Giving School Supplies for the Kids of Cateel

Giving back to the community for the blessings and abundance he receive has been a yearly tradition of The Travel Teller - Olan Emboscado. For the past 5 years of every December 26-28, Olan has been passionately organizing an event called “The Travel Teller Gives Back” which aims to provide basic school supply needs to the Childrens of the different barangays in his hometown Cateel in Davao Oriental.

Last December, I joined him on his mission on giving school supplies to the students barangay Malibago, Cateel. Throughout the years Olan’s campaign has reached some big businesses who are generous enough to donate the materials he needed.

Afternoon of December 26, we traveled our way to his hometown Cateel bringing with us all the donated materials that we need to pack. We arrived around 1am and wasted no time, we started packing up the school supplies until early morning.

After packing up all the materials that counts to around 250 sets, we ready ourselves to deliver them to the chosen barangay. We ride dumpt truck courtesy of the local government to barangay Malibago where the students, teachers and parents are waiting.

But before we reach our destination, we ended up traversing a muddy downhill road since the dump truck cannot go on further. After a short walk, we also crossed a raging river that is knee deep. After the another short distance walk from the raging river, the community welcomed us wholeheartedly They offered a dance ritual for our safe journey and for more blessings in life. They also prepared a feast of their specialty foods. That alone is something worth the experience. How much more seeing the little kids pounding with joy the moment they received their Christmas Gifts.

Before we started the gift giving, our co-volunteer Sir Jonallier of the Mindanao Tourism Council offered a heartfelt prayer through the strings of his violin. The kids, teachers and parents enjoyed it so much. Then we did some games for the children.

Giving them something important to their future is very rewarding. How much more seeing them appreciate every little thing you gave to them. I felt so thankful for the opportunity to share my blessings to them through things that is very essential in their journey as a student. I am so thankful for the opportunity to witness them being happy despite the difficult life they have in the hinterlands. And lastly, I am grateful for this opportunity as it reminds me to be thankful to all the blessings I receive everyday. They may not have the luxuries of life like we can afford, but their simple life taught me that it does not matter how much you have, it is how you give value to the things you only have.

There are many things that we take for granted in our lives and these things are more than just something for other people. This is just among the things i learn from Giving Back - to appreciate what we already have and learn to share to those who don't have enough. - Olan Emboscado

After all, life is just a cycle. Better share your blessings and create a better future for those who have less.

@surpassinggoogle is such a generous person and has a very big heart for all of us here. Please support him as a witness by voting him at https://steemit.com/~witnesses and type in "steemgigs" at the first search box.

If you want to give him witness voting decisions on your behalf, visit https://steemit.com/~witnesses again and type in "surpassinggoogle" in the second box as a proxy.

Thanks to @bobiecayao for mentoring me and #steemitdiversify #steemitunity team.