Malita Youth offers community service – putting smiles on people’s faces

April 23, 2021 • in News & Events

Nothing beats the feeling of being a blessing and putting a smile on someone’s face – this was what the Malita Adventist Youth felt as they conducted a community service last March 27, Saturday, at Tambakan, Poblacion, Malita.

“Seeing the smiles of happy children warms my heart,” said Sister Milca Dayag. “I hope we can do this more often in the future.”

The Malita Youth has always been caring and giving. Every year, they do community services to give back and make the community better, lighten up somebody’s day, and share with them the love of God.

However, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it impossible to do such activities during these last few months. Luckily, as of last month, the government of Malita has announced that the municipality has zero recorded COVID-19 cases.

Following the declaration, the government implemented less strict community guidelines. Life was almost back to normal– this also means that the young people of Malita can resume their usual outdoor activities, which they had missed. They instantly gathered for a meeting and agreed to have their first community service in a long time.

The Malita Youth decided to have a “feeding” at Tambakan, where there are many children that they can share Bible stories and action songs with. They also planned to give away some “Adventist World” books to the community and offer pieces of praise and prayers to families who need them.

But to make the plan a success, everyone had to do their part. Every individual was assigned their groups and respective tasks. The youth immediately went to prepare all the essentials. Now that the preparation was complete, all they had to do was wait.

Finally, the day has come. The activity was to be held in a place of the Adventist Youth program in the afternoon, so the morning proceeded as usual, and the youth only went to church and worshiped God.

Right after lunch, the Malita Youth went back to church to start cooking a simple yet delicious ‘Arroz Caldo’ and rehearse their Bible stories and action songs. The boys were in charge of the whole cooking process, including procuring the ingredients, prepping them, and cleaning up the used utensils. On the other hand, the girls started their final practice for the Bible stories and action songs to ensure that the program goes as smoothly as possible.

At about 3 o’clock, the young people of Malita start their ride to Tambakan, which was only approximately 10 minutes away from the church. On arrival, hardly five children meet the youth, and it concerned them.

“I thought that only a few children were interested in joining,” noted Brother Prince Mark Caliusan worriedly. “But after some time, their numbers grew, and before we knew it, they were well over a dozen.”
Thanks to the five children who called their friends over and the youth’s perseverance and eagerness, they were able to gather a crowd in just a moment. Now that children were waiting excitedly for the Bible stories and action songs, it was finally time to start.

The program commenced as soon as everyone had settled on their seats. The Malita Youth went on to tell the children many different stories from the Bible. You can tell that the kids are interested in the stories as they were on their best behavior, not talking with each other, and are all ears. They responded to every question the storyteller asked and were in awe every time they hear something fantastic.

Two action songs followed every story to keep the excitement and energy going. The children all actively and happily participated as they learn new songs. Everyone had genuine fun singing praises to God. After all, it was the kids’ first time doing such enjoyable activity.

“Nalipay jud kaayo mi kay karun pajud mi kasulay og ing-ani,” stated Bibi, one of the children, in a joyful voice. “Ayus man sad diay ang mga story sa Bible ug mga kanta ninyo Kuya no.” she added.

When the stories were told, and songs were sung, it was, at last, time for food. The children scrambled back to their houses to get containers and utensils and immediately formed a single line to have their food. Brother Rovan Opong then offered a prayer to bless the food before distribution.
Giving out the food was chaotic, though it was a good kind of chaos. Everyone was aching to have and partake of their share of Arroz Caldo. The smiles show on their faces as they eat their first mouthful, saying it was good and that they wanted seconds. Of course, the youth also gave some to nearby homes as there were enough for everybody.

Simultaneously, some of the Malita Youth visited houses to offer prayers and songs of praises. They also gave out “Adventist World” books for families to read and learn about the congregation and God.

One of the families that the youth visited got emotional. She said that it feels good to have someone sing and pray for them, especially during this time when life is particularly hard.

“As the photographer of the community service, it was very fulfilling,” mentioned Sister Shanne Magallanes in a blissful voice. “I was able to capture wholesome reactions from people, especially the children who were all willing to listen to God’s call.”

Sister Kersten Nacua also said that it was heartwarming to help, even just a little, to share the knowledge we learned from the church. She also added that it made the youth happy to see smiles on people’s faces knowing that they learned lessons and values from the Bible.

The community service was, undoubtedly, a huge success. The Malita Youth surely brightened the community’s day. Spreading positive energy is most important during dark and challenging times like this amid crisis and a pandemic. Hopefully, even for just a little, everyone can see the light at the end of the tunnel. (by Ivan Jay Obusa/Photos by Malita Youth)