This boy loves theater.
And he would have never discovered his talents if it weren’t for your support.
Dance after dance, song after song, and scene after scene, Chris’ energy couldn’t be contained. He writes his own material and performs it alongside friends who are mostly younger than him.
Today, Chris is developing a play about children’s rights. “I want communities to let children participate,” Chris said in Bisaya (a local language), explaining the cause behind his play. "I want children to be part of the planning and decision-making of their barangay (village).”
Chris is among the participants of Save the Children’s ArtVocacy, a workshop for developing child advocates through photography, journalism, visual arts, and theater.
Chris fell in love with the latter, devoting his plays to children.
Will you support Chris’ dream of becoming a playwright?
Advocates, artists
Chris, 18 years old, hails from Ormoc City, Western Leyte’s economic hub. In 2013, Ormoc suffered great loss due to Super Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda), affecting the livelihood of several families, including Chris’.
Chris wants to be a teacher specializing in music, arts, physical education and health. He was on his way to achieving his dream; unfortunately, he had to drop out during his second year in college due to financial problems.
The dream, however, is far from dead. Chris plans to return to school as soon as he can. For the meantime, he shares his passion for education with children.
Chris is the youngest in a family of eight that fondly calls him “bunso” (youngest child).
Although the smallest, this bunso maintains a strong voice. Chris spends most of his time teaching others, including his family, on the importance of children’s rights and community participation.
In fact, Chris was instrumental in the construction of child-friendly spaces in his community. As a member of a children’s association in his barangay, he and his friends pushed for more projects catering to the youth’s needs.
“We need more leadership trainings, psychosocial services, and creative activities,” Chris stressed. “We should also end child labor. In my barangay, I still see many minors who quit school to work in sugarcane farms.”
ArtVocacy also highlights the need for respect.
“We teach children about social issues like child abuse in times of disasters among many others. And about respect for everyone like out-of-school youth and persons with disabilities,” said Kristine Tuban, an ArtVocacy facilitator.
Save the Children called for the inclusion of children in barangay associations and the review of Children’s Code among local governments. Next year, we hope that local governance will be truly inclusive of all children.
With supporters like you by our side, we’re continuously meeting wonderful children like Chris. Together, we can make the dreams of these children come alive!
The future of these children are in our hands, however, our future are in theirs.
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