Don't Cry Tumaway

A book and a bag— The joint effort of two organizations to relieve evacuees

When life hits us hard, there is a moment when we are left in shock, when we feel stuck.

For the hundreds of families affected by the Taal volcano eruption, being stuck took a literal turn in the Tumaway Evacuation Center in Talisay, Batangas. Stranded in crowded makeshift houses of blankets, tents and towels, it is difficult to imagine what life has in store for them in the near future, especially with the growing uncertainty brought by the the added threat of the Covid-19 pandemic that has narrowed avenues for livelihood and revenue and increased the safety risk for those in relocation areas.

Seeing the need to brighten their situation, Artletics partnered with CANVAS to give a breath of fresh air for the evacuees. Canvas is an organization passionate about developing literacy in children through children’s books, and it was with this spirit that during the operations, books donated by the said organization were also distributed as educational and recreational material for the children. On the other hand, Artugon arranged and distributed 250 packs of relief goods containing: rice, sardines, noodles, dried fish and desperately needed hardy vegetables and indian mangoes; hygiene kits with reusable masks and ready to plant seeds of kangkong, sitaw, pechay and okra that they can use in their community gardens. 750 gallons of water was also distributed to the 250 families.

Finally, the relief operation was spritzed with lightheartedness by our resident artist Rogermond Borja. The relief bags were designed by the artist who wanted to bring smiles to the evacuees and to give them a sense of hope in spite of the crises at hand. We are proud to see our residents bring their art practice to fields and operations outside their own, outside to communities.