A grand total of 10,120 volunteers who have devoted 60,720 hours in community service have helped  76 non-governmental organizations since Hands on Manila’s major volunteer program Servathon was established in Manila. Now on its 15th year, Hands on Manila’s numbers — and influence — continue to grow with the support of people like you.
(Hands on Manila kits at the 2016 Servathon)
On Sept. 24, 2016, Hands on Manila (HOM) celebrated its 15th anniversary at the Philippine International Convention Center Forum in Pasay City. The organization is currently headed by its president Atty. Gianna Montinola, vice president Patrice Tan, trustee Lizette Cojuangco — graduates of Assumption College — and executive director Dondon Marquez.
Although HOM is a local non-governmental organization, its activities have been patterned after American NGO Points of Light Foundation, which is “the biggest organization in the world dedicated to volunteerism headquartered in the US,†describes Patrice. HOM is also Points of Light Foundation’s first international affiliate. HOM borrows some of Point’s of Light’s activities and tweaks them to become culturally and socially relevant in the Philippine context. One of these activities is Servathon — HOM’s biggest community service program — which celebrates its 11th anniversary this year and was chaired by Patrice Tan and Lizette Cojuangco.
(The PICC forum filled with volunteers who sacrificed their Saturday morning for something meaningful)
As of 2016, the HOM team has organized numerous public school refurbishing efforts in provincial areas, mural painting days, typhoon relief operations, coastal clean ups and other activities targeted towards health and wellness, livelihood, education, as well as the youth and elderly.
While other NGOs in the country are also involved in the issues mentioned above, what sets HOM apart from them — and what powers its potential to reach a wider audience — is its flexibility. As most socially responsible Filipinos know, the biggest difficulty in joining these programs is fitting them into their already full schedules. The desire to help is there, but finding the time to do so is a different story.
HOM’s answer to this concern was simple, yet innovative. “As we always tell people about Hands on Manila, we were the first to introduce a monthly calendar of community service activities in Metro Manila, so that even the busiest individuals could look at that calendar, then choose a volunteer activity which suited their time. If they only had two hours, they could look at an organization or activity that they are interested in,†proudly shares Patrice.
(A volunteer makes a solar bulb from recycled plastic soda bottles, bleach and other materials)
Its versatility and adaptability are precisely why HOM has enjoyed impressive volunteer turnouts in the past years, and why they’ve been able to partner with many deserving NGOs across different fields. Having an annual calendar released early in the year allows them to plan ahead, iron out the nitty gritty details months before an activity, and therefore ensure that participants can make room for community service in their busy schedules.
Sept. 24’s celebration began at 7 a.m. with PICC’s Forum opening its gates to vans and buses of enthusiastic volunteers from the BPO, hospitality, banking, food and beverage industries, among others. Under one roof were seven activities volunteer groups signed up for beforehand: citronella candle making, slipper designing, relief goods repackaging, fidget lap sewing for Alzheimer’s patients, eco bag weaving, solar bulb making and mosquito trap making, which was based on an award-winning design from Maynilad Water Services Inc.
(Maynilad’s award-winning mosquito trap made by Servathon volunteers)
With this year’s Servathon theme “Celebrating the Volunteer in You,†the day was “a testament to your commitment to the advocacy of volunteerism, and your determination to make a difference in other people’s lives,†Atty. Gianna shares in her speech.
While surveying the venue lit with the spirit of volunteerism, Patrice explains that there is truly nowhere to go but up and forward for HOM. This is because more and more Filipinos today have a greater awareness of social issues and a deeper hunger to help, especially for the population’s younger members whose priorities are changing to include more volunteer work. For instance, while applying for a new job, an applicant might actually ask about what corporate social responsibility programs and advocacies the company has as part of their evaluation of a potential employer. “We are one of the platforms for the private sector to get involved in all of this, apart from what they do through their companies,” adds Atty. Gianna.
But before signing up for Servathon or any of HOM’s activities, Lizette wants to remind future participants of an often misunderstood concept of community service. “The challenge with funding is that because it’s volunteerism, they think everything should be free. But for an event like this, it’s not free! It’s a lot of hard work,†Lizette points out with a chuckle. Participant rates vary, but for a typical corporate group sponsored by their company, the sign up fee starts at P85,000 which covers a 30-person group’s materials for the day, meals, facilitators’ fees and their share in venue and overhead costs.
(Fidget lap mats that feature varying textures are sewn for the elderly diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease)
To make things easier for interested groups, it is also very much possible to set up a meeting with the HOM team and have them organize an activity just for you. Speaking from experience, Atty. Gianna recounts that “groups donate to us a fee to provide that service, and then we take care of all the logistics. We sit with them, we discover what their advocacy is, where they want to go, what NGO they want to serve, and then we tailor make everything for them. And they pay us for that service.â€
HOM volunteers mostly consist of corporate groups, but groups of friends and families are welcome to join, too!
While already hugely successful, HOM is still considered a small NGO that, even after 15 years, continues to work tirelessly towards larger goals and making the big picture happen. “I think that when we started we were very small. I like that Tanzanian proverb that says, ‘little by little, a little becomes a lot.’ I think that’s really what we’re all about,†Atty. Gianna shares.
(A volunteer carefully weaves newspaper cuttings into eco bags)
“Our idea with the Servathon is really for it to be a vehicle for participants to want to do more — meaning, to look into other ways they can be of service. This is almost like volunteer 101,†Patrice shares. HOM’s Servathon, which is a combination of the words “service†and “marathon,†is a gateway to exploring which advocacies participants feel most strongly about.
Finally, when asked what this big picture means to the HOM team, Atty. Gianna says it’s wanting “volunteerism to be synonymous with Hands on Manila.â€
“Our vision is eventually that the Philippines become a leading nation in terms of the contributions of volunteers to its development. Because it’s such a valuable resource, but it’s not tapped as much as it could be. And that’s our job, that’s what we’re trying to do,†concludes Patrice.
After 15 years and counting, all of Hands on Manila’s volunteers, both new and old, can wholeheartedly say that it has, indeed, been a job well done. In the words of Atty. Gianna, “go out there, and be hands on!â€
For more information about Servathon and how you can get involved with Hands on Manila, visit www.handsonmanila.org or their Facebook page.Â
(Hands on Manila vice president Patrice Tan, president Atty. Gianna Montinola and trustee Lizette Cojuangco)
