Grocery Distribution in Hapay Hapay, Manukyo Dos Slum Area

In March 2018, GGB Ambassadors from Edmonton, Canada—Mary Borres, Kim Borres, Benedict Borres, and Vincent Manzano—led a grassroots outreach initiative to support families living in Hapay Hapay, an informal settlement beside the subdivision where Kim Borres once lived. With help from local relatives, including Mary’s mother, mother-in-law, and 8-year-old nephew, the team distributed grocery bags to 150 families, each containing a week’s worth of essential food items.

Grocery Bag Contents (per family):

- 2 kg of rice

- 1 bag of noodle packs

- 2 cans of sardines

- 3 cans of meatloaf

- 2 cans of corned beef

- 2 packs of Magic Crackers (for children)

An additional 150 packs of Magic Crackers were distributed directly to children waiting with their families. Small chip packs were also handed out to children on-site, bringing joy and comfort during the distribution.

Hapay Hapay is a squatter community located beside a subdivision in the Manukyo Dos area of the Philippines. With over 250 families living illegally on the land, the area lacks formal infrastructure, legal housing, and access to basic services. Homes are often built from salvaged materials—wood, tin, and tarp—and are tightly packed along narrow alleys, making the community vulnerable to flooding, fire, and disease outbreaks.

Most residents survive through informal labor such as laundry work, street vending, or day-wage construction. Clean water, sanitation, and healthcare are scarce, and many families live in multi-generational households where five or more families may share a single dwelling. Children often lack access to consistent education, and food insecurity is common—making outreach programs like GGB’s grocery distribution vital to their survival.

Despite these hardships, the community is tightly knit. Neighbors help one another, and acts of generosity—like distributing food, clothing, or school supplies—are met with deep gratitude. Hapay Hapay reflects the broader reality of urban poverty in the Philippines: a place of hardship, but also of hope, where even small acts of kindness can make a lasting impact.

The experience reaffirmed the team’s belief in the power of community and compassion. This was the team’s first outreach of its kind, and it left a lasting impact on both the recipients and the volunteers. GGB continues to stand for Generously Giving Back, and this project exemplifies that mission in action.