Christmas is a time to celebrate with family and loved ones. But, residents of the Tacloban City Women Shelter do not have families to share the season with.
“I will spend time with them this Christmas, because I am their mother here in Tacloban,” said Cristina Gonzales-Romualdez, the mayor of Tacloban City. With her husband, former Mayor Alfred Romualdez, they established the shelter in 2010 to provide a home and relevant services to women and children in the city who are victims of abuse, maltreatment and violence.
In its seven years of being a second home for abused women and children, the shelter has seen 1,012 admissions and 1,374 walk-ins. The women and children in the facility are given extra care and protection by the employees of the City Social Welfare and Development Office.
Mayor Cristina’s promise is the answer to Jessa’s wish.
“I miss my mom, I hope Mayor can come and visit us in Christmas,” said 18-year-old Jessa when asked what she wanted for Christmas. Jessa, who has physical disability and autism, was raped when she was 9 and got pregnant at the age of 13. Her baby died at birth. She could have died, too, if not for the Women Shelter that took her in and cared for her.
“This is the best gift we can give them – our love and our time. They need someone to listen to them, to hug them, to cry and laugh with them,” added the Mayor.
The Mayor said that the city government is taking steps in addressing the plight of abused women and children which is a prevalent problem not only in the Philippines but also in other parts of the world.
Abused children like Jessa still deserves a good Christmas, and Mayor Cristina is making sure she gets her wish this season.