“Sometimes, some help goes a long way for others who are in need. No matter how small or how big, it makes a difference. More than anything, it gives them hope. It makes them feel that they are not alone.” — Camille Villar, president of AllValue
To help some of our fellow countrymen who lost their jobs during the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the Villar-owned AllDay Supermarket early this month launched another AllDay Hakot Challenge.
The AllDay Hakot Challenge gave the participants a glimmer of hope after they were given the chance to take home P 10,000 worth of grocery.
For the first batch, composed of 64-year-old jeepney driver, Manuel Reneva; Ramon Kristoffer Chautico, 38, who lost his job in a spa; Mercy Aristol, who accepts laundry for a living; and Rayson Diaz, the AllDay Hakot Challenge is an opportunity to put food on the table during these challenging times.
“Laban lang. (Just keep on fighting),” says 23-year-old Diaz, who is a striving to finish his secondary education through the Department of Education’s Alternative Learning System (ALS).
Diaz, eldest of five children, was forced to stop his studies when his parents separated when he was 14 years old. He had to do menial jobs to provide for his family.
“I needed to work to be able to provide for my siblings. I worked before as a construction worker, and other menial jobs, but the opportunities dwindled when the pandemic struck. We are really having a hard time now,” Diaz said in Filipino.
Diaz’ rather timid personality shows a contrast on how he strongly faced his life struggles while he acts as breadwinner for his family.
Diaz placed two sacks of rice, cans of sardines and instant noodles on his cart during the two-minute run at the AllDay branch in Evia Lifestyle Center along Daang-hari Road in Almanza Dos, Las Piñas City.
“That’s enough for our daily sustenance,” he tells the AllDay team after the activity. “I really thank AllDay for this opportunity. This is a very big help for our family,” he added.
Since it was the 48th birthday of his father, Diaz also made sure to get packs of pansit (birthday noodles) for their simple celebration. The eyesight of Diaz’ father, Ramon, was adversely affected when a hard metal fell on his head while he was working as a construction worker a few years ago.
Although life is hard, Rayson Diaz he decided to continue his education because he knows a good education is the only way to get him out of poverty.
Soft pillows for comfort
For Mercy Aristol, the AllDay Hakot Challenge was an answered prayer. She accepts laundry but there were fewer calls for the service during the lockdown. Her live-in partner gathers used bottles and scraps as a “mangagalakal,” earning merely P40 to P200 a day, depending on the plastic bottles he was able to collect and sell to the junk shop.
When the countdown began, Aristol rushed to pick up soft pillows and slippers along one of the aisles of AllDay branch in Taguig. “We do not have pillows, that’s why I got them,” Aristol says, adding she wants to get the pillows to provide her children some comfort while sleeping at night.
Like the others, Aristol also took sacks of rice so that they will have food in the next few days. Because of extreme poverty, Aristol says she and her kids usually sleep their hunger and drink water to fill their empty stomachs during times when they have no money to spare even for any food.
During the AllDay run, she also took some milk and chocolates for two of her three children. She lamented that she had to send to the province her other child, who has autism, so that the kid will be better taken care of by her parents.
Big blessing
For Mang Manuel Reneva, 64, the four sacks of rice he placed on his cart would be good to feed his family for the next four months. He also made sure to get powdered milk for his grandchild, and 3-in-1 coffee packs and other food items to last them a few weeks during the lockdown.
Because of the pandemic, Mang Manuel says he and another driver took turns in driving a jeepney from Starmall to Kalentong. He gets to drive every Thursday and Saturday, earning him about 400 to 500 pesos per trip.
“This is really a big blessing… I thank AllDay and all the staff for helping me while I put grocery on the carts,” Reneva says.
The AllDay Supermarket, owned by AllDay Marts Inc., launched a second Hakot Challenge this year to help workers from the informal sectors who were adversely affected by the pandemic.
Camille Villar, president of AllValue — AllDay’s parent company, says the project aims to provide a helping hand to those who are in need of assistance. She adds that: “we also want to reach out to many who are displaced by the pandemic.”
“Sometimes, some help goes a long way for others who are in need. No matter how small or how big, it makes a difference. More than anything, it gives them hope. It makes them feel that they are not alone,” she says.
AllValue chairman Manuel B. Villar, Jr. says extending a helping hand is the good thing to do. “We are all affected by the pandemic… even our businesses are. But we all strive to work harder and be better. We do the same for our less fortunate brothers and sisters, we try to help them,” he says.