22 Jun 2017
The Missionaries of the Sacred Heart have been working to promote positive change in the KKSV9 district in Pinugay, a resettlement area for families who have been displaced from their homes in the Philippines. Poverty is a serious issue in this isolated region, and many families struggle with 
hunger, unemployment, and illness as a result.
In 2016, the Irish Province of the MSC donated funds to help the establishment of a number of different self-sufficiency programmes in the area, including a local consumer store, a beekeeping project, and a sewing and tailoring programme.
The KKSV9 Sewing Livelihood Project is now up and running, with great success to date. Phase One of the project involved training locals in sewing and tailoring skills, and the group now have regular clients who order items such as shirts, shorts, and aprons. The project has been such a success to date that the group are now looking to broaden their reach by welcoming new members, so that they can take on new clients and bigger orders.
Life Sharing Programme: Growing together in faith
At the beginning of June 2017, the MSC group in the Philippines visited the sewing project to assess their progress and establish what needs to be done to allow for further growth. In the course of the visit, a new project was proposed: a Life Sharing Programme, which will allow local people to share and explore their life experiences and their faith.
Fr Richie Gomez MSC meets with members of the Sewing Livelihood Programme in Pinugay
“Somehow, the discussion became very inspiring and motivating,” says Jahms Morga, one of the organisers of the sewing project. “For the people here, this is a real need. Everybody involved in this programme will be able to grow as a person, and more importantly, as a community. We will invite lay missionaries to visit the group, and we hope that this will be a great opportunity for the people of KKSV9 to share their stories and grow in faith with their neighbours.”
As the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart work to create security and self-sufficiency for the people of KKSV9, the community is clearly growing in strength and spirit. With the help of mission friends in the Irish Province and around the world, residents of KKSV9 are already enjoying the advantages of both social and personal development that will benefit the area for generations to come.