About HFTN Philippines
Investing in Tomorrow’s Leaders Today

 HFTN at a Glance – Today’s Youth and Children at Risk, Tomorrow’s Leaders

In Davao City, The Philippines, the level of hopelessness among youth and children is growing at an exponential rate due to the declining social and economic state.  Vast numbers of young people have resorted to the underworld for employment and survival; including drug trafficking, prostitution and theft.  Many youth aspire to work abroad, but only a small percentage will actually get the chance.  Community leaders continually complain about the state of today’s youth.  The root cause of this hopelessness is a combination of poverty, high unemployment rates, poor education, malnutrition, high debt, gambling and medical problems.  The lack of community programming dealing with these core issues is allowing an increasingly dissatisfied, angry and despairing generation of urban poor youth and children to roam the streets. 

Where are the leaders that will lead the hopeless out of the slums and communities of the Philippines? … in the making! 

Hope for the Nations in Davao was created for:

Reaching and Restoring Families; especially from the poor
Raising up and Releasing Leaders; especially from the young
Rebuilding and Rejoicing in Community; especially from the city

Through this vision statement supported by many dedicated people in the Philippines and around the world, we are beginning to see urban poor youth and children get restoration and become influential members in their communities.  Join us as we endeavor to raise up many more leaders.

Overview of Hope for the Nations initiatives:

Investing in Tomorrow’s Leaders Today

It takes a large commitment to care of the needs of the world’s youth and children in need. 
We cannot just talk about it and make strategies, we need to implement plans.
Our plans incorporate raising up leadership starting with the young.
We can all “do our bit” today.
 
It takes a large commitment to care for the needs of the world’s youth and children in need.

Millennium Development Goals
How we help

Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Through Tabitha Food for Life, we feed needy families and offer keys to break out of bad habits and malnourishment. Our livelihood training programs and small business development projects aim to help families provide for their own needs.

Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education
Through the Hope Education Center and our Tabitha Sponsorship program, we are putting kids back into school and keeping them there with good health and hygiene. We focus on leadership development so that today’s kids at risk can be tomorrow’s leaders.

Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women
We give equal opportunity to women in all areas including education, business development, and leadership.

Goal 4: Reduce child mortality
Through the Hope Clinic staff (who serve at local maternity clinics), mothers are treated with respect so that they will remain in the care of experienced midwives and improve the chance of a healthy birth.

Goal 5: Improve maternal health
Through the Hope Clinic and the midwives on staff, we are able to serve midwifery clinics in the area by volunteering in pre/post-natal visits as well as in delivering babies in a safe environment. We are also involved in education in family planning.

Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
Through the Hope Clinic, we are assisting victims of infectious diseases and find help within the existing health care programs in the city.

Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability
Through the Hope Education Center, Tabitha Food for Life, and House of Jubilee we teach on treating the environment with respect. Things we do are: tree planting in deforested areas, serving in community cleanup efforts and a Vacation Bible School with “Taking Care of God’s Creation” as a theme.

Goal 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development
Through global and local partnerships, we are able to achieve our goals of developing leaders from among poor families in need and in crisis.

 Words of HOPE

…But I have hope when I think of this:

Lamentations 3:22-29: The Lord's love never ends; his mercies never stop.  They are new every morning; Lord, your loyalty is great.  I say to myself, "The Lord is mine, so I hope in him."  The Lord is good to those who hope in him, to those who seek him.  It is good to wait quietly for the Lord to save.  It is good for someone to work hard while he is young.  He should sit alone and be quiet; the Lord has given him hard work to do.  He should bow down to the ground; maybe there is still hope. (New Century version)

Where We Work
Killing Fields – Healing Fields

Having one of the world’s highest birth rates coupled with paralyzing poverty, a 54% elementary school completion rate, and a population of 50% under the age of 18 years old, Mindanao is at a crossroads.  One road leads to incredible potential with an industrious, hospitable, and capable people desiring to lead the country out of its mire onto the world’s stage.  The other road is fatalistic; where despair and despondency drown out hope for the future.

Because of the current lack of opportunity, the educated are leaving for better pay, leaving the country with even deeper problems.  In recent years, 30% of doctors have left the Philippines to be retrained as nurses and work in western countries. 

According to government officials, the greatest problem is “out of school” youth.  “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop”, can describe the current situation.  Too many idle hands; youth who have not completed their secondary education who are without job or purpose are roaming the streets.  Hundreds of young people have been killed by vigilante groups in recent years with countless more in jail.  Still, thousands more fail to reach any potential because of lack of education.

For the lucky ones who are able to go school, there still are challenges.  Because of the lack of funding for public schools, classes experience a shortage of books, staff, and materials.  Average class sizes are often over 50 students per class.   

The location of HFTN Davao City, Philippines is one of the largest slums in Davao City called Agdao.  Formerly called the “Killing Fields”, HFTN along with other concerned organizations are redeeming the city with a vision that it be called the “Healing Fields”.  Presently, HFTN is renting a 10 bedroom house in the heart of Agdao.  It is the center for all our projects, houses our core staff, and hosts our church.  It is overcrowded as more than 200 people per day benefit from our programs. 

Our History

The initial foundation for Hope for the Nations Philippines was laid when Inneke Elaschuk moved from Vancouver, Canada to the slums of Agdao, Davao City in December 1999 to serve and learn with Mercy Maternity Center (MMC) for 18 months. During the latter part of this commitment, after Inneke had personally delivered 200 babies and Patrick had begun an outreach to youth, they began to consider the possibilities of an urban poor ministry.  They had a vision to incorporate mercy and compassion as well as community development and church planting.

After a time of regrouping in Canada and some time working with another mission agency in Davao, the time was kairos (Greek for opportune time of harvest) in late 2003.  Getting its start in the former house where MMC began, HFTN began with a bible study with a handful of local youth.  After months of bible studies, hanging out, and leading them to Christ, they were still hungry, still had no jobs and still no education.  When we tried to enroll some of these youth back in school, there was not a place for them.

The vision and current ministry of HFTN evolved out of our initial involvement with Mercy Maternity Clinic (MMC) in the present building we are now using from 2000-2002.  Through Inneke’s delivery of hundreds of babies and Patrick’s spiritual follow up, we became painfully aware of the plight of the urban poor in the area; particularly youth and children.  With a vacuum of programs to help these people, HFTN was created to offer compassion, hope and opportunity to poor Agdao residents.

HFTN moved into the MMC building when they moved to a larger facility.  This provided HFTN with a familiar and central location for which to base its operations.  In November 2004, Hope for the Nations Philippines was registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  Out of this location operate House of Jubilee Church, Tabitha Food for Life, Jubilee Leadership Institute, and Hope Clinic and Training Center.

A third HFTN location is in operation in a squatter relocation settlement 10 km from Agdao in a community called Cabantian.  Many of our HFTN programs have been reproduced there.  We have built a temporary structure on rented land due to our limited budget.

Our Vision and Values

Our long-term vision is to see Children at Risk transformed into Tomorrow's Leaders by providing love, healthcare, education, a healthy community, and self-sufficiency.

We make a difference by starting the process of change.

Change the future of Children at Risk
Change the lives of the children in our Homes
Change society's treatment of Children at Risk
Change the world by shaping Today's Children and Youth at risk into Tomorrow's Leaders

Where are the leaders that will lead the hopeless out of the slums and communities of the Philippines? 
… in the making! 

Hope for the Nations in Davao is all about Investing in Tomorrow’s Leaders Today.  We do this by;

Reaching and Restoring Families; especially from the poor
Raising up and Releasing Leaders; especially from the young
Rebuilding and Rejoicing in Community; especially from the city

VALUES

Christ Centeredness: Christ's love should be the central driving force in our efforts.  We will be accountable, open, honest and walk in integrity in all our dealings.
Motivated by Compassion: Christians should reflect God's broken heart for children at risk.
Commitment to Excellence: Christian work with children at risk should be of the highest standards.
Helping Children at Risk More Effectively Through Coalition: We will multiply our efforts through the linking of our resources.
Commitment to Community: As Christians working with children at risk, we should serve one another in love.
Do Justly, Love Mercy & Walk Humbly with God and Man: As advocates for children at risk, we are called to "prophetic justice" and "philanthropic justice.”