Category: Stories

  Merlie, a Transform participant from Zamboanga del Norte in Mindanao, believed that education was the best way she could leave a mark, so she dreamed of becoming a teacher. She eventually completed her teaching degree and felt proud of her achievements. “No one in school knew me until I graduated and was able to...

To say that life is challenging for Melina and her family would be an understatement. When she joined Transform, she made sure she graduated and got her certificate, despite all the challenges that she had to go through.    Melina lived in a house made of bamboo, scrap materials, and old G.I. sheets with her...

The “2022 Top-rated Nonprofit” Award based is on Community Recommendations  Metro Manila, Philippines, January 3, 2023 – International Care Ministries (ICM), a Philippine-based non-profit working with the ultra-poor, announced recently it has been named a “2022 Top-Rated Nonprofit” by GreatNonprofits for the third year in a row, the leading website for community recommendations of charities...

Building one’s savings needs consistency, but for ultra-poor families, it is difficult to even start saving with limited financial resources directed to their most basic needs. Ultra-poverty makes it impossible to spare an amount large enough to invest in a business, purchase materials for home improvement, or spend on things that would increase quality of...

Simultaneous banquets in Hong Kong and Manila raise US$1.6 million towards poverty alleviation in the Philippines On October 28, 2022, International Care Ministries held two major simultaneous events in Hong Kong and Manila for “I Believe,” its annual fundraising gala to celebrate 30 years of helping people living in ultra-poverty. Over 200 guests in Hong...

For 53-year-old Diomedes, life has been one challenge after another. Born into a poor family, he had to drop out of school at a very young age to earn a living. When he started a family, his first son was born with special needs. In 2010, a live wire electrocuted him left him experiencing shortness...

According to a Philippine National Demographic and Health survey, one in four Filipino women aged 15 to 49 has experienced domestic abuse. Poverty seems to be a factor  with women from low-income households suffering even more than other groups; some of these women have even had their lives threatened.  Erlinda, a Transform participant from Tacloban,...

Growing up with a physically abusive father who’s now serving time in jail, 5-year-old Ella Mae has found refuge in her mother who cares deeply for her. Ella Mae lives in a bamboo house near the river with her mother and her three older siblings where access to education is hard. After two years into...

As we celebrate National Heroes Day, let us meet some of the new heroes of the new normal! During the pandemic, ICM launched the Flourish program that raised Community Health Champions (CHCs) among the Transform participants and we trained them to be their community’s health advocates. This program has been steadily making a difference in...

On August 23, in partnership with Rise Against Hunger Philippines (RAHPH), volunteers from PayPal Philippines helped ICM pack 36,288 meals for ultra-poor families in Iloilo. The volunteers packed 42 boxes per two-hour shift from 9:00 AM to 9:30 PM at the PayPal Headquarters in Alabang, Muntinlupa. PayPal Country Head John Nicholls who also happened to...