Call to Action: Help SINAG Empower Financially Disadvantaged College Students in the Philippines Graduate

28 November 2016, San Fernando, La Union. This Call to Action arrived in FEED’s email a day ago from a long-time overseas Filipino network friend Cesar Torres, a staunch advocate of empowering Filipinos through education.

Cesar thankfully forwarded the Appeal Letter care of Greg Mariano, Jr (UPCM ’62) and Sheena Zamora (Executive Director, SINOG Microfunds), with the following appeal to help empower financially disadvantages college students in the Philippines to Graduate:

“My name is Sheena Jamora, a UP Psychology alumna and currently a postgraduate student at the UP College of Education. I am writing to you about Microfunds, a non-profit organization that I co-founded with 6 other UP alumni in November 2013.

SINAG’s mission is to empower financially disadvantaged college students in the Philippines so that they could stay in school, graduate, and reach for their dreams. We are inspired by the quintessential dream of every young Filipino: to graduate from college and achieve a better a better life for themselves, their families, and their country.

To launch this initiative, my co-founders (Margaret Yarcia, Mary Anne Tuazon, Carlos Soriano, Carla Baful, Meiling Lee, Rica Vina Cruz) and I pooled our own resources to provide tuition loans to 5 students in November 2013. Since then, through the generosity of others who believe in our cause, Sinag has helped more than 50 college students stay in school by granting student loans and extending part-time job opportunities.

This year, six Sinag students received their college degrees, turning what was once a dream into a reality. Some of our graduates, such as Catherine Ruiz, are the first college graduates in their extended family. Others, such as April Andaca, have already had siblings drop out of school, and were once fearful that they would have had to do the same. Today, Catherine is a businesswoman while April is a computer engineer teaching at Quezon City Science High School.

In the coming enrollment season in January, you can help us support more Filipino youth like Catherine and April, who are determined to graduate from school despite financial difficulties.

Please join our mission by visiting www.sinag.org and making an online donation through the “FUND DREAMS” tab. A monthly donation of $20 as a Sinag Sponsor, or a one time donation of $20 as a Sinag Donor will help us grow the Sinag student loan fund and enable us to keep working towards our vision of a Filipino nation where everyone, regardless of economic background, has equal access to higher education.

For more information about Sinag, you may visit our website or read these articles from The Philippine Daily Inquirer and Yahoo News:

Alumni Loans Keep UP Students in School
Sinag Helps College Students Stay in School

Please also have a look at our most recent video featuring Sinag students and prominent TV journalists in the Philippines.

Thank you and we look forward to your support!”