Batch24: Punduhan ng Dumagat
1in3out returns to the foot of the Sierra Madre Mountain to visit a community we first helped back in 2021. This area was meant to be a temporary Punduhan (stop-over) for the Dumagats (naked in the forest) as they travel from one part of the mountain to another. Generations later, the area has become a government-sponsored refuge for tribesmen still finding their way down from the mountain.
We brought with us the usual goods: clothes, rice, slippers, medicine plus our monthly on-site feeding. But our contact made a one-of-a-kind request: ice cream! So we invited a couple of the local ice cream vendors and bought their entire stash! The cold sweet brought an extra smile to an already fun day.
Special shout-out to Balikbayan Box Movement from Queensland, Australia for once again sending us some pre-loved goodies from Down Under. They also got their friends, Toddler Sense Auckland South from Manukau, New Zealand, joining in on the fun. And again to Aldwin Castro for the vitamins. This batch also includes the clothes from Teofilo Coffee Company’s clothing drive. Thanks to our sponsors Javi, Erica, and Anna. Maraming Salamat for helping us give them a memorable day.
Rosendo Cruz
Rosendo Cruz is turning 60 years old sometime next year. "Sometime" because he doesn’t know exactly when he was born. Sometime back in 1964, he was born somewhere up the Sierra Madre mountains. He grew up in a culture that had no sense of time, or no one was tracking and recording dates. Later on trekking down the mountain and finally settling in the Punduhan together with other Dumagat elders who themselves probably don’t know their birthdays. Let’s listen to his stories as interviewed by 2 of our leads, Khy and Mina.
Punduhan Project
Finishing our day at Punduhan, we helped the locals plant some trees and other vegetation. It’s the Dumagats way of preserving and expending the Sierra Madre Mountain that has been home to their people for hundreds of years. Video by @its.me.ken_
Punduhan. From a different POV. Video by Robert
Punduhan Thank You Shoutout!
