They used to serve the Lord– Peter Mayaki, his wife Marilyn, and their three children. They served a church composed mainly of farmers in Brgy. Camansa, Asuncion, Davao del Norte.

But problems took its toll, and so Peter left the ministry in mid-2005. Many members of his congregation were shocked, but they understood where he was coming from.

Three in ten unemployed individuals belong to the 25-34 age bracket, according to the January 2008 Philippine unemployment statistics. Five in ten belong to the age group 15-24 years. This means a big chunk of our youth have not been doing their share in nation building.

But not for long, especially for Ryan dela Cruz who recently graduated from Operation Blessing’s MOST (Mobile Out-of-School Training) and earned himself a skill on Refrigeration and Air-conditioning repair.

A team from OB travels to less-privileged areas in the country to conduct short-term skills trainings in villages. Courses offered are Cosmetology, Dressmaking, Refrigeration and Air-conditioning Repair and Practical Electricity. An increasing number of the Filipino youth have gained practical skills through MOST.

Ryan graduated top of his class, besting 17 other students in the GMA, Cavite area, south of Philippine capital Manila.

Teacher Fernando Caroldan says he was amazed at his efficiency in applying theory to practice. “He may not be very articulate during lecture time but he is very good in applying the concepts and theories in class.”

Other criteria that qualified Ryan as valedictorian are the noticeable change in his values and his optimism regarding his future.

“He now sees that he can improve his life through the skills he learned,” Fernando says.

At 28, Ryan seemed wasted as a bystander who regularly drank booze and dragged cigarettes at the village store. Until a friend introduced him to MOST.

He immediately enrolled when he discovered that he could learn a new skill and perhaps eventually help in augmenting the family income.

“The lessons were difficult at first but I persevered until the skills became easy,” Ryan says. “The training was helpful because it gave me an opportunity to become a successful technician someday. I also gained new friends and learned to mingle with them.”

The biggest help, he admits, were the lessons he learned through the values education class. “I used to go out with friends for drinking sprees at a moment’s notice. I noticed that I can already say no to them.”

Ryan has bigger dreams now, not just for himself but for his family, thanks to the free skills training. “I will look for work and save up for my family,” he says. “Eventually, I will be my own boss.”

For Operation Blessing, this is nation building, one person at a time.

After participating in the local elections last 2007, the Amihan family came home to find their house being razed by fire. It has sheltered them for many years. That day, they can only stand silently and watch as it turns to ashes.

“We were distraught. Our properties were destroyed including the rice grains and the fertilizer,” Nelson Amihan, 41, says.

“There was nothing left when we arrived home. My mother felt helpless, she didn’t know what to do,” says 16-year-old Jhan Jhan. She lost her school uniform and school bag in the flames.
 
The loss of their property was devastating for Nelson as head of the family. They had to stay cramped at his mother’s house for temporary shelter. And with his earnings of P15,000 ($365) a year, it was not possible to immediately build a new abode.
 
Nelson is a small-scale farmer that tends corn and banana on a patch of land in Brgy. Sawangan, Mawab, Compostela Valley Province, south of the Philippines. His wife stays at home to take care of their 6 children ages 4 to 20.

Thankfully, a month later, Nelson’s prayer was answered when he was chosen as recipient of the Operation Blessing livelihood project. This was in cooperation with the 25th Infantry of the Philippine Army and the Brgy. Sawangan officials, who unanimously agreed that the Amihan family is one of the families that needed the most help and assistance.

From the P4,000 ($97) he received, Nelson built a sturdy payag-payag, a simple house that can comfortably accommodate his family. His neighbors pitched in to help. They tied bamboo poles together and secured the thatched roof in place.

When the OB team and members of the Philippine Army visited to see the finished house last March, they brought corn seeds, fertilizers and herbicide so Nelson can start providing for his family’s needs again. Jhan Jhan received a new school bag.

This startup help was meant to empower the Amihan family, which it did.

“We will also support Operation blessing as soon as we get a harvest of corn. To help others,” Nelson says.

“I am so grateful for Operation Blessing. You helped us rebuild our lives,” Jhan Jhan says. “Also, my father is working again in the fields.”

From ground zero can come much generosity and optimism with the help of friends, neighbors-- and even strangers. All in the spirit of cooperation, unity and blessing others.

A project developed by Operation Blessing (OB) in 1997 that was initially designed to help malnourished children of Payatas through a nutrition and feeding program. The project later expanded into a holistic manner by providing livelihood assistance for the children's parent, family counselling, and installing potable water systems.

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