Inaugurating our 64th and 65th Libraries in Nueva Ecija: Sto. Cristo Elementary School

Last September 5, 2012 AHON Foundation inaugurated our 64th library in Entablado Elementary School in Cabiao, and our 65th Library in Sto. Cristo Elementary School San Isidro.

This actually isn't the first time that we at AHON Foundation found ourselves in Nueva Ecija to develop libraries. In the past we've opened eight AHON libraries in the Nueva Ecija region. But this didn't mean that we weren't welcomed by our partners with the same enthusiasm and joy that we were welcomed with the very first time we inaugurated a library there.

Our second inauguration for the day was at Sto. Cristo Elementary School in San Isidro, Nueva Ecija. A few blog entries back we wrote about how during our last two visits to Sto. Cristo the front yard of the school was flooding and under water. Well it seems like our visits to Sto. Cristo are always synonymous to rain as when we arrived there for the the inauguration the front yard was once again flooded.

True to the spirit we love about the Sto. Cristo Elementary School community however, they (AGAIN!) didn't let the flood stop them and went on to inaugurate their new library with a program of thanksgiving.

Ma'am Maria Corazon Balajadia and Mr. Harvey S. Keh shake hands after signing the Memorandum of Agreement. Behind them, you see the flooded courtyard of Sto. Cristo Elementary School.

Ma'am Maria Corazon Balajadia- Principal of Sto. Cristo Elementary School, Mr. Luis Calison- DepEd District Supervisor, and Barangay Captain Ramon C. Santos expressed their messages of thanks not only to AHON Foundation but to the community of Sto. Cristo that played an equally large part in putting together the school's new library.

We were also joined by former San Isidro Municipal Mayor Sonia Lorenzo (third from left) who first brought AHON to Nueva Ecija several years ago. In a way opening our 65th library in San Isidro was a sort of tribute to her and the initiative she had to take AHON to Nueva Ecija.

Sto Cristo's new library!

As we declared the library open we saw what perhaps is the reason behind the resilient spirit of the Sto. Cristo Elementary School Community: Its students and the excitement they had towards their new books and library.

AHON Foundation congratulates Sto. Cristo Elementary School in San Isidro Nueva Ecija for a job well done! We hope your new library builds tomorrow's dreamers who will build the nation.

Read our blog entry on our 64th library inauguration in Cabiao earlier that day by clicking HERE. To see more pictures of the inauguration at Sto. Cristo Elementary School, click HERE.

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Behind Every Library: Sto. Cristo Elementary School in San Isidro, Nueva Ecija

Last August 16 and 17 AHON Foundation hit the road to visit three of its partner schools in Nueva Ecija. Entablado Elementary School in Cabiao, Sto. Cristo Elementary School in San Isidro, and Cuyapo Central School in Cuyapo are the 64th, 65th, and 66th libraries respectively of AHON foundation. These visits also marked the last ocular of AHON foundation before the inauguration of these libraries in September.

There are always inspiring stories about the resiliency of the Filipino spirit during times of disaster or trouble. It was during our ocular visit to Sto. Cristo Elementary School in San Isidro Nueva Ecija however that we witnessed this spirit in action. The week before our trip the strong habagat rains took place in Luzon causing many parts of the region to experience heavy rain followed by serious flooding that displaced thousands of families. Many towns in the Nueva Ecija were badly affected by the torrential rains and the town of San Isidro was no exception to this.

As we arrived in the campus of Sto. Cristo Elementary School in San Isidro on the afternoon of August 16th we were greeted by left over flood water brought about by the habagat rains. This spread across the front yard of the school, not having gone down yet despite the strong rains taking place over one week past. The assembly area of the school was also still under about an inch of water, and from the looks of it would need some serious cleaning up. But almost as though she didn't see the looming floodwater, Sto. Cristo's Principal, Marie Balajdia greeted us warmly and excitedly shared that their library only needed its finishing touches. We were pleasantly surprised to hear this, especially after seeing how the habagat rains had affected Sto Cristo's campus, but Ma'am Balajadia was firm on making the deadline that was set to complete the library.

"Dahil may kaunting problema sa baha dito sa school hindi ibig sabihin ay titigil kami sa pagtapos ng library. Nangako kami at tutuparin namin 'yon." (Just because there's a problem with flooding here at school doesn't mean we wont finish the library. We made a promise and we are going to fulfill this) Ma'am Balajadia responded when we asked whether the habagat rains pushed back their schedule.

Teachers and students from Sto. Cristo working on their new library

And indeed Sto. Cristo's library was nearly finished. When we entered the library a few teachers and students were rearranging their existing book collection to make room for the new books that will be delivered to the school on the first of September. The tables and chairs had just been given a fresh coat of paint as well and there were new drapes that had been put up earlier that morning. But our personal favorite part of Sto. Cristo's new library was their reading nook.

The reading nook of Sto. Cristo Elementary school's new library

When we mentioned to Ma'am Balajadia how much we liked their reading nook she shared with us that truly, it took the team effort of their community to put this together. Ma'am Balajadia told us that the pink fence that designated the reading nook from the rest of the library was welded by former students from Sto. Cristo. The reason behind their involvement is that they were once the TESDA welding scholars of Barangay Captain Ramon Santos, who commissioned them to do this job for Sto. Cristo's library.

According to Ma'am Balajadia students, faculty, and even parents would drop by the library from time to time to see whether they could offer any help in the renovation. She also shared that all the paint jobs the library needed- from the mural on the wall, to the fence of the reading area, and the tables & chairs, were done by some of the father's of the Sto. Cristo students. "Hindi naman nila kailangan gawin yun. Pero ginawa parin nila. Nakakatuwa." (They didn't have to do all that. But they did. That makes me happy.) Ma'am Balajadia said smiling.

The library inauguration of Sto. Cristo Elementary School in San Isidro Nueva Ecija will be on September 5, 2012.

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First Provincial AHON Library Launch

The very first provincial library launch for an adopted libary of AHON Foundation was held last March 10, 2008 in a historic event at the Calaba Elementary School in San Isidro, Nueva Ecija.


The Calaba Elementary School, with more than 620 elementary students, will now enjoy over PhP 500 million pesos worth of brand new Time-Life books donated by Filway Marketing thru AHON Foundation, and its partners, A Better Chance Foundation, and Uniworld Inc.



The new Calaba Elementary School library was practically set up in less than 2 weeks through the untiring joint efforts of the local community under the leadership of their Honorable Mayor Sonia R. Lorenzo, the Dep Ed District Supervisor, Mr. Ricardo Badiola; the FPTCA President Kgd. Francis R. Ibanez, barangay captain, other local government officials, the parent-teacher council, and other community members.


The Calaba Elementary School Principal, Mrs. Alona S. Sta. Ines, coordinated this project with the AHON Foundation team, spearheaded by Donna Odra and Val Buenaventura. Mrs. Sta. Ines welcomed the special guests for the occasion with beaming smiles--her happiness resonating that of her community's excitement & gladness at their school's new library.
















Energizing the library launch more with the announcement of additonal support for the community, via a donation of about 200 pairs of eye glasses for those who will need them, was Mr. Lewis A. Edwards, Founder/Chairman of A Better Chance (ABC) Foundation. The mission of his foundation is to provide scholarships for the poor, among many other social development projects. With Mr. Edwards was his team composed of Project Director Hidie Niedo and Coordinator, Maricris Encarnacion. Also present during the festivities were VP for Marketing of Filway Marketing, Inc., Ms. Valerie Valena and Marketing staff, Melanie Renales.

Towards the end of the heartwarming program, Mr. Harveh Keh, Executive Director for AHON Foundation, turned over the books ceremonially to the president of the student council, who represented the excited students, eager to read the books for the very first time.


The eyes of the elementary pupils simply twinkled at the sight of so many colorful and hard-bound books in their new library. The younger kids rushed towards shelves with storybooks about animals and planets, while the older school children moved excitedly towards the reference books on various topics on Science, Social Studies, Reading, etc.



Due to the success of this project, Mayor Sonia Lorenzo and the other principals believe this experience can be replicated with their respective schools in the district. Everyone agreed that there is no greater joy than to see for oneself the wonderful fruits of the bayanihan spirit at work in the community.


Talks are underway for similar projects in the future. With a growing circle of friends and supporters, not only of AHON Foundation, but of the local communities as well, such dreams will not be too far from reality.


The Calaba Elementary School library was the 11th public elementary school library adopted by AHON Foundation in less than two years. The list of the other elementary school (ES) libaries inaugurated since May 2006 is as follows:

1. Industrial Valley ES ( August 8, 2006)


2. Concepcion ES (November 14, 2006)


3. Malanday ES (February 26, 2007)


4. San Roque ES (April 18, 2007)


5. GSIS Village ES (September 13, 2007)


6. Batasan Hills ES (September 20, 2007)


7. San Bartolome ES (September 25, 2007)


8. Lucas Pascual ES (October 4, 2007)


9. Payatas B-Annex ES (December 12, 2007)


10. 15th Avenue, Cubao ES (February 20, 2007)


11. Calaba ES, Nueva Ecija (March 10, 2008)


12. Old Balara ES (March 14, 2008)