St. Hannibal Empowerment Centre

St. Hannibal Empowerment Center (SHEC) is a religious organization of the Rogationists of the Heart of Jesus. It is a community of Spirit-led persons which aims to follow Jesus Christ in his union with his Father and in his proclamation of the kingdom of God. It is an inserted community among the squatters. The goal of SHEC is to empower the poor people of Metro Manila, Philippines, through housing, livelihood, education, health, waste management, youth and values formation.

Name:
Location: Pasay City, Metro Manila

Mission: Its mission is to empower the poorest of the poor and catalyze an integral Christian transformation of urban poor communities in collaboration with the local Church by a holistic process that addresses concerns on housing, livelihood, education, health, environment and sanitation, justice and peace, youth formation and values formation. The goals of SHEC consist of assisting in alleviating poverty among urban poor communities in Pasay and other cities in Metro Manila; and building the foundation of community transformation through intensive values formation. Its objectives are, specifically, to facilitate the organization and formation of people’s organization that are self-sufficient and empowered, facilitate the values and spiritual formation and capability building of urban poor leaders, to assist the urban poor / informal settlers of Pasay and other cities in Metro Manila in realizing their dreams of achieving security of tenure through in-city relocation, to facilitate the implementation of economic programs and basic social services in urban poor communities, and to facilitate access to formal education in favor of the poor and deserving students.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

May Highlights

ROGATE: Serving God and his people, especially the poor, through Mary. May is the month of flowers. In the Philippines, the May Flower Festival is usually celebrated in honor of the Virgin Mary. Noteworthy to mention is the special place of Mary in the life of St. Hannibal. It was Mary who led St. Hannibal to love Jesus, and eventually to love the poor whom Jesus loves so much—his favorites, so to say. When he was 17, St. Hannibal wrote these lines of a poem about Mary, titled “To Jesus through Mary”:

In the blossoming of my years,
I looked for you, shedding tears;
Kneeling at your holy knee,
May I find whom I want to love through thee!

And the young Hannibal was led to love Jesus, who eventually led him to give special love and concern for the poor in his ministry.

This Marian spirituality that brings justice to the poor, needless to say, guides the life of SHEC, especially in the month of May.
Health Survey Seminar at Baseco.
Last May 25, 2011, SHaCC health workers, Nelia Reyna, Nelyn, Crisly, Malou and Chris, assisted by 10 Pabanal leaders, facilitated a seminar on health survey at the Most Holy Chapel, Blk 9 New Site, Baseco. Truly, this program is a great help for the welfare of the poor communities at Baseco.

Happy Birthday, Fr. Arlene.The birth of a Kingdom apostle is truly an occasion of jubilation, of praising and thanking God for the blessing of sending a holy laborer in his vineyard. Such indeed was the atmosphere of SHEC as the Rogationist fathers, staff, SHaCC, Pabanal as well as the family and friends of Fr. Arlene Gumangan, RCJ joined him in his birthday celebration last May 27, 2011 at the SHEC Training Center. Happy birthday, Fr. Arlene! May you have more blessings in your life, and more life to enjoy your blessings—and, of course, a long life dedicated and committed to serve the poor.

Gabi ng Kabataan in Honor of St. Hannibal.
To celebrate the feast day of St. Hannibal, the leaders and members of ROGATE Youth Ministry, SHaCC, Pabanal and Merville Chapters, as well as the SHEC Youth volunteers and the leaders and members of St. Hannibal Christian Community showcased their talents in a program dubbed “Gabi ng Kabataan”. The affair was also meant to thank the youth volunteers. The joyful event was held at the St. Hannibal Subdivision Phase 2, Rodriguez St., Malibay, Pasay City last May 31, 2011.