The victims of typhoon Tisoy in Bulan, Sorsogon were distraught with the devastation. Broken tree trunks and blown-off portions of houses were strewn along the municipality’s road. The calamity affected Bulan quite badly because it is a coastal town and was directly in the path of typhoon Tisoy’s storm wall. The resulting storm surge pushed the sea as far as town’s commercial center. This resulted in most of the municipality’s barangays being partially damaged or completely wiped out.
In keeping with the Cocolife Foundation Inc.’s (CFI) advocacy to help those affected by disasters, a truckload of 2,000 bags of relief goods was transported to the municipality and redistributed to indigent residents. The activity was initiated by Claims Department Analyst Ms. Jehan Mae Gojit who forwarded Cocolife Foundation’s offer to help to her former teacher, Mr. Ian, who is the secretary of Bulan Mayor Romeo Gordola. Mr. Ian immediately provided the truck to transport the relief goods all the way from our Makati Head Office to Sorsogon.
CFI team that was sent to the site was composed of Mr. Santi Varona, Ms. Kaya Galang and Mr. Arvin Cubarrubias. They arrived by plane in Legazpi a few days later and was fetched at the airport by Mr Ian. While on the way, he and the mayor quite lengthily announced the relief distribution event by phone interview through the local radio. When the CFI team arrived at the municipal hall, they were warmly welcomed by the mayor and ushered to his office for a tete-a-tete. The distribution began shortly afterwards, with a large crowd of residents queueing up and individually handed the relief bags. The barangay captains also proceeded to load their allocated sacks for transport to their respective areas. Afterwards, a certificate of appreciation was presented to the CFI team by the mayor. The team was later treated to lunch at the mayor’s residence, with his family.
As Mr. Winston Churchill famously said, “We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.” Perhaps the same is just as true for people as in corporations, especially when the ones who receive it are in direst need.
