Dear Young Focus friend,

Once again, we’re organizing our special Christmas campaign in the Smokey Mountain area where Young Focus works. This annual event is unique because it’s such a personal and direct gesture: each family receives a bucket filled with food items worth 1,000 Philippine pesos (about 17 USD).
Our question to you: Would you also like to be involved?

Over the past year, the people in the Smokey Mountain area have once again had to endure extra hardships due to several huge fires, also heavy rains. Living in extreme poverty while coping with these additional setbacks is something most of us can hardly imagine. Yet despite the challenges, we hope that as many as 1,000 families will be able to celebrate and enjoy Christmas together this year - with hope for the future.

The Christmas package contains food items traditionally enjoyed during Noche Buena. This is the traditional Filipino Christmas Eve celebration on December 24, when families gather for a festive meal right after the midnight Mass. It’s an important moment of togetherness, sharing food, and celebrating the arrival of Christmas. Depending on the family’s budget, Noche Buena dishes may include ham (hamón), cheese (queso de bola), roasted pig (lechon), noodles (pancit), rice cakes (bibingka), and the purple steamed rice cakes (puto bumbong). The package is distributed in a bucket—a practical gift that can be reused later for household purposes.

We’d be delighted if you’d join us and our friends in Manila in celebrating Christmas by donating to our Christmas Food Bucket Campaign. You can donate through our website: www.youngfocus.org/christmas. We’ll be distributing these Christmas packages on Friday, December 19. Thank you so much in advance for your support!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at [email protected].

Warmest greetings on behalf of the Young Focus team in Manila,

Paul and Ann van Wijgerden



PS. For an impression of the campaign: you can find a video from last year on the same webpage and on YouTube (https://youtu.be/tBCRfJ8fvmE)