HEARTS FULL, OVENS WARM

​I was truly blessed to spend the day with the amazing students and teachers at San Fernando Elementary School – Special Needs Education Division (SFES-SNED) in Pampanga. They now have over 400 students in the program, most of whom are on the autism spectrum. Interestingly, the number of children with autism has significantly increased after the pandemic.

The school runs a transition program that helps prepare these kids for life after school—teaching them skills for independent living, simple work, and being part of the community. After completing the program, they get involved in activities like helping in the school canteen, joining community projects, or even assisting in small home businesses to continue developing their skills.

Thanks to your generous support, we were able to donate essential kitchen tools like a 45-liter oven, two stand mixers, two stainless steel steamers, two induction cookers, and various utensils. These will help the kids not only bake cookies and pastries but also cook favorites like puto, siopao, and embutido. They sell these to parents and teachers so they can raise funds to buy more ingredients for their next culinary adventure.
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Before we left, we shared Jollibee meals with the students and teachers. In return, they gave us delicious baked treats, a lovely potted plant, and handwritten thank-you notes made by the kids themselves. I may not have seen them with my eyes, but I felt their love and graittude deep in my heart.

Big thanks to Principal Marilyn, Teacher Aysa, and all the SNED teachers for the love, patience, and dedication you give to these amazing kids.

“If you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.” – Isaiah 58:10