History
Batang Star Philippines, Inc., also known as “BATANG STAR” is a non-profit, non-government, Christian faith-based, humanitarian, development-based and child-focused organization helping the vulnerable and poorest of the poor children in our society. Batang Star with its partners responds to the needs of the Internally Displaced and/or Vulnerable Children (IDVC) who are in poverty incidence, in difficult circumstances, and affected by emergencies. On January 7, 2014, it started as an informal small group of volunteers who planned for initial program interventions. Later, this group conducted the Feeding Program and evening outreach activities for the street children. Mr. Edward Lacanilao, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Batang Star, was a former street child in General Santos City. For almost six years, he used to loiter and roam around the city proper for survival, begging for money. He used to oversee and clean cars and motorcycles for a living. He slept on the sidewalks and abandoned establishments with his fellow street children from 1991 to 1996. He also used to sell plastic cellophane at the public market, scavenge for garbage and old vegetable stocks to resell them to ordinary buyers.
By God’s grace through the Lord Jesus Christ, after more than half a decade, he was rescued from the streets by kind-hearted individuals, government agency CSWDO General Santos City with “Mommy Jang” and “Ate Thelma”, and religious organization, Dadiangas Baptist Church (DBC) through its efforts on Feeding Program for the Street Children in 1996. He experienced change and transformation only when he attended the “Feeding Program for Street Kids organized by Dadiangas Baptist Church (DBC) last 1996 at the City Plaza and later, he was temporarily sheltered at DBC. There he came to know Jesus Christ in his life, and great things happened to him. He was then adopted/fostered by a very kind, loving and generous God-fearing family the Zurriaga Family in General Santos City.
From 2010 to 2013, Mr. Lacanilao felt that God was calling him to go back to the streets. In response to that call, he was walking with the street kids and street dwellers in Metro Manila, Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, Bacolod City, Davao City, Cagayan de Oro City, Zamboanga City, Pagadian City, Iligan City, Butuan City, and General Santos City.
Finally in the early days of January 2014, Mr. Lacanilao went back to the streets in the Philippines from General Santos City to initiate its first mission intervention: Walking With Street Children (WWSC Program) to help the children in poverty, the street kids, street dwellers and children affected by disasters, together with the committed experts, volunteers, donors, sponsors and partners, he organized a non-formal and volunteer group named “Batang Star Mindanao” which was later renamed to Batang Star Philippines Inc. or known as Batang Star. The name of the organization was inspired by the personal life experiences of the Founder, Mr. Lacanilao. He believes that with God and great people, a huge difference in the life of a street child or child in poverty could be made. In the Philippines, “batang” means “child or children” while the word “star” for Batang Star it means “champion of hope”.
Since 2014, Batang Star has been doing the Feeding Program with all other volunteers, partners and in 2015, with the college students from Villamor College of Business and Arts (VCBA), it has conducted the feeding interventions and learning sessions for the children in poverty. In the same year of its operations as a non-formal group, Batang Star conducted the Street Children Profiling (SCP) Project in General Santos City with the help of the volunteers from the Single Working Adults (SWA) Support Group (SG) Tuesday of DBC and ECCO Hardware, Inc. as project funding donor.
Batang Star held its biggest Feeding Program for the 1,000 Street Children last 19 December 2015. In 2016, Batang Star distributed toys and education supplies to its beneficiaries with the help of Pastor Kenneth Sim, a pastor from City Harvest Church, Singapore. Another big Feeding Program for the 700 Street Children was conducted last 30 December 2017. With experiences and expertise in community development, public service, child protection, and street children profiling, the Batang Star volunteers organized to group the Batang Star street children into three (3): Street Children Playing on the Streets, Street Children Working on the Streets, and Street Children Living on the Streets, of which they are identified with these grouping even today.
On 10 February 2018, Batang Star started to conduct regular interventions through its Walking with the Street Children (WWSC) Program. This WWSC was designed to regularly initiate the weekly Feeding Program at the City Plaza of General Santos City alongside the Values Formation, Child Counselling, and Psychosocial Activities for street children.
The major projects of Batang Star were funded by ECCO Hardware, Inc. (Ecco) missions. This company is a home-grown all-in-one hardware and construction supplies store in the Philippines that voluntarily offered its free hands to this cause for humanity. As a result of the exploratory talk between ECCO Hardware and Batang Star management, Walking With the Street Children (WWSC) Program and Street Children Sponsorship (SCS Program) were re-strengthened as it operates. While we also affirm the untiring support of the Batang Star’s co-founder: Pastor Kenneth Sim of CHC-Singapore, and its honorary co-founders: Mr. Junjun Tadlongan and Mr. Benjie Samulde.
For more than six (6) years now, friends, partners, donors, and sponsors have willingly worked with Batang Star to help street children, street dwellers, kids in poverty, and children badly affected by disasters/calamities anywhere in the Philippines. To mention a few: ECCO Hardware, Inc., Pastor Kenneth Sim, City Harvest Church – Singapore, Dadiangas Baptist Church (DBC), Rev. Andres Docena Jr., SWA-SG Tuesday pioneering members, Micropets Petshop, Mr. Bong Samulde, KPS-SEED Microfinance, Inc., Sir Jun Olarte, SN Widereach Marketing, Inc., Sir Fabian Sinamban, Nadies Chicken – Gensan Highway Branch, Ma’am Luis Claire, BigShot Sports Center, SOCSKSARGEN Fishing Federation and Allied Industries, Inc. (SFFAII), GenSan Youth Orchestra (GSYO), GSC Youth Affairs and Development Office (YADO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Mayor’s Office of Honorable Mayor Ronnel C. Rivera, GSC – CSWDO, Mr. Christopher Ong, Cavite Creative Institute, Dolefil Stanfilco Makilala, MGTR Company, Ms. Alicia Lim, Ms. Rose Patiag Hernando, Ms. Vernie Basilio, Ms. Michel Louh, Mr. Fernan “BemBem” Talonding, Philippine Dental Association (PDA) GenSan Chapter, Ms. Claire Luis, Kiwanis International Gensan, Ms. Osang Bulanhagui-Contreras, Sir Thomas Bebot Haw, Shalom Crest Wizard Academy, Tropical Motorama Parts Corporation, Rotary Club International GenSan, Tsikot Republic, Jupont Autocar Concept, The Word for Everyone-Labangal Church, CCFI GenSan, CCFI Alabel, Destiny Gensan Church and many more. We continue to look and need more partners and stakeholders for the vulnerable children of our society.
Batang Star continues to work in achieving our vision, mission, and goals to facilitate the needs of the street and vulnerable children in the Philippines. This requires a lot of work to do with excellent collaborations and strong cooperative group efforts among the stakeholders, government organizations, and private establishments as partners to restore and turn the street children into champions of hope. Batang Star believes that there is power in convergence to love, care and protect the Street Children and Kids in poverty. Please, we encourage you to join “Batang Star” in attaining its goal:“Saving the Children from Poverty”.
Batang Star Philippines, Inc. 