A new settlement being built in Cebu for survivors of supertyphoon Yolanda will be named after Pope Francis and has come to symbolize a fresh start for many families.
Funded by Xavier School and the Educational Research and Development Assistance (ERDA), the Pope Francis Gawad Kalinga (GK) Village in Ticad, Bantayan island, had its groundbreaking rites on March 30.
Sweat equity
Named after the first Jesuit pope who is inspiring Catholics to “live the faith through concrete acts”, the GK Village will house typhoon survivors from different parts of northern Cebu.
With GK Cebu handling the community organizing component of the village, prospective recipients are screened to accommodate only those willing to provide “sweat equity”, which is based on the concept of bayanihan.
The community will also have values formation and livelihood programs.
Ticad, which has an existing set of houses built by various donors, is set to become a bigger community and potentially, the biggest GK site in Cebu.
The village has 45 houses with each unit costing P150,000.
Xavier School sponsored 30 houses, while the ERDA Group sponsored 15.
The groundbreaking ceremonies began with a mass celebrated by Xavier School president Fr. Ari Dy, SJ and Fr. Bienvenido Nebres, SJ, former president of Ateneo de Manila University and a core member of GK’s national board. Also present was Xavier School treasurer Edison Sian.
Xavier School and the ERDA Group hope to maintain an ongoing relationship with the residents of the Pope Francis GK village.
Volunteers and donors for the project are very welcome. For more details, please contact the Xavier School president’s office. (CBCPNEWS/Raymond A. Sebastián)
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