THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA
www.kalatas.com.au | Volume 6 Number 1 | OCTOBER 2015
COMMUNITY
AMFOP: Bringing HOPE
to the Philippines
THE Australian
Masonic Friends
of the Philippines (AMFOP)
held its annual
general meeting
last month at
the Bankstown
Sports Club to
elect its new set
of officers and
outline programmes and projects for the coming year.
AMFOP president for
2015-16 is Antoine Georges.
The group was conceptualised by civic minded Freemasons of NSW and the ACT and
open to private individuals to
help the Philippines in the rebuilding of schools and hospitals, providing livelihood and
wellbeing of the families ravaged by typhoons.
In May, the group sent a 40
footer container of school supplies: a 1,000 student desks
and chairs, books, more medi-
cal equipment and other medical supplies was successfully
delivered to Bantayan Island in
Cebu, Philippines and was received by Mayor Ian Christopher Escario.
AMFOP first delivered
‘Hope’ last October 2014,
when Antoine Georges, Manny Maniago, Roland Ocampo and Tom Baena visited
Cebu and Bantayan Island and
brought with them donations
that included a portable mechanical ventilator, amalgamator and light cure machine.
The replacement value of the
ventilator is $55,000 in Australia, while the amalgamator
and light cure machine are estimated to cost $7000 and
$2000, respectively. The donated equipment was accepted by Cebu Governor Hilario
P. Davide III. Aside from the
Medical supplies, fifteen (15)
mini Fishing boats were also
distributed to poor fishermen
in Bantayan Island.
At the AGM, the newly elected officers already set
their plans to bring HOPE
again to the island thru another 40 footer container of hospital beds, wheelchairs, medical supplies that can equip a
medical, dental and optome-
trist clinics in collaboration
with the Rotary Club of Sydney.
Apart from Mr. Georges,
other officers are; Dr. Abraham Constantin as VP; Rey
Porras, secr ]\