Not many of us in the US start a new career upon retirement. I only know a handful and one of them stands out in my list. Through his experience in working for a foundation that helped the lives of many people in countries outside the US, he has found a way for how average people like us who are not wealthy philanthropists can help our people in a bigger and more permanent way.  This is the rationale of IUGO foundation that Oggie Ojeda, whose roots are from Naga City, founded in November 2019.

After recently retiring with over 20 years of experience as a Development Director for various international faith-based organizations, he ventured to use his experience in fundraising and development to help his fellow “kababayans” back home. Bringing together other couples with varied expertise in the medical, legal, and financial sectors, they formed IUGO Foundation, committed to helping their brethren in the Philippines. This was a few months before the Covid-19 pandemic began, and as operations were just ramping up, the global lockdown started. But this did not deter the founders and instead, IUGO went into action immediately, providing monetary support for the purchase of covid-related medical equipment to a hospital in Baguio City and emergency food and household supplies to a grassroots community organization in Mercedes, Camarines Norte.

Inspired by the Latin word “iugo”, which means to bind together, or to connect, IUGO’s mission is to bind together and encourage Filipinos overseas to support programs that will benefit the underprivileged, marginalized, and economically disadvantaged individuals and communities in the Philippines. The foundation’s logo itself portrays the concept of unity and the “bayanihan” spirit through the overlapping icons of people with outstretched arms, coming together for a common purpose.

The founders of IUGO have made a permanent commitment to shoulder the full administrative and operational expenses of the foundation, such that 100% of all donations coming in will go towards funding supported projects. Unlike other organizations that only allocate a certain percentage to support their missions, every dollar that IUGO gets from individuals or corporate gifts is used for the mission. With an annual commitment of less than 25 cents a day, donors can choose which one to support from a variety of foundation-financed projects impacting the lives of those most in need. IUGO partners with other foundations, corporations, and other local charities as “partners-in-mission” with a vision to give back to Motherland through building a better nation by making a difference in the lives of the Filipinos most in need.

IUGO Foundation provides both one-time grants and recurring annual grants to Philippine-based organizations which share the same mission goals as the foundation. To date, here are some of the projects that the foundation currently supports:

UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS HOSPITAL INDIGENCY PROGRAM (YEARLY GRANT)- a program within the UST Hospital that provides medical services to indigent patients in the Metro Manila area.

• Surgeries and medical procedures completed successfully on numerous indigent patients endorsed by the Indigency program made possible by the IUGO grant
• Grant proceeds also used to support training of resident physicians involved with the indigency program
• Now on its third year, the grant ensures that deserving indigent patients will continue to benefit from the services provided by the indigency program of UST Hospital

AKLATAN SA KOSTAL (RECURRING GRANT) – a grassroots initiative founded by the Arquiza Family of Camarines Norte, Aklatan Sa Kostal is focused on providing educational support for public school children in the form of books, school supplies, and other materials which are lacking in the remote areas of the country.

• Completed construction and delivery (in cooperation with the Philippine Army) of 15 ASK corner libraries complete with books, to various public school facilities in Albay, Camarines Sur, and Camarines Norte
• Over 1,500 books collected, bought, sorted, and distributed to the above areas with ongoing efforts to purchase more books and school supplies
• ongoing distribution of the next batch of 15 completed ASK corner libraries in the next few months to public school buildings in Regions 3 (Central Luzon) and 4 (Southern Tagalog)
• a standing commitment to support Aklatan sa Kostal in their goal of expanding the program nationwide.

PAG-ASA NG PAMILYA SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION (YEARLY GRANT) – a part of the Feast Ministry of Bo Sanchez, the Pag-Asa Ng Pamilya Scholarship Foundation provides scholarship grants to poor but deserving students.

• For the initial grant in 2022, 16 Pag-Asa ng Pamilya IUGO-designated college scholars were awarded degrees in Business Administration, Education, Construction Management, Information Technology, etc., made possible with IUGO funding
• The renewed grant for the 2023 academic year provided support for ten graduating college scholars and eight elementary (Grades 5 & 6) scholars.
• The application for renewal of the grant for the 2024 academic year is now being processed.

OTHER INCOMING PROJECTS INCLUDE:

• Scholarship grants for the academic year 2023-24 for gifted but economically disadvantaged students at one of the oldest colleges in the National Capital Region.
• In early 2024, IUGO will provide support for a medical mission in Naga City, Camarines Sur in cooperation with a New York City faith-based organization. This is all part of IUGO’s vision of working hand in hand with all Filipinos who share a passion for helping those in need.

There are various endeavors that we can possibly undertake in our retirement to assist our fellow kababayans whether we are in the US or in the Philippines.  Education for kids in rural areas is one; health and social services is another; business development, care for children with disabilities — the list goes on.

Looking at the actual situation in the Philippines through the prism of the quality of life we enjoy in the US, I cannot help thinking about how many of our retirees like Oggie can help our less fortunate kababayans catch their dreams before they fly away.

Featured image: Scholars of the Pag-Asa Ng Pamilya Scholarship Foundation (Facebook page)