On the 14th of May, millions of children around the world will celebrate Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day is a wonderful opportunity to show how grateful you are to one of the most important people in your life. After all, our mothers brought us into this world and nurtured us through our formative years, so it’s fitting that we dedicate one day a year to honouring them.
But not everyone is fortunate enough to have a mother, or indeed a father. While this is the case for kids everywhere, the problem is particularly pronounced in the Philippines. According to Los Angeles Times1, there are 1.8 million abandoned children in the country, or nearly 1% of the population. As a result of poverty or natural disasters, many of these children experience starvation or disease, suffer abuse or exploitation, or fall victim to drugs or crime.
So this year, Xpress Money as part of it’s CSR platform, H.O.P.E, is seeking to address the problem. In association with the Virlanie Foundation, a charity based in Manila which runs various programs to meet the needs of homeless children, we’ve launched the ‘Mother’s Day for Kids without Mothers’ campaign. The aim is to bring together overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the spirit of Bayanihan to raise money, so we can try to improve these children’s lives.
Here’s how it works. From 21st April to 14th May, every time an OFW sends money to the Philippines, a percentage of the transfer fee will be donated to provide quality education, housing, food, school supplies and other benefits such as hobby classes for Filipino street kids. Since, Xpress Money has its presence in 160 countries, it is in a position to reach out to OFW’s across these countries and make a difference to the lives of these children.
‘Mother’s Day is a big day in the Philippines and we believe that this initiative is a great way to bring OFWs together to make a difference in the lives of abandoned children in the Philippines’ said Ashwin Gedam, Vice President of Global Marketing, Xpress Money. ‘For every remittance to the Philippines, Xpress Money will make a contribution to transform the lives of these children. Community outreach is a very important part of Xpress Money’s core values, and we believe this campaign will help us make a tangible positive difference to young, underprivileged lives.’
Furthermore, we’re inviting mothers of OFWs to celebrate a special Mother’s Day feast with 60 kids supported by the Virlanie Foundation on Tuesday 9th May. We urge all OFW’s to nominate women, be it, their mothers, sisters or friends, residing in Manila, to spend a few hours on Mother’s day with these children who are deprived of a Mother’s love. To nominate, visit xpmon-dev.xpressmoney.com/hope.
If you’re reading this and you’re an OFW, please spread the word about our campaign on social media and among your expat community, because the more people who transfer money over the next couple of weeks, the more we raise for this extremely worthwhile cause.
References
1. https://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-philippines-orphans-adv-snap-story.html
