Category: Recipient Stories

A jubilant crowd laughed and cried through the ICM 20th Anniversary Celebration evening as we shared 20 powerful stories of lives that have been dramatically changed over the last 20 years of ICM’s operations. One of the highlights of the night was the surprise guest appearance by “Philippine Idol” winner, Jude Matthew Servilla, a previous ICM...

ICM staff in Dumaguete, led by Area Head Pastor Sam Templado, joined local doctors, dentists, pastors, and even the Filipino military to provide medical aid, dispense medicine, offer counseling and even provide free haircuts! to thousands of those traumatized by devastation of Tropical Storm Washi and the earthquake following quickly on its heels one month...

In the three months since Tropical Storm Washi hit the Philippines, ICM has been touched by your outpouring of gifts, donations and prayers for those affected.   Because the poor are always the most vulnerable during disasters,  ICM had to respond  quickly to the needs of Washi’s victims.  Due to your generosity, within a week...

Nearly 1800 excited students proudly received their diplomas during graduation week after completing their year of learning at one of ICM’s 80 Kindergartens.  These formal graduation celebrations were held in each region so family members and friends could come and cheer their student as they walked across the stage.  There was much to celebrate as songs...

Children from 2,822 poor families in the Philippines are going to bed will fuller tummies!  That’s how many ICM program participants recently graduated from the 16-week Transform program, where they learned organic farming skills, better health practices and the power of positive values.  4,454 family and community gardens were started, and Php166,783 extra income was...

Ireneo Polison Jr. lives with his wife and three kids in a wooden house surrounded by coconut trees. Although he has suffered for years from rheumatoid arthritis, it did not stop him from working hard for his family as a part-time tailor, earning approximately Php500 (US$11.64) per week. Determined to earn more income, Ireneo accepted...

It looked just like any other Christmas Party in the Philippines – women and children playing games, eating sweets and singing songs.  But for the women of Red Rope, this was a very meaningful party. This was the first Christmas Party they had ever thrown at their own expense!  And second, this month Red Rope...

Three ICM staff members, Annie Tapuz and Laila Natapol from the Bacolod office, and Heather Elliott, from ICM’s HK office, got into the spirit of celebration this Christmas by hosting several celebrations for different groups in Bacolod City.  In the Philippines, celebrations are an important part of the culture, creating unity and a sense of...

Dreams came true for the ICM Children’s Choir this past December.  The fourteen kids traveled to the USA to perform at the Washington DC ICM Banquet and at multiple other events and venues in D.C. and New Jersey.  The goal was to raise awareness of (and support for) ICM’s Philippine work.  They left a powerful...

A girl’s 18th birthday in the Philippines is a much-anticipated passage from adolescence to adulthood.  For Lotlot, this was an especially unforgettable day as she glowed in the excitement of a surprise 18th birthday party thrown by her sixteen “sisters and brothers” at ICM’s Excel House, in Bacolod.  Lotlot, who suffers from cerebral palsy, looked...