Julieta Alingasa Maligmat, 46 years old, and her family fled Sitio Galung, Barangay Masulog to escape from restive Kanlaon Volcano in Canlaon City.

His family took shelter in one of the evacuation centers established by the local government, which also provides meals and relief goods from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for the families of internally displaced persons (IDPs).

“We are grateful for the continued support. We are not worried about our food. There is food served for us daily,” said Maligmat.

IDPs in Camp 9 at Linothangan Elementary School have started cooking their meals using the supplies distributed by DSWD-7 for their community kitchen.

Noel Morte, 40 years old, from Barangay Pula, one of the IDPs and one of the recipients of FFPs, said they volunteered to cook for IDPs sheltered in the camp as a way of helping the community.

“We all agreed on it. We cook for over 700 people. So, we are always in the kitchen. I voluntarily offered to help because my family and siblings are all here, and no one else is cooking, so, instinctively, we prepare food in the community kitchen,” said Morte.

Morte said that such an initiative ignited their spirit of “bayanihan” in these trying times.

The community kitchen is a collaborative effort among the IDPs, the local government of Canlaon, and the DSWD to make good use of the goods provided while also minimizing the risk of fire hazards.

“This effort exemplifies the spirit of cooperation and resourcefulness, and also prioritizes the safety of families by reducing the risk of fire hazards associated with individual cooking,” said DSWD-7 Quick Response Team vice chairperson Tonyson Luther Lee.

Each FFP contains six kilos of rice, four canned sardines, four canned corned beef, two canned tuna, five sachets of cereals, and five sachets of coffee. (PIA-7 Negros Oriental)