By ROB WEILER
A locally organized charity is working to keep Filipino children in school when parents must sacrifice their children’s education money for food and shelter.
Stephen Kirk, 24, a graduate of the University of Utah from Pleasant Grove, founded The Live to Learn Foundation to provide school expenses for Filipino children whose families lack the resources. The foundation financially sponsors children with a strong desire to learn make their way through school.
In the foundation’s first year, more than 80 students applied for financial aid and donations sponsored 58 students in two areas of the Camarines Norte region.
The inspiration for the foundation came after Kirk returned from serving an LDS mission to the Philippines in June 2000. Kirk received a letter from Danny Calvario, a man he had taught on his mission. Calvario wrote in hopes of receiving money to pay for his five children’s school tuition for the year.
“I knew I could probably afford to send him the money he needed, but I wanted to do more than that,” Kirk said.
After talking with a few trusted friends and lawyers about starting a charity organization, The Live to Learn Foundation was off the ground and running in 2001.
In June 2002, the foundation achieved its first goal, receiving a tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service. Kirk said the goal would have been a much longer process were it not for a few unlikely volunteers.
“It’s amazing how much charity goes into founding a charity,” Kirk said. “I had an endless amount of paper work to fill out, most of which I didn’t understand how to do, but a lawyer offered his free time and advice, and his secretary offered to do the paper work for me.”
Kirk said the foundation’s current goal of further expansion is challenging because of the difficulty of finding additional volunteers to run the program in the Philippines.
Since Kirk and the foundation’s five-member board live in Utah and cannot afford to travel to and from the Philippines, three coordinators living in the Philippines volunteer their time and effort to turn donator’s money into educated children.
Lukas Dean, 25, a graduate of BYU in business, who also served an LDS mission in the Philippines, is responsible for the selection and training of coordinators.
“We get several character references to ensure the coordinator has proven to be trustworthy and responsible,” Dean said. “We take this very seriously.”
Irene Aloc, a teacher at Mabini College in Daet, Camarines Norte, who met Dean while he was serving in the Daet region, said she agreed to help because she saw the potential rewards the program would provide her community.
“If there is anyone who truly loves my countrymen who are financially poor and want to change their lives for good, it is I,” Aloc said.
As a coordinator, Aloc is responsible for ensuring that the students receive the money needed for their tuition and other school needs, including uniforms, books, supplies and transportation fees. Coordinators also work with the school to monitor the student’s performance. Each student sponsored by the foundation agrees to earn excellent grades and consistent attendance.
One of the coordinator’s most challenging duties is finding students with parents they can trust who will only spend the money towards the student’s education. Coordinators are required to obtain receipts to account for every expense and send it to the board before the student can receive more money.
“With my experience, there are parents who demand more than is needed,” Aloc said. “For instance, a mother asked me for an advance so that she could use the money to give a party for her son’s victory in the school elections.”
Kirk said the average cost for an elementary student is $70 per year and $110 for secondary school. A strong Filipino who is able to find work farming in a rice field for 10 hours will typically earn 70-80 pesos per day, an equivalent of about $1.50.
“Some possible coordinators are not very interested,” Aloc said. “Others just don’t like the idea of volunteerism. They feel that the worker is entitled to his wages, or at least an allowance.”
Kirk said, “There is so much that is required of them, most importantly their integrity, organizational skills and willingness to handle difficult situations.”
In Camarines Norte, there are more than 85,000 elementary school students and 33,000 secondary school students enrolled in 249 schools and 42 secondary schools. Class sizes average between 45-60 students.
Despite the challenges, Kirk said the potential of the foundation and the ability to help children receive an education makes all the work rewarding and fulfilling.
“It’s a miracle that I can still be involved with helping this people that I really came to love,” Kirk said. “I think a part of me is Filipino.”
Dean said, “We look forward to a time when those that are presently receiving sponsorship will remember what was done for them, and that they will find ways to help more of their countrymen as they were helped.”
