Sulam Suraji, 29, was with her six children inside their house when a huge fire broke out in their community in Pagadian City at noon on June 1. Her husband at that time was at work.

“Sa dami ng anak ko wala na akong nakuhang gamit dahil inuna ko ang mga anak”, said Sulam. (I have many children who I needed to evacuate from our house that’s why I didn’t save any belongings.)

Sulam’s eldest child is 10 years old while her youngest is a 2-year old. She is also currently pregnant with her seventh child.

She recalled how the fire spread quickly in their community, noting that majority of the houses in their area were made of light materials. Like hers, many families were not able to secure their belongings.

“Nagpapasalamat ako sa ADRA dahil nagkaroon na kami lutuan na kailangan ko dahil wala na kaming magamit.” (I am grateful for ADRA’s help because we now have a cooking set that I can use.)

Sulam beamed with happiness as she opened the ADRA pack containing pots, pans, plates, spoon and fork and a pail. A total of 525 families staying at the evacuation center received the same cooking sets.

“Masaya ako na may nagmamahal sa amin ng ganito,” she said. (I am happy to know that some people love us this way.)