By Bum D. Tenorio Jr. / Photography by Mau Aguasin
Since 2015, the I Want to Share Foundation has been a vessel of hope and healing for children with cancer at the Philippine General Hospital’s pediatric hematology-oncology department, where it has helped these young patients battle the big C.
Founded in 2013, the I Want to Share Foundation has helped juvenile cancer patients by providing funding for their medicines, MRI tests, securing second opinions from doctors abroad, and transporting them and their families from Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao. The foundation has also given free alkaline water and Wi-Fi service to the hospital’s cancer department.
At the forefront of the foundation is Sheila Romero, herself a cancer warrior. Sheila is excited about the Charity Gala happening on Sept. 15 at the Grand Ballroom of Shangri-La The Fort, Manila, where some 550 guests have confirmed their attendance. For Sheila and the I Want to Share board, this means 550 people will help the Childhood Cancer Help Desk and Bone Marrow Transplant Unit of the pediatric hematology-oncology department of UP-PGH accomplish its mission.
A highlight of the ball will be the “Shine” fashion show, wherein 25 children who have been healed or in the process of healing will walk the runway. They will don the creations by Avel Bacudio, Mark Bumgarner, Martin Bautista, Rajo Laurel and Andrea Tetangco — all supporters of I Want to Share.
Robby Carmona, a long-time member of the foundation, will direct the show.
“More than 600 kids with cancer are treated in PGH alone every year. I am happy with 150 kids who graduate from chemo, who are on remission. Of course we pray more and more will be healed. The Foundation will not stop from helping them and their family. My personal mission is to champion childhood cancer,” Sheila says.
According to her, I Want to Share Foundation started with a dream to make a positive impact in the lives of the needy. So, in 2013, with the help of her sisters and closest friends — all eight of them — the foundation was formed. Armed with the thought that “to whom much is given, much is expected,” they started to bring joy, love, hope and help to people in need.
“I knew at that time that I was already surrounded by a solid group of people who would be I Want to Share Foundation’s founding members in 2013. They are well-meaning individuals who share the same dream. We have a unified vision to give a part of ourselves to our society in whatever way we can and to be able to influence others to do the same,” she says.
Sheila adds, “Over the years, I saw how the hands of God picked the right people to join us in our mission to build a community of sharers and foster a culture of giving among our peers.” There are now more than 25 members of the foundation.
To head a foundation is not a walk in the park. Donation fatigue, Sheila says, is real. However, I Want to Share Foundation’s donors are always willing to help because of the organization’s transparency.
Sheila and the members of I Want to Share are determined to fulfill their roles as conduits of kindness. They persevere to rekindle their passion every day. Even during holidays “because helping others does not choose time; it’s all the time.”
Through their collective action, the foundation has even had the opportunity to conduct relief operations and medical missions for the survivors of typhoons Maring and Yolanda in 2013 and Odette in 2021. They have given out educational scholarships to deserving students in Philippine Science High School and have supported other charitable institutions such as the Ephesus Shelter for Children, EPCALM-Adult Leukemia Foundation of the Philippines, I Can Serve Foundation that supports breast cancer patients and Bright Halls Children’s Foundation, an orphanage that Sheila also founded. They also help fund the education of young men to priesthood.
They also interact with the community of Agdangan, Quezon in their annual gift-giving program. It was actually their projects in Agdangan — providing bags and school supplies to 600 children — that started I Want to Share Foundation. What started as a simple gift-giving project became a full-blown foundation.
Anybody who has joined an activity of the foundation will say that it is a life-changing experience. Every time I Want to Share has a gift-giving activity at PGH, you see kids with cancer smile or hear them laugh. Then you begin to realize how generous God is with His ability to bring happiness even to the innocent who are sick—through His conduit, the I Want to Share Foundation.
The sincerity of the children’s smile and the warmth of their laughter are enough to wash away your own problems, says Sheila. Their joy is contagious, electrifying even.
Sheila adds: “A meaningful life is a purpose-driven life. A life without purpose is no life at all. God has shown me my purpose and that is to be a beacon of hope for children afflicted with cancer.”
What keeps Sheila inspired in her advocacy? “God’s words. His word keeps me going. I want to be worthy of that mansion in heaven that He promised. I believe we are all sojourners, we are just passing through. The need to help others is important. We need to share,” she concludes.
