Bringing Joy to the Lost and Lonely

“I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.” (Matthew 25:36)

Last May 21, my best friend Kata Bellosillo invited me to join her at the Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) in Mandaluyong. Every year, Kata celebrates her birthday by bringing gifts and food to the senior Persons Deprived of Liberty (PDL) there. This year, I was lucky enough to be one of the nine friends she was allowed to bring.

I was a little apprehensive about going at first. I had recently broken my toe and was worried that it would be too painful to walk around. But Kata’s passion for giving back was contagious, and I knew I couldn’t miss out on this opportunity. Besides, a promise is a promise, and so I hied off to CIW at 7 am. Good thing Kata told me to wear light clothes because of the heat, and to avoid my favorite color orange as this was the color of the PDLs’ uniform.

At CIW, I met the rest of the group: Baby Lim, our other close friend from CHS; Weng, Rio and MJ from Kata’s Amare-Kyani office; Shanghai, Jason and Proceso who were visiting from Davao; Eric Lecain, Kata’s VP at Rotary Makati; and Grace who coordinated our visit. For security purposes, we were required to leave our bags and phones in our car.

Inside CIW, we met with the superintendent and her team who ushered us to the quadrangle where the event would take place. I was blown away by the program prepared by the PDLs! Decked in attractive costumes they themselves had sewn, the women performed several modern dance numbers that were professionally choreographed by one of the PDLs. They were so talented and full of life; it was hard to believe they were incarcerated. They even asked us to join their dance. I of course declined because of my foot injury, but the rest of the group were game and danced away. Then two young women sang a duet, which I swear could win in Asia’s Got Talent. They had their own band too that sang a birthday song for Kata.

After the program, we distributed the food and the gift bags of toiletries and Kyani health products we had brought. The women’s faces lit up with joy as they received their presents. Many of them hugged us and thanked us over and over again. It was clear that our visit meant a lot to them. On the way out, we passed some tables where PDLs were selling beautiful, beaded bags. I wondered what other livelihood projects we could start for them.

I will never forget the experience of visiting the correctional facility with Kata. It was a powerful reminder of the importance of giving back and the resilience of the human spirit. We agreed to continue the conversation with the superintendent to determine how we can help improve conditions in CIW. I’ve always believed that when women help other women, great things happen. And here is a place that truly needs help.

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Chris Layugan