Message from the President/Founder
Mabuhay! I came from a poor family and had experienced the life of hunger and deprivation of educational opportunity, in other words- poverty. After high school at the age of fifteen, I invested my seven pesos for bus fare to Manila to find a job. I worked as restaurant dishwasher and hotel roomboy. For seven years of hard work and endurance, I was given a chance to enlist in the United States Navy. I spent twenty-one years of dedicated, exemplary service and have enjoyed the blessings that God had blessed me with-the reward of hard work. After I retired, I had the passion to give it all back but had no idea how to start until my family and I joined a Pilgrimage/Outreach and Medical Missions in the Philippines in 2010. I noticed that poverty was even worse than when I left in the early 70's. The outreach missions gave me and my wife Josy the insight and the desire to do outreach mission on our own (family). In 2012, we started our mission with a very limited funds but was a very successful one. From then on, we were doing our mission every year, and every year the mission gets bigger. We cannot solve poverty on our own, maybe in this lifetime, but at least we can put smiles at their faces. A kilo of rice, a bag of oatmeal, a bowl of cereal, a can of sardine, a stick of granola bar, a sasche of noodle are all they needed, they are not asking much. 4T Foundation International was established with a concept of sharing: "our TALENT, our TIME, our TREASURE, and our blessings TOGETHER - 4Ts." We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and also licensed California non-profit as well. Your donations are tax deductible. 100% of your donations are used toward the mission. Please join me and my family make this mission a success. You can reach us at 4Tfoundation.org or email us welcome@4tfoundation.com. Thank you very much. The Lord will guide and bless us more. Men "Tiwi" Cabalbag President/Founder
Message from the Vice-President/Co-Founder
Greetings! Our family are so blessed to have finally been given the opportunity to serve our marginalized brothers and sisters in Christ to a greater extent through our 4T Foundation International. This is actually a dream come true for me. Though I did not come from a very well-to-do family, I have seen my parents extending their hands/support to those who ask for their help and opening our door/home to those who need one. With their meager resources, I have witnessed them so many times turning tears into smiles, sadness into joy and worries into calmness without expecting anything in return, right in our very own humble home. Those scenes that I have seen, inspired me as a young girl, to be like them when I grow up and have a life on my own. Living my life in the shadow of my parents' legacy of helping and loving people unconditionally no matter who they are, wherever there is need and however I am able to is a fulfillment for me. Needs come in different forms-material things; somebody to listen to them; a shoulder to cry on or just to know that somebody cares for them. My growing years was not perfect. My family had our own ups and downs, times of bounty and times when we have to deal with sacrifices and learn how to tighten our belts. At the end of the day, I thank our awesome God for giving me the chance to see and experience life in different perspective and meeting people in different facets of life. Through my past, I learned to be more resilient, patient and understanding of the various personalities and situations I encounter. I pay tribute to my parents who molded me to who I am today. In God I put my trust and believe that He will never give me anything that I could not handle. He is the strong foundation of our mission and with Him, I know that unexpected things could happen. Our ultimate goal is to open everyone's heart to give as much as we can without expecting anything in return. The mission is our chance to give back to our Almighty God, who blessed us with abundance. Always remember that we can never outdo God's generosity. Whatever you whole heartedly share, will come back to you tenfold more. Rest assured that your good deeds will never go unrecognized and that 100% of your donations go to the mission. Let us pool our TALENTS, TIME, and TREASURE TOGETHER (4T) so we can make a difference and make this world a better place to live in. To God be the Glory! Josy
Message from Jed
I grew up hearing stories of how poverty-stricken my parents’ home country was, and while I remember feeling sad for those less fortunate, it was difficult for me to empathize because I never experienced what it was like to live with limited resources. I lived a comfortable life growing up – there was always food on the table, a selection of clothes to wear, a sturdy house, rides to and from school…and the list goes on and on along with the many things that I was privileged to have. When our family had the opportunity to travel to the Philippines in 2010 to participate in a medical mission, I saw it as a chance to give back and gain a better understanding of what life was like for the people there. What I saw when we landed was nothing short of astonishing. Being there and feeling the heat, breathing in the exhaust from cars, seeing packed neighborhoods of improvised housing, and watching children running around barefoot in areas littered with trash – including broken glass and sharp metal fragments - really brought the pictures I’d seen and stories I’d heard to life. I was struck to see how happy the people looked, despite living in poverty. The communities looked very tight-knit, the neighborhood children were all playing games with makeshift toys, and everything on the outside looked so joyful. But I couldn’t help but feel touched when learning that behind the smiles were so many feelings of regret and sadness. Parents often commented how guilty they felt for not being able to give their children a better future. Meanwhile, while the children were open about having their own dreams in life, many of them felt that making those dreams a reality was impossible because of their situation. These comments made me wonder what could be done to alleviate the financial burden for families and make achieving the kids’ dreams possible so they could earn a better life for their families, in the future. My hope, now, is for children to be able to focus on their studies and not have to abandon school for the purpose of helping their families search for basic resources. I also hope to be able to supplement the parents’ efforts in sustaining their family’s livelihood through adequate nutrition, clothes (especially footwear to prevent injury), supplies for their children to be able to work towards successful careers, and many other ways. Until now, through various fundraisers and donations from relatives and friends, our family has been able to provide support in the form of care packages, clothes, school supplies, and a small feeding program. We are very hopeful that with your help, we can give so much more to the children and families in need and extend the reach of our humanitarian efforts to positively impact more lives than we have in the past. We do not ask for much – whatever you can offer will be greatly appreciated. And with all your support, we will be sure to keep you updated so you can see the results of your generosity and dedication to supporting those in need. Maraming, Maraming Salamat Po Sa Inyong Lahat (Thank You to You All), Miyagi Cabalbag
Message from Nicho
I didn’t grow up as my father did. I didn’t grow up working in the fields. I didn’t grow up having to leave home before I was 18 to work a job where I needed to remind my boss to pay me or else I wouldn’t get paid. I lived a rather comfortable life because that was how my parents wanted me to grow up. They wanted me to have opportunities greater than theirs. And for years, I never really gave my life a second thought. That was until my family brought me to the Philippines. It would be wrong of me to say that the entire country is stricken with poverty. But each year up until the pandemic- my family has traveled to places that have needed help. We go to places where children are too poor to carry anything but a trash bag filled with their school supplies. We’ve traveled to elderly homes where the elderly sleep on mattresses barely as thick as my thumb is tall and sometimes they don’t have mattresses at all. I remember a place telling us how blessed they felt that they were able to get a hospital bed. A single one to use for those that really needed it. Poverty isn’t something our organization can fix on its own. That is why we reach out to friends and family. Donations and volunteer-work from them has been much appreciated. But the burden of poverty is not one a few good people can carry alone. We need many good people to share their blessings to those in need. A little bit of food can fill the hole in a belly. A jacket someone has grown out of could keep someone warm. Some spare change can be used to help pay for the school supplies of tomorrow’s heroes. Whatever can be spared, whatever can be gifted; it is a blessing much appreciated by our 4T family and those you’ve helped.
History
Back in November 2010, our family joined a pilgrimage in conjunction with a medical and outreach mission in the Philippines. This has changed the insights of our then two young boys-Jed (13years old) and Nicholas (11 years old). After seeing the widespread poverty and homelessness in places where we travelled and visited, our sons realized how blessed they are compared to the children whom we catered during our outreach mission and those whom they've seen along the way. It was an eye opener to them witnessing first-hand poverty that they constantly hear from us before. When we got back to the U.S. (it was just days before Christmas), we asked them what they wanted for Christmas, they said they don't want anything because they already have more than enough. From then on, everytime we celebrate their birthdays and special occasions, they asked for donations that they can share with the poverty stricken children instead of gifts for themselves. With the funds that they have raised and some savings that we had, we started getting in touch with Josy's high school batchmates, who were at that time, were very active doing outreach programs. Our very first mission on our own was in 2012 at Bethesda orphanage in Itogon, Benguet as requested by the SLGHS batch '79. The geographically orphaned kids were in dire need of mattresses for their very uncomfortable spring based bunks beds. We did not have enough funds to buy all the mattresses they need, so Josy called and asked our friends and relatives if they would be willing to donate whatever amount they can. We were so happy and very grateful for their generosity. With the funds that we raised, we not only provided the children with new mattresses but we were also able to hand out school supplies, toys and fed them with sumptuos lunches. Seeing the smiles on the children's faces is priceless and have inspired us to continue doing what we are doing with some extras every now and then, depending on the availability of funds. Since we noticed that the needs are growing, we have applied for 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization status in 2014. It is then, that our 4T Foundation International was established. Our name stands for Talent, Time Treasure, Together-meaning we need to pool our resources together in order to make this world a better place. Through God's grace, we have reached out to the homeless, indigent, public school students, home for the aged, squatters' areas, resettlement sites, inmates, and natural disaster stricken places. We thank God first and foremost, for the abundant blessings that He continually showers us;our families, relatives, friends, associates and people like you, for your generosity and unending support so that we may continue to share our blessings to our marginalized brothers and sisters in Christ for as long as we can. Men "Tiwi" Cabalbag
Volunteers/Coordinators (Philippines Missions)
Angelita Arhis, Freddie & Cathy Camarillo, Eva Aquino, Dr. Cris A. Magallanes, Dr. Japanel B. Cambay, Dr. Ian Cabalza, Mayor Mario Subagan, Capt. View Dicen, Jane Tiongco, Orlino Guieb, AileenGrace Cabalbag, Arlene Cabantog, Felicisima Ong, St. Louis Girl’s High School (SLGHS) class '79, PR PMA Class '68, Fr."KC" Moraga, Fr. Aaron Bamba, Opifices Cristi and Fr. John Paul Miranda.
