“Di ko pa nakikita. Di na ako nakapasok sa SM kasi wala kaming pang-SM.” (I haven’t seen them yet. I don’t get into SM because I don’t have the means to go.) says Nanay Prima when asked if she’s seen the  bags she makes being sold at the largest mall chain in the Philippines. The mother of five children shares that it’s a treat just to be able to get into SM.  

^{The Bag Ladies. Nanay Flora, Nanay Pima, Nanay Lourdes, and Nanay Zorina pose with their finished products. The community organization Batong Sandigan composed mostly of mothers is excited to expand their livelihood projects in the area.}

Working hard making bags with her fellow mother leaders in the community based organization Sandigan Bato, Nanay Prima contributes to finishing one hundred bags in a little more than a week to meet the deadline. She says, “I enjoy doing this and find this work relaxing. It has helped me and my family a lot. This is better than just staying at home doing nothing.”       

As a livelihood project of Sandigan Bato and community development organization World Vision, Nanay Prima’s life has changed from selling little snacks at the local market just to make ends meet, she now works full time making bags with a little extra for her five children even support two of them through college.  

Community organization fittingly named Batong Sandigan, meaning foundation rock has been doing groundwork in livelihood projects in the area and began helping the people of Cavite since the 1990’s with World Vision spear heading sustainability projects in the area.      

^{Nanay Prima shares that someday she too would like to experience that feeling of happiness seeing one of her bags being sold in the mall. As she works hard at making these bags, she hopes that someday she would be able to earn enough to frequently visit the mall.}

Nanay Prima shares that through the activities of Batong Sandingan and World Vision trainings such as bag making, she has gone to different places but has yet to visit SM and experience the happy feeling her colleagues describe when they see their bags in the mall. She jokingly shares, “If you buy the bags we make, we have work, and when we have work we earn money from it so that someday we could go to SM too.”