Researching items for hygiene kits in Divisoria, Philippines and Community Development Foundations

Went with my cousin Dennis today to Divisoria, a place in south west Metro Manila to find hygiene kit materials. Man, forgot to take pics of the places we went to. I got really excited because it is really inexpensive to get a lot of these items. Here’s the conversion: Php 45 (pesos) to $1. So here is the following list for the items in pesos, they are all great bargains and will be able to get over 100 kits for the kind donations made so far from the states:

• Php 120 for 12 face towels
• Php 95 for 12 handkerchiefs
• Php 10 for 1 bar of soap
• Php 18 for 1 soap container
• Php 50 for 1 shirt (can find wholesaler for this)
• Php 23 for 6 pairs of slippers (bargain!)
• Php 20 for 1 travel size toothpaste
• Php 75 for 24 travel size toothbrush (bargain!)
• Php 100 for 6 underwear boys/men
• Php 100 for 10 underwear girls/woman
• Php 100 for 3 shorts (can find wholesaler for this)

I can’t wait for this Friday. My cousin Dennis will go with me to again to a different placed called Quiapo to find deals on travel size shampoo. I’m still trying to figure out how were are going to transport these things when we purchase in bulk. We don’t have a car and public transportation is very crowded and difficult carrying large items. We may make multiple trips but I’m very excited to begin. I'll be sure to take picturs of all the street vendors and the places that I will be visiting to buy the items for the kits. Again, check out http://www.dosomethingsaturday.org/ to see what my friend Kengi is doing in southern California. His program inspired me to do the same here in the Philippines. Kengi himself was homeless for almost 2 years, with the love and support of others, as well as his continued heart in serving the poor and loving God, Kengi has been spreading love to the people he comes across, both homeless and those that want to help homeless alike.

Below are pictures from riding the public overhead train around and again the same place in Recto near Malate/Ermita, Philippines.

I will be moving in with a friend in a city called Mandaluyong which is great. I will be able to save money and provide for living costs at bare minimum so I can concentrate time and energy in volunteer work opportunities to assist the poor and create and run community development programs from foundations I have come across.

Friends from church are forming a foundation called Extra Mile and I will participate in a meeting my first time in Trinoma mall in Quezon City off of the MRT train station called North Ave. I am very excited for that as well to see what people are doing. A member named Pons will be helping form this foundation and he was part of Real Life Foundation. You can view more here: http://www.igivetolife.com/

Two days ago in service, I was able to attend small group and talk over verses for prosperity or being prosperous. It’s not just about having wealth or good fortune. We referred to verses that explained how Jesus provides us to be prosperous: 1) in our offspring, ability for wombs to be blessed, us to have children, 2) by what is given to us, such as blessing in our harvest or our work, in providing us with the means to live and survive and 3) how we give back, both to community of believers and non-believers with our time and money. I will update this with what verses those are.