OVERCOMING insurmountable odds is nothing new for Amputee Association of Bermuda president Mark Dill, but when he was asked to come on board to help fundraise for the purchase of school supplies for more than 100 Filipino (Kanawan) kids, he knew his work was cut out for him.These indigenous people, a tribe of impoverished Aetas, live in Morong in the Philippine province of Bataan.

“They are very poor and they also belong to an ethnic minority. They are prone to abuses by scheming people because of their ignorance, mal-education and poverty,” exclaimed Mark, as he explained the villagers’ plight.

“The tribe live on a plateau in Sitio, Kanawan — which is part of the Aeta reservation — just outside the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA). Some members of the tribe work at the SBMA, the rest hunt for small game and fruits for subsistence, and sometimes sell these to vacationers at beach resorts in the coastal areas and around Subic Bay. Recently they started with bee-keeping to supplement their income.”

Dozens of impoverished Filipino children hammed it up for the camera to express their heartfelt thanks to a pair of locals who sponsored the purchase of school supplies for the upcoming year.

The project was the brainchild of Miriam Sing, who lamented the plight of the Kanawan. She describes herself as a ‘simple housewife’ who has been an active member in the Gospel Church of Manila for the past 27 years. She and fellow parishioners were invited to Kanawan to participate in the annual three-day medical mission.

“I find the tribe interesting and the kids are so kind and respectful,” she said. “It was the only community I’ve ever seen . . . that most people living there are Christians. But our church has a yearly medical mission and I am one of the team.

“Now I am doing it on my own without asking a penny from my church. I have been involved in teaching especially, mainly spreading good news with the children’s ministry and was a teacher trainer of Kids Evangelism Explosion. As a leader, I need to get permission from them every time there is a mission. After the first attempt joining in with my church, I now do it on my own. I believed I was blessed with many friends, even my classmates, in nursing to help them out,” she told me during an online brainstorming session with Mark. When I learned of the church’s project, it piqued my curiosity,” said Mark, who is no stranger to helping with community projects, but helping with an overseas project on the other side of the world was his biggest challenge to date.

“I approached a buddy of mine and explained how these kids needed school supplies and he asked me how many kids were we looking at. When I said 100 kids and Miriam had fundraised for the remaining 65, he said he would match what I already had, so we managed to get what we needed in time for the kids to be equipped for school.”

Mark credits his benevolent spirit to having good friends, close family ties and a strong religious upbringing.

“I never strayed from it and I felt I had achieved a measure of success in my life and I had promised myself that if I were in a position to help the less fortunate I would step up to the plate,” he said.

Little did he know an e-mail from a friend on the other side of the world would test his mettle.

“I had to get used to the 11-hour time difference when online getting the necessary information from Miriam. It was touching when I received e-mailed pictures of the kids mentioning the Bermuda Triangle!

“We managed to buy some stationery and several fruit and vegetable seeds and made up several ‘care packages’ and shipped them out.”

He praised one of the neighbourhood groups which also chipped in: “I want to thank the guys from the Shade Tree Cycling Group. I grew up around most of them, so it didn’t take long before I was asked what could they do and they chipped in,” he said.

“One even went as far as providing a simple but yet effective business plan for both Miriam and the villagers. The support and feedback was much more than I expected in such a short time!”

Miriam, equally elated, said: “Thanks again for the help, you are a godsend and thanks for trusting me.”