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| (Image Source: Batangas Association UK) |
Batangueños have been likened to one of its pride and joy, the small Taal Volcano. Like the volcano, they are calm and placid most of the time but can also be fiery and volatile. They have a fierce determination and resolve to overcome any obstacle in their pursuit of success. And, just like the volcano, which has made Batangas flourish for centuries by keeping its land fertile to provide for the province's basic needs. Batangueños also have a reputation as 'nurturing people'. They value and care for their families, a term that encompasses more than just their kith and kith to include all fellow Batangueños and other Filipinos.
The Batangas Association UK (BAUK), established in 1993, is anchored on these age-old values that the province instilled in its sons and daughters. The non-profit organization aimed to unite Batangueños in the United Kingdom (UK) and provide them with a vehicle to give back to their home province and country in all ways possible. The BAUK has several long-term projects in six areas: Alay Pasko, Bahay Ampunan, Scholarship, Youth Empowerment, Cultural and Additional Projects, and Donations. It also undertakes short-term initiatives in response to emerging and unforeseen needs and crises. Alay Pasko is an annual outreach program launched in 2002. Food hampers are distributed to indigents in six towns/cities of Batangas. Initially meant to be an annual event until all targeted areas were covered, the initiative has been such a huge success that BAUK decided to continue Alay Pasko. Through the Bahay Ampunan Project, BAUK contributes regularly to the running costs of the Santa Ana–San Joaquin Bahay Ampunan Foundation home for the elderly in Tanauan City. BAUK undertook the construction of two additional bedrooms and paid for a perimeter fence to keep residents safe inside the home. It also spent for the repair of the roof of two rooms. BAUK now makes a yearly donation for the operation of the home, which has around 20 elderly residents.
Wanting to transform the lives of young people through education, BAUK partnered with De La Salle Lipa (DLSL) to provide scholarships to poor but deserving students. BAUK supports beneficiaries through subsidies for tuition and school fees and daily transportation and meal allowances. From the academic year (AY) 2009 up to 2020, BAUK was able to support 14 scholars - 10 college students and four in senior high school. The association also provided, for AY 2014 up to 2016, a full scholarship for a pupil of St. Catherine of Alexandria Catholic School. It paid in 2018 the tuition fees of eight students from different localities at Taysan High School Child Development Center. BAUK realized that the youth were becoming increasingly important in the development of the Filipino community in the UK. Thus, it sponsored the 1996–1998 Youth Empowerment Program to help young Filipinos in the UK know and appreciate their heritage to contribute to their full development. Three youth summer camps were organized in 1998 where second-generation Filipinos participated in three-day weekend activities in the UK and Vienna, Austria.
BAUK has been actively promoting Filipino culture in the UK by sponsoring and supporting art exhibits of upcoming Filipino artists, providing the venue for the shows, and accommodation for Philippine delegations. The association is also involved in activities organized by the Philippine Embassy in London, especially the observance of Philippine Independence Day Celebration and Philippine National Language Month. It responded immediately to the emergency created by the Taal Volcano eruption in 2020 by conducting relief operations that helped 423 individuals in various evacuation centers in Batangas. It gave cash donations for the construction of improvised tents for evacuees in Talisay, Batangas. The association donated Php341,660 (£5,200) to the municipalities of Balete, Laurel, Agoncillo, Talisay, San Nicolas, Mataas na Kahoy and Lemery. When the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, BAUK showed its appreciation to health frontliners by distributing food packs and boxes of face masks to two hospitals and one home care facility. The association also provided packed lunches and poultry food to some families in Batangas. BAUK responded to other emergencies, like typhoons Ondoy, Sendong, and Yolanda, in the Philippines by sending cash and relief goods and by doing volunteer work in affected areas. It has also worked with other non-government organizations.
Indeed, the Batangas Association UK has vigorously and selflessly helped change and improve since its inception many lives in both its adopted and home countries. It is difficult to quantify how its readiness and willingness to come to the aid of province mates and fellow Filipinos when needed have benefited the objects of its generosity. BAUK members' love for the Philippines, even if they had to leave it to seek a better life in the UK, and their fellow Filipinos truly remain a shining example of how good deeds can change lives and a reminder to all that charity can only come from the heart. For all that it has accomplished and done for others, BAUK has been the recipient of several honors and awards from its home province and the country that they now call home. Conferring the Presidential Lingkod sa Kapwa Pilipino Award to Batangas Association UK (BAUK) recognizes the organization's socio-economic assistance and services for the marginalized sectors and underprivileged communities in Batangas and other areas in the Philippines.
