Vida Sario, 63, wife of a construction worker, makes reusable face masks for distribution and donation to densely populated areas in the Philippines.
Jocelyn Rodriguez, 47, mother of three and wife of a displaced construction worker, makes face masks everyday to help ensure public safety.
These women, two of the many, have taken on the leadership role in their families while helping in the fight against the spread of coronavirus in their communities and beyond.
“We sew reusable face masks all day to produce 500 pieces of face masks daily,” begins Sario. “We can’t go home because it is our job to provide for our families and to help out the Filipino people so they will be safe in adhering to the enhanced community quarantine to fight COVID-19.”
Sario is among the many Filipino women who heeded the call to produce masks and other personal protective equipment. She works with the Taguig Livelihood Shoppe which provides washable face masks to frontline workers through the LBC Foundation.
With the help of the business community and its foundation, LBC continues to mobilize its networks and economic resources to provide assistance across the board and give livelihood opportunities to women like Sario.
“We were given an opportunity by LBC Foundation to do something significant and continue our daily livelihood,” shares Sario.
With the majority of Filipino households losing their main source of income, especially those whose husbands were forced to stay at home, women try their best to contribute to the household on top of their daily responsibilities.
Rodriguez welcomes the opportunity to be of service to the Filipino public through sewing face masks intended for communities and front liners.
“I first started working in Livelihood Shoppe in 2004 where we make novelty items. But since the ECQ (enhanced community quarantine) has been imposed by the government, it has stopped,” relates Rodriguez.
She continues, “My husband who is also a construction worker has been forced to stay at home with no pay. So, I am still grateful despite not being able to come home because I can earn to provide for my family’s daily needs. It’s very lonely to be away from one’s family during this time, but I do this to ensure public health safety.”
LBC Foundation is working with various nonprofit organizations such as the Taguig Livelihood Shoppe and Upskills Foundation Inc. to source, produce, and distribute P50-million worth of face masks to vulnerable communities.
“This initiative is set to assist in educating the public more on the vital function of masks to protect, not just themselves, but also others around them. We believe that masks can and will save lives,” says LBC Foundation executive director Nena Wuthrich.
LBC tapped Rica Tinga to spearhead the donation in Taguig. The donated masks were distributed to seniors, pregnant women, and wet market vendors who are the most vulnerable and exposed to the virus. Most of the 28 barangays of Taguig were beneficiaries of the free masks.
They also gave out masks to the front-liners of Comet Electric Vehicles that provide shuttle services for the nurses and doctors of Pasig City General Hospital and Philippine General Hospital.