Non-profit Group Maps Out Activities for 2018; Kick Offs ‘Bayanihan’ Year with Youth Forum

Wazzup Pilipinas!

To sustain its thrust in youth development and nation-building through volunteerism, non-profit group I am Making A Difference, Inc. (I am M.A.D.), is mapping out a solid slate of activities for 2018.

I am M.A.D., a national finalist in the on-going 15th Search for the Ten Accomplished Youth Organizations (TAYO) Awards, in partnership with the Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency (PNVSCA) and One Meralco Foundation, Inc., will kick off the bayanihan year by hosting for the second time its national youth forum event dubbed “M.A.D. Talks: Nagmahal. Nasaktan. Nagvolunteer. REPEAT!” to be held on Jan. 13, Saturday, 1 to 5 PM at the Meralco Mini-Theater, Pasig City.

Christian Marx Rivero, co-founder and Chairman of I am Making A Difference, Inc. said the forum will gather over 150 youth participants all over the country, including student leaders, educators, young professionals and other members of the volunteering community who will get a chance to connect, listen, and learn from the inspirational stories of resource speakers and successful volunteers.

As the ‘Grand Feast of Volunteers’ and a celebration of the Filipino culture of bayanihan, M.A.D. Talks seeks to promote participation, development and unity among the youth sector and to encourage people to become more proactive members of their communities and make volunteerism as a way of life.



The millennial-driven group will also be launching its new website, as well as ‘Call for Volunteers,’ a multimedia promotional material designed to further spread the gospel of active volunteerism and selflessness through the collective passion and nationwide advocacy to mobilize local youth of I am M.A.D..

Rivero also added that these youth leaders can further hone their leadership potentials by joining their M.A.D. Camps, a series of 15 outreach activities to be held in different parts of the country this 2018. These M.A.D. Camp areas will likewise be announced during the forum through a ‘MADgical’ segment featuring the Impossibros, a new generation of young and hip Filipino magicians that promises to bring a new spin to classic and powerful magic.

For interested parties, visit I am M.A.D. FB page: facebook.com/IamMakingADifference, contact Oyam Mendoza at 0915-782-2626 or email to iammadph@gmail.com.

Harvest Your Own Honey at Home

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A honey bee, going from flower to flower in search of nectar, made me think about finding a way to harvest our own honey.

My grandma's younger brother (when he was still alive) had a beehive inside a built-in cabinet at their ancestral home where he was able to harvest honey on a regular basis. The bees made it their home because the cabinet was not being used and had a hole from the outside where the bees got in. They were surprised seeing the beehive when they finally thought of opening the cabinet. Instead of removing the bees home, they let the bees multiply and the beehive to grow until they could regularly harvest honey from it. It was equally surprising that the bees were not attacking and just letting them get their honey. The honey as payment for the rent? Lol!

Unfortunately, this setup only lasted for a few years because the bees left. They probably decided to find a new home. We were among those that were given a few bottles of honey, and I must say it definitely taste a lot better than the ones you could buy at the pasalubong areas lined up along the streets of whatever province.






Homemade is pure, unlike the commercially bottled ones sold in the market. I would be willing to pay more as long as I do get all-natural honey without any added ingredients or preservatives. I'm a bit wary in buying honey from vendors found at the outskirts of nearby towns especially when they do not have labels. But it is also more expensive to buy them from vendors that have improved packaging and labels.

This hesitation is similar for all products may it be buko pies or tarts from Tagaytay, strawberry jams from Baguio or Benguet, and other products famous from all provinces.

But it is always a tradition to always bring home pasalubong whenever you visit a far away place for either work or leisure. It is appreciated to receive specialty goodies from your relatives, friends or colleagues after a vacation or coming back from a trip out-of-town or overseas.

But would it be fun as well if we could really make our own if we have access to the same resources.

Our neighbors planted some vegetables (malunggay, talong, etc., ) and papaya trees at the vacant lot of our unused home at Rodriguez (Montalban), Rizal. This made us see the advantage of having our own land compared to living in a bliss or condominium where you could only resort to potted plants. Imagine the veggies and fruit-bearing trees we coild have planted if we were livibg at our Rizal home. But that home is reserved for our retirement when our kids are done with school. That would only be the time when we could finally make use of that property.

As of now, we should settle for the tomato and bell pepper plants we managed to grow in pots. A papaya tree and calamansi plant grew but they got dwarfed due to lack of soil. Herbal plants could really work since there are small varieties that would not need too much space and soil.

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A Healthier Community with Herbal Gardening.

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Nature has actually provided for remedies to most of our ailments, but we now resort to taking synthetic medicines right away. We are enticed to rely right only on drug stores and medical doctors thinking they are the only ones that could cure us.

But herbal products like Citronella oil has anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties, among others.

In addition to using citronella oil, we can also use the plant itself as a decorative element in our home and as a repellent for different pests.

The plant could then be an alternative to using the more expensive over-the-counter or doctor-prescribed medicines. It would have been less of a hassle if only we could pick Citronella from our backyard garden and extract oil from it.

Though doctors are also important but that it is good to know herbal options for ailments that can be cured with home remedies. We are not trying to promote alterations to medicine but only as support for less critical sickness.

Thus we aim to promote herbal gardening, make it sustainable and reach out to more people by educating them about it. The herbs can be made available in the front yard if people learn to plant it. The people’s knowledge of natural remedies can help their families remain healthy and survive as they can just pick the cure from their yard whenever they need it.



We are therefore calling out to groups, organizations, the government and all the people who are willing to support us. We need to source out herbal plants and produce herbal products for demonstration purposes, and eventually for actual regular use by the community.

All the knowledge shared to volunteers would then be shared also to other interested parties.

We look forward a healthier community with herbal gardening.