Volunteer Spotlight : HELEN

    

Name:	Helen Karolina Gerner
Age:	18 years old
Nationality:	German
3 Words to describe yourself:	Optimistic - Curious - Open Minded

Tell us about your career so far. What did you do before you came to volunteer in Tapulanga?

"I just graduated and did my A-levels"

 

Why did you choose Tapulanga?

"I really like their work, especially that so many students get a scholarship and I´m looking forward to the Christmas gift-giving. Additionally, I was really interested to experience a catholic private school in the Philippines and work there."

 What are your work duties in Tapulanga/SFAS? 

"I arrive in school around 7:15 am. After the flag ceremony, I walk together with the students to the classrooms of Grade 8. If I don´t have any other tasks, I will stay there the whole school day. During the lessons, I often move between the two Grade 8 classrooms and help the students, remind them to focus on their work or get them to catch up with missed LAS. In the breaks, I often spend time with the students and talk with them or they teach me some Ilonggo."

What is the most rewarding part of being a volunteer?

"It's amazing to have the chance to get so many experiences and learn about the culture, the life and the school system in the Philippines. Also, I really enjoy the kindness of the Filipinos. All students, the teachers and other people I meet seem to be very interested and happy about meeting us."

What do you look forward to in your 1 year of volunteer service?

"Learning even more about the Philippine food, culture, traditions, the people and hopefully getting fluent in Ilonggo."

What is the most exciting or most memorable thing that happened to you during your few days as a volunteer?

"Arriving in the Philippines and getting the very first impression of the country was memorable. The country is so colorful, there are so many plants everywhere and it´s just beautiful."

What do you find to be most challenging about your work? How do you deal with it?

"The language barrier. I'm trying to learn Ilonggo as fast as possible"

Who or what inspires you?

"I'm inspired by working with many different people, the interaction with them and making a difference together."

 Tell us more about yourself!

What are you passionate about outside of work?

"In Germany, I did a lot of voluntary youth work. For example, I was a team leader in a summer camp and head of the altar servers. Here, I am looking forward to all the new experiences, meeting new people, the food and traveling."

Tell us 2 things that you have learned so far.

"I learned how to ride a tricycle and some basic Ilonggo."

What is one thing you are good at?

"swimming"

What is one Tagalog or Ilonggo word/phrase you like to use?

"Halong!"

     Bonus Questions!

What’s your target destination in the Philippines?Why?

     "I would really like to visit the Rice Terraces because I have not seen one yet in real life." 

If you could swap places with someone else for a day, who would it be?

  "an astronaut"

      

 

   

Volunteer Spotlight : MONA

   

Name:	Mona Luca Jehle
Age:	20 years old
Nationality:	German
3 Words to describe yourself:	Clumsy - Empathetic - Honest

Tell us about your career so far. What did you do before you came to volunteer in Tapulanga?

"Before coming to Tapulanga, I graduated from high school in 2024. Afterward, I worked in a restaurant for nearly six months, and then I spent some time traveling through Asia and Europe. "

 

Why did you choose Tapulanga?

"I chose Tapulanga because of their programs and their values"

 What are your work duties in Tapulanga/SFAS? 

"I am working in Preschool ( Kindergarten) and my job is to prepare the children for school through playing, singing and dancing and also do the worksheets with them."

Tell us about a typical day at work.

"A typical day at work starts with us dancing and singing together to different songs. After that, we all sit together, pray and say "Good morning" to each other. Then the kids do their worksheets and I try to assist them if needed. After that, I play with the kids and eat either lunch or breakfast with them. Afterwards, we do another worksheet with storytelling and math. I have a morning class and an afternoon class."

What is the most rewarding part of being a volunteer?

"I think the most rewarding part is to get to know the kids and their personal lives and also to see their growth."

What do you look forward to in your 1 year of volunteer service?

"I look forward to creating good connection with the kids and the teachers in school - to have a lot of fun during my volunteer year and to leaving my own comfort zone."

What is the most exciting or most memorable thing that happened to you during your few days as a volunteer?

"I was only in my first week at school, but I was already excited to meet the children and get to know their unique personalities - and I really love them already!"

What do you find to be most challenging about your work? How do you deal with it?

"I think the most challenging thing about my work is to learn Hiligaynon, because the kids cannot speak good English yet. To have a conversation with them, I need to learn their language."

Who or what inspires you?

"I think not one special person inspires me, rather a lot of people in my close environment."

 Tell us more about yourself!

What are you passionate about outside of work?

"I am very passionate about swimming. In Germany, I swam six years as my sport. I also love horse-back riding. I did this since I was a little kid and I'm really gonna miss it a lot during my volunteer year. I also love my friends and spend every free second in my life with them."

Tell us 2 things that you have learned so far.

"I've learned a bit of Hiligaynon, and I also learned how to ride the bus here, which is quite different from how it is in Germany."

What is one thing you are good at?

"I am very good at swimming or listening to other people's problems."

What is one Tagalog or Ilonggo word/phrase you like to use?

"Halong!"

     Bonus Questions!

What’s your comfort food?

     "My comfort food is fried rice with vegetables and chicken. " 

If you could swap places with someone else for a day, who would it be?

  "If I could swap places with one person for one day it would totally be Bob Marley, because of his music and lifestyle."

      

 

   

Christmas Gift Giving 2024

This December 2024, the Tapulanga Foundation has once again shared blessings to their scholars and families during their yearly Christmas gift giving program. 

 

On December 4th, 51 Grade 10 Tapulanga scholars had a blast at a fun-filled Christmas party held at the Campuestuhan Highland Resort in Talisay City. They were accompanied by seven Tapulanga staff members, one German volunteer, and seven SFAS teachers and staff. The students enjoyed a variety of outdoor activities, including the sky-bike, rope course, vikings ride, zipline, and water slide. It was a day packed with excitement and adventure, creating lasting memories for the 10th graders!

 

Through its "Adopt-a-School" program, Tapulanga extended its Christmas Gift Giving program to include gift packages (5kg rice, spaghetti pack and a bag of chocolates) for the following public schools:

DECEMBER 10

Napilas Integrated School | 210 students and 25 faculty and staff

Emiliano Lizares Elementary School | 221 students and 9 faculty and staff

December 11

Cuaycong Elementary School | 164 students and 11 faculty and staff

DECEMBER 16

Bongol Elementary School | 137 students and 15 faculty and staff

DECEMBER 17

Dalinson Elementary School | 118 students and 11 faculty and staff

On December 11, the foundation was also able to extend its Gift Giving program at Sitio Roma- a small fishing village in Silay. A total of 132 families received the gift packages.

On December 18, 32 TF preschool scholars and teachers at Locsin Genealogy Foundation also received their Christmas package. 

On the same day, 27 students from EB Magalona National High School received their Christmas gift package.

On the 19th of December, the foundation conducted its annual Christmas Gift Giving Program to their Preschool to Grade 10 scholars at St. Francis of Assisi School. A total of 662 scholars and 80 faculty and staff from SFAS and staff and volunteers of Tapulanga Foundation were blessed to be part of the Gift Giving program. 

On the 20th and 21st of December, 69 SHS and 17 college scholars received their Christmas gift package at the Silay City office. 

With the help of our generous Tapulanga donors and their family and friends, the foundation was also able to share the Christmas blessings to Hacienda Tinihaban and Hacienda Lonoy farmers and their families on December 23 and 29, respectively, along with other recipients such as Silay City garbage collectors and sakada farmers from the Municipality of EB Magalona to Silay City. A total of 221 “sakada” farmers (contract farm laborers) received a Christmas food package in December! 

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who generously donated and supported this program, making it possible to bring JOY to over 2,000 families! TO GOD BE ALL THE GLORY!

Check out the full album on these links:  

Grade 10 @ Campuestuhan Resort

Day 1 | Napilas Integrated School

Day 1 | Emiliano Lizares Elementary School

Day 2 | Jose D Cuaycong Elementary School

Day 2 | Sitio Roma

Day 3 | Bongol Elementary School

Day 4 | Dalinson Elementary School

Day 5 | Locsin Preschool scholars and teachers

Day 6 | Preschool - Grade 10 scholars at SFAS 

Day 7 | SHS - College Scholars

Day 8| Tinihaban and Lonoy, Garbage Collectors and Sakada farmers

Tapulanga and SFAS Updates - February 2024

 

Tapulanga and SFAS Updates - March 2024

 

Spotlight Series: Bahar Kurtbas

  

Name:	Bahar Kurtbas
Age:	20 years old
Nationality:	German
3 Words to describe yourself:	Ambitious - Determined - Structured

Tell us about your career so far. What did you do before you came to volunteer in Tapulanga?

"I finished my school. After that I worked until I came to the Philippines."

 

Why did you choose Tapulanga?

"I chose Tapulanga because I like the organization. I want to help people who live in poor conditions and have less access to education. I am interested in working with children and would like to support all children through my volunteer work."

 Tell us about a typical day at work.

"My lessons start at 7:30 am. We start by dancing together with the students. Then we work on the worksheets. I work until 3:30 pm."

What do you look forward to in your 1 year of volunteer service?

"I am looking forward to all the experiences, moments and adventures that I will gather."

What do you find to be most challenging about your work? How do you deal with it?

"The children's language. Unfortunately, I don't always understand what they want to say and we can't communicate properly. I try to learn the language and understand what the children are trying to tell me or my colleagues translate it for me."

Who inspires you?

"The mindset of Filipinos and of course the Filipinos themselves. " 

 Tell us more about yourself!

What are you passionate about outside of work?

     "Traveling and cooking"

     What one  Tagalog or Ilonggo word/phrase do you like to use? 

     "Salamat Gid"

     Bonus Questions!

     What’s one place you visited that you love the most and why? 

     "All the places in the Philippines are so beautiful and special. But I think I've enjoyed Malapascua and Apo Island the most so far. Apo island because of the diversity in the sea and nature. And Malapascua, because it is a very small island. The people and everything else is very special on this island. It’s very familiar. You can meet people from all over the world there." 

        

     If you could swap places with someone else for a day, who would it be? 

     "My sister 😉"

Spotlight Series: Katja Göpfert

 

Name:	Katja Isabel Göpfert
Age:	20 years old
Nationality:	German
3 Words to describe yourself:	Helpful - Positive - Happy

Tell us about your career so far. What did you do before you came to volunteer in Tapulanga?

"Before I came to the Philippines, I finished my Senior High School in Germany."

 

Why did you choose Tapulanga?

"I chose Tapulanga Foundation because I love to work with children and the mission of the Foundation appealed to me. I was very impressed by how small the Tapulanga Foundation started and how big it has become in the meantime. If you want to change or improve something it usually starts small."

 Tell us about a typical day at work.

"There is a morning and afternoon class. Every lesson begins with singing and dancing. The children learn the alphabet, writing, shapes, colours and much more. They work on worksheets and from time to time they make something creative what fits to the topic."

What do you find to be most challenging about your work? How do you deal with it?

"The most challenging thing about working here is the language. It's a sad that I don't understand what the children are trying to tell me and that I can't explain everything to them so well because I don't speak the language. That's why I'm trying to learn more and more words so that I can communicate with them better "

Who inspires you?

"My inspiration is my grandad, who always gave me a lot of advices and tips, such as that I should definitely travel like him to get to know countries, people and cultures. So I can combine the joy of being socially active, like my parents, with travelling. " 

 Tell us more about yourself!

What are you passionate about outside of work?

     "Outside of work, I like meeting people, traveling, cooking, photography, sewing and do handicrafts."

     What one  Tagalog or Ilonggo word/phrase you like to use? 

     "Salamat Gid" is my favorite phrase and the one I use the most because the people here are all so helpful and kind.”

    

     Bonus Questions!

     What’s one place you visited that you love the most and why? 

     "The Philippines has many beautiful places, but so far I've enjoyed Apo Island the most because it has a wonderful underwater world with turtles, corals and different fishes that you can't find in Germany." 

        

     For you, what does a "perfect day" look like? 

     "My perfect day doesn't involve any specific activity. It needs people who are happy and content to have a good time together."