Project Details
I was born and raised in Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental, Philippines. In 2007, I relocated to Singapore for a "greener pasture" (a cliche to every overseas Filipino worker). This year, my entire family moved to Queensland, Australia to have a "work-life balance" since we are blessed with 2 wonderful kids and we needed time to be parents to them. My children Yenika (4) and Yuri (1.5), cherished the time we spent on playgrounds both in Singapore and here in Australia. Anyone who has been in these 2 countries can tell how nice and well-maintained these public playgrounds are. By looking at my kid's faces and seeing those all-out smiles everytime we are in the playground, I can't help but think about the children in my hometown?
I firmly believe that play is a universal language of children and they should be allowed to play to enhance their physical, social skills as well as their creativity and imaginations. Adults should ensure this right for play and recreational activities should be readily available to every child regardless of social, ethnic and religious backgrounds. The community, public or private sectors alike should provide a safe and clean playground for all kids. When I was a kid, (I was born in 1982!) I played in a community playground in town centre (plaza)... flash forward 2016 and the playground equipments are almost the same in design and materials (iron rods, chain and plain sheet, etc). They get repainted and fixed and is fgood for 1-2years but since the materials are made of iron they tend to be rusty (hence unsafe and unhygienic) and clearly damaged. The wet season hastens the corrosion process as well as they are not sheltered.(before photos below are sent to me by concerned friends)
Just few weeks ago, I saw photos posted in social media from back home showing kids still playing on the said old, faulty playground and it dawned on me that I can perhaps do something good by starting something to help refurbish the old playground or adopt a local school/barangay playground around the community. And with some positive feedbacks and recommendations from my friends and the concerned parents from Himamaylan, my brewing idea seems to be feasible.
But before I can even start the project, today I heard a really sad news -my greatest fear had happened...a 10 year old girl had been hit on the head by the wobbling equipment that gave way and unfortunately caused her a severe injury. Sadly that took her innocent life...just like that!
This is a call for me to continue with the plans of building a modern, simple, safe and hygienic playground for the children of Himamaylan. We will design, buy or construct a playground from local suppliers or build shelter for the common playground. If not we can adopt a school or Barangay (village) playground and make it better.
Please help me in making this dream a reality with your donations. It all started with my own playground experience, my children's love for playground, the love I have for my children, our children and for The Child in Us.
