 'Tatay' has a sad one to tell. But with his hands full of food items to bring home, there was no sad story to tell that day.)

All the neighborhood residents who came to the community pantry were asked to bring their own containers for the rice and sugar. A 'lavador' could hold the rice, eggs, de latas and noodles, while a cup could hold the sugar. I decided not to repack or provide plastic bags in order to avoid using single-use plastic which could harm the environment of the barangay.

The men and women in uniform of the Philippine Army, together with Fr. Jess's church assistants, my sister and her friend, helped in the distribution and crowd control during the our community pantry. 

Although we would have wanted to leave the table open and let the people take what they needed, we had to make sure the distribution was orderly as we were not sure whether the local residents had any idea about the essence of the community pantry, although we prepared a tarpaulin where we also wrote some 'guidelines' that we copied from sign boards of other organized pantries.

One gesture though caught me by surprise. One lady, as she was about to leave with some food items, gave us two fifty-peso bills that she said she wanted to share. For a moment, I was speechless because I never expected such kind gesture. I guess I always have to remind myself to expect such generosity at the most unexpected places during unexpected moments. We added her donation to our fund.

So, thanks to all the kind donors who contributed to our 'community pantry' at Barangays 3, 6, and Estado, and to Fr. Jess and his assistants, and to the men and women of the 79th 'Masaligan' Infantry Battalion for the transportation and assistance.

Although it was hot, sunny and far, the distance and the inconvenience are not hindrances if one's goal is to share and alleviate in our little way the hardships our brothers and sisters are enduring during this difficult time. 😍