A Memorable Photo
On May 4, 1985, Pulitzer Prize winner Kim Komenich snapped a photo that would later land on the covers of magazines, alerting the world to the sorry state of things in the island of Negros in the 1980s. The photo was of a young child, who was not much bigger than a toddler despite being about seven years old. Joel Abong, the child in the photo, was one of many children who succumbed to the effects of widespread starvation and malnutrition that plagued the province that year.
A Father Never Forgets
Nearly 40 years have passed and the stark black and white image of the emaciated Joel has faded from many people’s memories, but some people will never forget. Rodolfo Abong, Joel’s father, is one of them. He had a total of seven children but lost four of them including Joel. Known to friends and family as Tatay Dolfo, he lives on the shorelines of Bacolod City and continues to struggle to survive as he always has. He had been earning a living as a fisherman until a typhoon in June battered his boat. Despite being quite handy, Tatay Dolfo was not able to put the broken pieces of his boat back together again. But he did not give up. After that, he scraped together a living selling shrimps caught by his nephew. However, he kept hoping and praying for a boat so that he could go back to fishing again.
A Gift from Kind Hearts
Tatay Dolfo’s wish reached us and fortunately, we were able to grant it, thanks to the family behind Bob’s, a popular restaurant in Bacolod. The family has been sharing its blessings with others through us for quite some time now. As the family matriarch put it, they are in the business of feeding people, but some may not be able to afford to eat at their restaurants. Their donations allow us to feed many families and a recent donation from the family will allow Tatay Dolfo to have a new motorized fishing boat through our Peter Project.
His boat was named Joel and Kim–in memory of one of the children he lost, and as a tribute to the man who made the world know of his son’s plight.
Not a Hand Out but a Hand Up
Tatay Dolfo received the boat and motor on September 15, and part of our agreement with him was that he would have to build the outriggers for the boat on his own. He began working on the improvements right away.
On October 16, members of the NVC Team happened to bump into him as he was putting the finishing touches on his boat. Not only did he make outriggers for the boat, but he also fashioned a “camarote” (little shelter) on the boat. This would come in handy when he ventures further out to fish near Guimaras and neighboring islands.
Our chance meeting with him must have been arranged by higher powers. When we saw him, Tatay Dolfo informed us that he was about to head out to visit a money lender. He planned to borrow P1,000 so he could buy materials for the remaining improvements to his boat. But as luck would have it, a few days earlier, a kind soul had handed NVC President Millie Kilayko P1,000 to give to anyone we felt needed it. Of course Ms. Millie handed the P1,000 over to Tatay Dolfo so that he would not have to deal with a money lender and high interest rates.
Breaking Bread
A neighbor informed us that Tatay Dolfo has been sleeping in his boat to keep it safe. This morning, Tatay Dolfo got up before dawn to embark on the maiden voyage of his new boat. Before setting out, he met with some of his fellow-fishermen for hot coffee, freshly baked pan de sal and good conversation.
Seaworthy
We were there to witness Tatay Dolfo’s first catch on his new boat! It was a good day for fishing, and he caught 3kg of fish. We are happy to report that he went home with a smile on his face!
Doing the Math
Tatay Dolfo sold the fish at P300/kg. He paid P200 for fuel and P100 for bait. That left him with P600. Because he is so generous, instead of paying his fisherman’s helper P50/day as is the norm, he split the earnings with his helper. That left Tatay Dolfo with P300. He was elated that he had enough to pay for a simple meal for the day and there was a little money left over for other household expenses.
But then we did the math and realized that with his current set-up, he would barely be getting by. And as he is getting on in years, it would be good for him to earn more so he could set aside some savings. We realized he could earn so much more if he had a net. Of course, he could save up for one, but we decided it would be better if we could buy one for him.
We put out a call for donations and we were overwhelmed with people’s response. Not only did people generously open their hearts and wallets to help Tatay Dolfo buy a net, but there was also more than enough for us to purchase other accessories like blinkers to help him sail and fish safely after dark. On top of that, people happily donated funds to help other fishermen like Tatay Dolfo.
More Gifts for Tatay Dolfo
On the morning of November 3rd, we turned the additional gifts to Tatay Dolfo. He was overcome with emotion to see what we had given him. Among the gifts were the materials for a fishing net. With his failing eyesight and loss of nimbleness in his fingers, it would have been too difficult for him to make the net himself even if he had the materials. So, we hired someone to make the net for him–giving one more person the chance to earn well from doing a good job.
We also turned over battery-powered blinkers. These will help him fish safely even when visibility is poor. These blinkers are so precious to Tatay Dolfo, he makes sure to remove them at the end of the day so he can take them home for safekeeping. He re-attaches the blinkers when he sets out in the early morning.
Another Net
When we visited the seashore on November 15, we saw Tatay Dolfo and his fellow-fishermen sitting things out. They woke up while it was still dark and got ready to go out and fish. Unfortunately, the wind was too strong and the waves were too harsh for them to go out at that time. Sadly, there are quite a number of days that fishermen cannot go out to sea even if they want to. Their fishing days are at the mercy of factors like the weather and this is why they are among some of the poorest sectors in the country.
The day before, we paid a visit to the net maker. The net we promised Tatay Dolfo is nearly finished. Tatay Dolfo was overjoyed he’d be getting a net and he never asked us for more than that. But we found out by chance that he’s been saving a few coins after every fishing trip so he can someday afford to buy a “pangkasag” net. This is a special net that he can leave mid-sea to catch crabs. This kind of net would come in handy especially when weather is too harsh for fishing. All he would have to do is leave the net mid-sea and come back the following day or the day after to find crabs caught in it. The crab catch can compensate for days when fishing isn’t possible. We’ve decided to ask the net maker to make a pangkasag net for Tatay Dolfo as well.