Among those with a good heart who relentlessly gave support to Marikeños is Tzu Chi Foundation who launched extensive relief programs such as cash-for-work, cleanup activities, medical missions, and relief distributions.

While Tzu Chi volunteers were responding to the needs of the residents to help them recover at the fastest time possible, they were also sharing the teachings and inspirational stories from the founder of Tzu Chi Foundation, Master Cheng Yen.

Every drop of sweat and inspiration from the Tzu Chi volunteers, as well as the spirit of Tzu Chi Foundation, gradually bore fruits as they slowly witnessed the big change in the community of Marikina City. This started when they voluntarily offered their time and energy as local volunteers of Tzu Chi Foundation.

One of the tragedies that tested the strong tie that bonds the local volunteers of Barangay Malanday in Marikina City was the fire that razed the third floor of the house of their fellow volunteer Emelita Palanas, 47.

July 14, 2010 was supposedly a day filled with joy for Emelita and her children because her husband had arrived from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. But the fire that occurred later that night took away all the happy moments of the family.

“It was around 10 in the evening; we lit a candle in our third floor because there was no electricity. We were shocked when we saw that there was already a fire. Only a few minutes had just past and the upper floor was already burning furiously. Our neighbors were also screaming that there was fire,” Emelita emotionally shared.

Emelita’s neighbors immediately helped her in extinguishing the fire that is why no other houses were affected.

“We immediately fetched and poured water on the burning house since it took a long time before the fire fighters arrived,” explained Louie Bardaje, 30, one of those who responded to the fire.

Despite the ill-fated incident, Emelita still saw the positive thing that the occurrence brought out– the unity of her neighbors. “The fire lasted for only a short time because of the help of my neighbors. One of my neighbors had a fire extinguisher which we used to douse the fire. Even the bystanders outside acted on the incident. Everyone got their own dipper, basin or drum to put the fire out.”

All of the belongings they have at their third floor, most belonged to her and her husband, were destroyed by the fire including one valuable thing for Emelita that validates that she is truly a Tzu Chi volunteer.

Emelita tearfully uttered, “The only thing that was left was the Tzu Chi cap because my uniforms were with our other clothes that were burned.”

In the face of her loss, Emelita’s fellow local volunteers showed that she still has people around her who will continue to care for her and whom she could run for help.

After the tragedy—though Emelita sustained a wound in her feet, her husband had a sprain, and her son had stepped on a broken piece of glass—the local volunteers were still thankful that nobody in the affected family or their neighbors who responded got severely hurt or died.

On the following day, July 15, many people paid Emelita’s family a visit to personally check on their situation. Among these people were their fellow Filipino volunteers from Tzu Chi Foundation wearing their respective uniforms and Tzu Chi vests and voluntarily cleaned the third floor of Emelita’s house.

Although busy in consecutive relief activities launched for those who were hit by fire in Metro Manila, some Tzu Chi volunteers dedicated their time to offer help to Emelita’s family after learning about the incident.

Tzu Chi volunteers gave cash assistance of P3,000; a thermal blanket that symbolizes the love coming from the recycling volunteers of Tzu Chi Taiwan; and two packs of clothes.

When Emelita opened the pack of clothes, she couldn’t help but cuddle them and tearfully say, “These are the clothes that I packed last Tuesday! I didn’t expect that these will go to me. Thank you very much. I am very glad because this is really a big help for us.”

Under the livelihood program of cash-for-work of Tzu Chi Foundation, Emelita is among the local volunteers who dedicate their time and energy in washing the clothes and organizing supplies at the Tzu Chi Great Love Campus in Sta. Mesa, Manila.

“The incident that happened to us is really hard to accept but I just think that this is only a challenge. I am very grateful to the Tzu Chi volunteers for being active and always by my side. These blanket and clothes that you have given us are already of great help. I will never forget the help that you have given us,” Emelita concluded.