Manila (AsiaNews) - Showing the love of God by distributing food to the poor with a pantry truck. This is the purpose of the volunteers and the Parish Mobile Food and Pantry Program (Pmfpp) that since 2005 has been offering assistance to people in the slums of Malolos (Manila). "Our desire is to show the unconditional love of God to the poor - says Susan Dela Cruz Pmfpp member - it would not be visible without our acts of love of neighbour."
The activity of Pmfpp began in 2005 when people of two parishes in the city of Santa Rita (Diocese of Malolos) began house to house collections with a truck for donations of food and essential goods to be delivered to the families of the poorest neighbourhoods. The first organization to be involved was Caritas, but in a short time the program involved other associations and spread to the various parishes of the diocese. Today there are about 600 slum families who receive the monthly package of aid and 5 thousand have been helped since 2005.
"This small initiative has brought many benefits to the families of the areas far from the city," says Father Ian Ventura, pastor of St. Rita and current director of the project. For the priest Pmfpp is also a help for parishioners to become aware of the living conditions of the needy.
Anneth de Castro, the project manager, said: "Contributing to this initiative has helped me to understand that life has meaning if guided by the values of Christianity and the Gospel and to heal and share our heritage with the people of the shantytowns. Nobody forces me to do this. " Anneth says the program is not just a way to share their resources with others, but above all an opportunity to show the poor, the blessing of God in every circumstance.
