1st Balikbayod trip from California to Siargao

General Luna, Siargao Island

Our first trip to meet the kids from September 19th-29th, 2008. We travelled from San Francisco, California with 9 donated surfboards. There were 4 of us on the trip: Victoria, (myself) Lynn, Tracy, and my cousin Boyet from Cebu City. We met the kids in the Balikbayod group for the first time in person, conducted a first meeting and established some ground rules for being a member of the program. There are 13 surfboards that are being shared by 40 youth ranging from the age of 7 to 21 years old. The group elected two older youth officers, 1 boy and 1 girl, to help enforce the newly established rules. The number one rule is to be enrolled in school or an Alternative Learning System (ALS) taught by Mam Pitang Cotecson. Balikbayod is a surfboard sharing program for youth promoting education first. We had fun surfing with the kids everyday at their favorite breaks. Here is a group photo taken on the day before we left, not all the surfboards and youth are pictured but it was the best we could round up during the week of fiesta! On the far left is Victoria Fabella and far right is Lynn Bryant.

Balikbayod Group Picture 2008

Sharing

Siargao, Philippines. Here are some pics of the first donated batch of boards in use. Special thank you to our donors: 11 year old Noah Cooper of San Francisco, Dina El Dessouky and Robert Kirkpatrick of Santa Cruz, California. Thank you to Jing for taking these pics and sending to me today.

First 4 Surf Boards Delivered to Siargao :)

We collected the first 4 surf board donations: 1 from San Francisco, and 3 from Santa Cruz, California. They made it to Cloud 9 in Siargao and the kids have started surfing under Jing’s instruction! Still we are collecting more surf boards from YOU!

Program Development

Siargao Island, Philippines. Two point people have emerged as program developers, they are Christy Ochampaugh and Jing Gurrobat backed by the LGU (Local Government Unit) to help kids through education in a fun way. The surf/educational center headed by Jing will teach local Cloud 9 youth surfing, art and trade skills as well as english and reading proficiency. The kids are concurrently enrolled in a distance learning program under the supervisory of Maam Pitang Cotecson to transition them back to into school. So far 20 youth in ages ranging from 7 to 21 years old are enrolled in the program. It is a main hope that some of the kids who have dropped out of school will be tutored enough to re-enter and stay with their education. The gift of surfing and community development will be the fuel motivating these kids.

We still need help however, collecting surfboard donations for the program. If you plan to visit Cloud 9 to surf, please consider bringing a surfboard to leave behind and be a part of Balikbayod—the returning wave. All types of boards will be accepted: short boards, long boards and body boards. The local kids love to play in the surf but cannot afford boards of their own, so please consider helping stock up their surf center. When you bring a board, you can meet them yourself and go surfing! Get in touch with the local culture by giving back and have your next vacation make a real difference. Please contact Jing if you plan to bring a surfboard donation.

San Francisco Bay Area, California. I’m happy to announce a new director has stepped up to the Balikbayod project: Victoria Fabella. She brings with her experience of administrative manager of the large non-profit business People’s Grocery. This coming September 2008, a group surf trip to Siargao is in the works with 9 people enrolled in bringing surfboards to the kids in the Balikbayod program. If you are interested in joining this trip, please email me, Lynn, for further details.