ARCORES International, CST-R Collaborate for the Fire Victims of Endrina Street


Story By Georgene Quilaton-Tambiga

Photos By Rachel De Gracia, CVPro

September 21, 2024—At least 109 families whose homes were razed by fire in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental, Philippines, received a bag of rice and canned goods from ARCORES International through Colegio de Sto. Tomas-Recoletos, Inc.’s Community Extension and Development Office (CEDO).

It can be recalled that last September 6, 2024, at 8:40 in the evening, families living on Endrina Street, Barangay V, San Carlos City lost their homes during one of the biggest residential fires in the city post-pandemic. This community is just a block away from the convent of Recoletos de San Carlos.

The community of Augustinian Recollects immediately reached out to their neighbors and gave drinking water and biscuits the morning after the tragedy. Then, groups of student-volunteers including officers of the CST-R Reserved Officers Training Corps (ROTC) of the College Department, leaders of the Supreme Student Council and scholars under the READS program, brought basic clothing to the victims who were evacuated to the Barangay IV Gymnasium.

ARCORES for Endrina Fire Victims

Through CEDO, ARCORES International also sent immediate relief by giving bags of 14 kilos of rice and canned goods to the fire victims last September 21, 2024. Families, who are re-building their homes as of press time and slowly moving out of the evacuation center, were thankful to ARCORES and the Augustinian Recollect community because they now had moving-out-of-the evacuation-site gifts to bring to their new homes. Rev. Fr. Monday Benjamin Edobor, OAR, the CST-R vice-president for identity, formation and mission, led the operations with volunteers from the ROTC officers, READS scholars and the Thomasian staff.

This operation preceded the earlier release of Caja de Solidaria or Solidarity Boxes last September 12, 2024, that CST-R President, Rev. Fr. Cristopher C. Maspara, OAR personally led.

Each Caja de Solidaria given to the families contained hygiene and laundry kits, snack packs, rice and canned goods that Thomasians from the Junior High School donated. Meanwhile, Thomasian students and teachers from the Senior High School gave school supplies from paper to pencils and pens for the 75 school children who lost their learning materials to the fire.

Immediate Response. CST-R Reserved Officers Training Corps (ROTC) of the College Department immediately volunteered to sort the stock used clothing of the Community Development and Extension Office (CEDO). In this photo, two officers haul a box of pants for adults to the drop off center at the Barangay V Hall (Community Hall), San Carlos City, where community volunteers pack basic clothing for each family of victims.
Rice Bags. Rev. Fr. Monday Benjamin Edobor, OAR, CST-R vice-president for identity, formation and mission, leads the fourth relief operations of CEDO that ARCORES International supported. A family representative receives 14 kilos of rice and some canned goods just a day before they start moving from the evacuation center into their re-built houses.
Caja de Solidaria. Rev. Fr. Cristopher C. Maspara, OAR, CST-R president, distribute the Solidarity Boxes for the victims. Each box contains hygiene and laundry kits, canned goods, biscuits, rice and t-shirt. Caja de Solidaria is an ARCORES International project with CEDO that encourages Thomasians to prepare for disasters by collecting and stocking up on basic relief goods in advance.
Thomasian Criminologists for Fire Victims. Third year BS in Criminology students help distribute the Caja. The students also volunteered during the preparation of the boxes.
Thomasians in Social Action. Thomasian Girl and Boy Scouts and Supreme Student Council Officers volunteer to pack rice for the Solidarity Boxes.
The Recollect Solidarity. Members of the Recollect Augustinian Youth (RAY) de San Carlos pack the hygiene and laundry kits for the boxes. 
Thomasian Entrepreneurs in Social Action. Third year BS in Entrepreneurship students help fill the Caja de Solidaria.
Packing the Rice Bags. ROTC officers take a break from practicing drills and formation to help pack 14 kilos of rice and canned goods.
A Network of Volunteers. READS scholars, ROTC officers and children of CST-R staff help put together the Rice Bags.
Reaching Out to the Neighbors. Fr. Maspara briefly discuss with the office of the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) regarding the next move of the local government unit for the fire victims.
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