LDS Charities, HRC Sign MOA with LGU to Help Build Shelters

LDS  Charities (LDSC) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Humanitarian Response Consortium (HRC) signed a Memorandum of Agreement  with the Indigenous People (IP) and the Local Government Unit of Compostela and New Bataan, Compostela Valley Province, to help build transition shelters for people devastated by Typhoon Pablo.

Mayor Balbin Lorenzo, Jr. signed the MOA in behalf of the municipality of New Bataan while LDSC was represented by Benson Misalucha, Philippines Area Welfare Manager, and Philip Tan, manager for the  Employment Resource Center (ERC) in Davao.

In the said memorandum, LDSC will provide financial aid worth PHP 4 Million for New Bataan and PHP 1.8 Million for Compostela to benefit 550 families.  110 sets of tool kits will also be given to selected families so they can help build their homes.

Mayor Lorenzo said, “Mga bahay, buhay at hanapbuhay ang nawala sa amin (We lost homes, lives and livelihood).  It would take 7-10 years before we can recover since our major produce is coconut. The flood washed away our farms and left it covered with piles of rocks and boulders.”   He then expressed gratitude for the help extended by LDS Charities and HRC.

Elder Misalucha shared that LDS Charities works across all religious, political & racial boundaries.  He added, “We follow Jesus Christ and help our brothers and sisters who are in need.”

Tan said, “Donations, principally from Church members but also from people around the world, are used to make relief projects possible. One hundred percent of the donations given to the Church’s humanitarian services are used for relief efforts. The Church absorbs its own overhead costs.”

LDS Charities in partnership with Save The Children also provided generator sets for Montevista and Monkayo, Compostela Valley, to enable the water system of four different barangays affected by Typhoon Pablo.