First, sorry for the late post but I was attending my godmother’s wake last Friday -hence we’re doing last week’s Friday Five on a Monday. Anyway, this morning I had the opportunity to have a quick chat with Mo, Mojo and Andi-9 on Magic 89.9. They were discussing about charity and how “in general”, you have to be rich or have a lot of resources in order to be able to help.

Of course you don’t need to be rich to help out your fellow men so here’s five charities in Metro Manila that will not cost you a dime. Although donations are of course accepted by these charities, anyone can help them as long as you have a little bit of time and the will to help out. I’ve joined all 5 at some point in my life and trust me, it’s a very defining experience.

1. Storytelling at Aklatang Pambata. It’s ok if you’re not a natural born story teller as you will get a ton of tips from the storytelling experts in this little library in QC. Books are available at the library and the kids come in around 10am every Saturday. Check out the website to find out how to get there. Walk in’s are more than welcome. (Total time spent: at most 3 hours every Saturday)
2. Alternative education with RockEd. Want to teach kids guitar or arts? Do you want to help them review Math, Science or English? You can volunteer with RockEd and drop in schools around the Metro to help them with their projects. There’s also projects outside the Metro that you can support. (Total time spent: at most 3 hours on weekends for Manila-based projects)
3 and 4. Build a community with Habitat for Humanity or Gawad Kalinga. For a few hours every weekend, drop in Gawad Kalinga or Habitat for Humanity and help build a community. There’s several projects around the Metro and many activities you can help in from something as simple as landscaping to house building. (Total time spent: about 6-8 hours on weekends)
5. Student leaders at UCF work camps. Students from most Universities in the Metro can drop in UCF offices to volunteer for work camps. Usually held during the summer, volunteers go to rural provinces and help out communities by laying pipes or repairing school walls or ceilings. You even get to experience the city you visit too. (Total time spent: varies, about 2-4 days during the summer)

Now that you know where you can help, I only hope that you start with any of these charities or organizations. Perhaps I’ll see you in some of them, you never know. :)