Teachers for a Day: MR.DIY, World Vision, empower Baseco Youth through ‘Brigada Pagbasa’

It was a Saturday to remember for Alex–one of MR.DIY’s employee volunteers–who for the longest time, has been looking for an opportunity to teach young people. 

Volunteers from MR.DIY engaging in fun activities with 34 schoolchildren from the Sen. Benigno Aquino Elementary School during the Brigada Pagbasa last April 22.

For him, there is a sense of fulfillment seeing students understand and learn from their activities as they form genuine connections with their “teachers for a day.”

Meanwhile, employee-volunteer Claire felt like it’s a gift to join in teaching the children, as she witnessed their appreciation and their selflessness–reminding her to be grateful for all the blessings she has. 

Like Alex and Claire, 16 other employee-volunteers from leading home improvement retailer MR.DIY joined forces with World Vision International to empower youth through the Brigada Pagbasa Program, held at the Baseco Compound in Manila, Saturday, April 20. 

As an integral part of MR.DIY’s overarching corporate social responsibility program, Acts of Kindness (AOK), the partnership with World Vision recognizes the importance of education in providing a brighter future for children, rooted in one of AOK’s core pillars of Youth and Education. 

A total of 34 students from Grades 4 to 7 from the Sen. Benigno Aquino Elementary School participated in the program aimed at improving their literacy skills. Currently, these students are on track to undergo a post-test to assess their progress as they finish all 16 sessions of the Brigada Pagbasa Program. 

Mr. Charles Salecina, MR.DIY Philippines’ Deputy Head of Marketing speaks before school children participating in Brigada Pagbasa.

Mr. Charles Salecina, Deputy Head of Marketing for MR.DIY Philippines, reiterated the company’s dedication to youth education. 

He emphasized education’s lasting importance as an invaluable gift and pledged MR.DIY’s readiness to improve students’ understanding abilities.He also stressed the importance of reading as a fundamental skill for their future.

Brigada Pagbasa, initiated by the Department of Education, is an after-school reading intervention platform that partners with community stakeholders to improve students’ reading skills. It assesses reading readiness and comprehension levels using the Lit DAPAT tool, enabling targeted interventions to address specific learning needs.

This collaborative effort between Mr. DIY, World Vision, and DepEd’s Brigada Pagbasa serves as a beacon of hope, illustrating the transformative power of community partnerships in building a brighter future for generations to come.