BECAUSE THE FAMILY IS DEEPLY Involved in the mall business, many of their corporate social responsibility program centers around the mall: Share-Your Extras-Help a Family, Donate-A-Book, Gamot-Para-sa-Kapwa, and Make-A-Child-Happy. Each program is scheduled in a particular quarter of the year and has been conducted for over 10 years now.

In its yearend report, Share-Your-Extras-Help a Family program collected cash donations from mall tenants and shoppers including a counterpart donation from SM Foundation amounted to P324,343.97 and $20 and were distributed to different beneficiaries, among them the Tahanang Walang Hagdan, Hope for 100 Sheep Inc, Philippine Relief and Development Services, Tulong Dukha Foundation, Tahanan Outreach Program Services, Akap sa Bata ng mga Guro-Kalinga Inc, Christian Action for Relief Empowerment Foundation Inc, Alay Pag-asa Christian Foundation Inc, KBCF Operation Paglingap Foundation Inc and Stimulation Therapeutic Action Center. Meanwhile, Lingap Pangarap ng mga Paslit, Buklod Unlad ng Batangas Inc and Mission to the World Philippine Foundation Inc are slated to receive monetary donations. A portion of the collected cash donation will be used to purchase items in the wish list of Home for Girls and Regional Center for Women, both in Iloilo; CFIC Brothers Foundation, Terre Sans Frontiere Children’s Center, Seven Sisters of Servants, Casa Miani Somasean Father’s Foundation, FWD Risen Lord Christian Foundation, all in Cebu; SDC Muntinlupa; Haven for Women; and Jose Fabella Center.

Donations in kind for the project valued at P1,029,565 consisting of clothes, bags, shoes, blankets, toys and household items were distributed to 9,895 families or 49,474 individuals in Batangas, Benguet, Bulacan, Pampanga, Rizal, Tarlac, La Union, Cavite, Laguna, Quezon, Camarines Sur, Negros Occidental, Iloilo, Cebu, Misamis Oriental, and Taguig City.

SM Foundation’s second quarter program Donate-A-Book was able ‘to collect 172,400 pieces of books of which 167,059 were distributed to 1,452 public schools, libraries and day care centers nationwide. Also distributed were 14 sets of encyclopedia and 14 dictionaries.

Soliciting unopened and unexpired medicines from shoppers and pharmaceutical companies is the thrust of Gamot Para sa Kapwa program. The  medicines collected are utilized in medical and dental missions the Foundation conducts. Barangay Health Centers adopted by the Foundation are also recipients of the program as well as Felicidad Sy Welness Centers for Children and the Elderly and the 4 Hospice Units of the Foundation. Last year, more than P1 million worth of medicines were collected during the campaign period.

The Make-a-Child-Happy program consists of mall caravan activities and toy distribution in government hospitals and communities. Project partners for last year’s Make a Child Happy were the Department of Social Welfare and Development, SM Supermalls, Toy Kingdom, Toy World and Nickelodeon that donated the loot bags for the children. The distribution of 5,442 toys which were given by project partners were sourced from the collected donations of other mall-based programs. These 6,920 loot bags made 10,462 children happy. The mall caravan activity was launched in the SM Mall of Asia with 551 beneficiaries.

Although all SM Supermalls have Share-A-Toy booths, only 14 malls had mall tour activities. These mall tour activities benefited 4,442 children from the cities of Pasay, Makati, Taguig, Marikina, Quezon, Caloocan, Valenzuela, Navotas, Las Pinas, Muntinlupa, Pasig, Mandaluyong, Pateros, San Juan, Manila, Malabon, Baguio, Davao, Cebu and Naga as well as Mexico, Pampanga, Rosales, Pangasinan and Baliwag, Bulacan. The children were treated to free rides, food, games and gifts. Seven hospitals – San Lazaro Hospital, Philippine Orthopedic Hospital, Ospital ng Maynila, Tondo Medical Center, East Avenue Medical Center, Philippine Children’s Medical Center and Quirino Memorial Medical Center were venues of SM Foundation’s toy distribution activities. Toys were likewise distributed in Barangay Industrial Valley (Marikina), Barangay Pinagtangalan, Pozzorubio (Pangasinan); Tomana East, Rosales (Pangasinan); Mexico (Pampanga); Barangays Tandang Sora, Holy Spirit, Culiat, Pag-asa, and Commonwealth (Quezon City); La Trinidad (Benguet); Baliwag (Bulacan) ; Barangays Matina, Bucana, and Gov. Duterte (Davao City); Cebu City, Nasugbu, Batangas; Provident Village (Marikina); Cainta; Holy Glorious Jesus Ministry, San Mateo (Rizal); Barangay Kawayanan, San Mateo; GMA- 7; GMA-7Cebu; DSWD Central Office; Marilog-IPs. The Philippine School for the Deaf and Cancer Warrior Children of r Batangas City also received toys coursed through the SM Department Store in the locality.

Last year, despite the calamities that hit the country, shoppers, SM tenants and suppliers did not waver in their desire to be of help to the less fortunate.

At the helm of the Foundation is executive director Debbie Sy while in mall-based programs is project director Connie Angeles ably assisted by Bob Navida who believes many people are willing to donate something for a worthy cause but are too busy to go to charitable institutions or are unaware of where to hand their donations. By putting up donation booths and collection centers in SM malls, ordinary people have the opportunity to help other people in need. Angeles hopes this year the mall-based programs will generate more response from generous people who want to share their blessings.