2 New Kusina ng Kalinga Kitchens Open in Leyte and Sultan Kudarat
[Date Created: February 18, 2015]

Just this Monday, February 9, Team GK met the curious smiles of 5,000 school children when we arrived with their baons for the day. In crates of colorful lunchboxes, lunch was served: rice and sinigang na manok. Perhaps in their young minds they were asking “Whose birthday is it today?”

They were in for a surprise – this was just the first of the many lunches they’ll be getting everyday from the newly-opened Kusina ng Kalinga in San Isidro, Leyte – a town you might not have heard of until now.

San Isidro is a fourth-class municipality determined to provide daily lunch meals for the 5,000 public elementary school children in all of its 19 barangays. During the lauching, Mayor Susan Ang and her Vice Mayor together with the Sangguniang Bayan of San Isidro were very hands on, making it very clear that everyone is determined to end hunger in San Isidro. Even the habal habal (motorcycle) riders were motivated to bring food to the schools where their children are studying.

Our volunteers also came to make sure that the battle cry of WALANG IWANAN is delivered to the stomachs of the hungry kids in this town!


Sultan Kudarat

Last February 16, In Tacurong, Sultan Kudarat, GK Kusina Ng Kalinga Kitchen crew and parent volunteers worked together so 2,000 pupils of Tacurong Pilot Elementary School get to eat their lunch on time!!

"These kids certainly know how to reciprocate.. After the feeding this noon, Noel and I went home to take our lunch. We went back to Kusina ng Kalinga and found 12 kids taking a hearty meal of some excess food because there were pupils who were absent from class. When asked how they like the food, they said it was good and added that they were on their 2nd food pack. After eating, all 12 said "thank you" while touching their full stomachs and off they went. After a while, Robert and Kiel came back and told us they didn't have class. They asked if they could help cleaning up the packing hall. At a nod, they grabbed the brooms and started sweeping the floor.... Thank you Robert and Kiel for that simple act that spoke volumes... HUNGER ENDS WHERE CARING BEGINS." - Deanna Grino

Tags: Poverty, KusinangKalinga

Kusina ng Kalinga is GK’s campaign to end child hunger by caring together. Our kitchens - powered by the bayanihan work of parents, volunteers, teachers, school and community administrators, LGUs, private individuals, organizations, and corporate partners, are hubs for preparing a whole year round of daily nutritious lunch meals to (K to 6) public schoolchildren. This program is a comprehensive and scalable approach to empowering our young and improving their quality of life as it indirectly impacts their performance in school, their home and community environment.

Our kitchens are currently operating in Alang-Alang, Leyte (3,800 kids), San Isidro, Leyte (5,125 kids), Quezon City, Metro Manila (2,000 kids), and Tacurong, Sultan Kudarat (2,000 kids). Whatever we raise from this campaign will be used to sustain these kitchens, open new ones, and reach 50,000 kids by June 2015.

You can help us reach many more of the ~15M Filipino kids experiencing hunger. Check out our Love Means Walang Iwanan page to see how you can help. You may also GIVE NOW.