Filipinos in Sydney share light to malnourished children in the Philippines

"This is not just feeding. It is feeding with vitamins and nutrients," shares one of the initiators of the Nourish the Children initiative in Sydney as a group of Filipinos strive to work together to feed malnourished children in the Philippines.

‘Nourish the Children’ initiative hopes to share light to malnourished children in the Philippines. Credit: Cottonbro Studion (on Pexels)

Key Points

• Approximately 3.1 million children die from undernutrition each year, according to a UNICEF report.
• The global 'Nourish the Children' initiative aims to provide nutritious feeding program to poor children globally.
• Team Stars, including Sheila Raptis, Paola Llorando and Len Puzon, choose to provide 'nutrimeal' annually to malnourished children in the Philippines.

In the past decade, Sheila Raptis and Paola Llorando, together with their team in Sydney, have been raising funds annually to contribute to the global 'Nourish the Children' initiative.

"Our goal, with Team Stars, is to make sure that we will raise the funds so that we can actually supply and sustain feeding the children for the whole year," says Paola Llorando.

The 'Share the Light' dinner event aims to raise funds for the 'Nourish the Children' initiative to contribute for the nutritious meals for malnourished children in the Philippines. Credit: SBS Filipino/Annalyn Violata

United Nations data show that around 663 million people worldwide are undernourished.

Twenty-two per cent of children under the age of five are 'stunted', partly due to malnutrition.

According to World Health Organization data, overall, 5.6 million children under age five died in 2016, that's nearly 15,000 daily deaths.

While UNICEF reports that approximately 3.1 million children die from undernutrition each year.

Ms Raptis and Llorando and their team chose to provide for the 'nutrimeal' feeding program to children in the Philippines as they wanted to give back to their home country.

"I came from a High School that had an orphanage and that's where my inspiration started. Every time we have a reunion, I also try to fund-raise for the orphanage," shares Sheila Raptis.

From their initial mini gatherings in Sydney to raise funds, the group has since grown into a community of like-minded individuals interested in helping others, especially children.

This year, the group held the 'Share the Light' event in Blacktown, in western Sydney, to celebrate their work along with the Filipino community and ramp up their fundraising drive.

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