Over 600 foreign delegates visit Bulacan ‘places of mercy’
MARILAO, Bulacan – More than 600 foreigners visited several “places of mercy” in Bulacan on Thursday, the fourth day of the World Apostolic Congress on Mercy (WACOM) here.
The foreign delegates of the WACOM spent time with the beneficiaries of 15 charitable institutions in the province as part of their mission to enlighten themselves on God’s Divine Mercy.
Their “tour” consisted of paying calls on institutions such as orphanages and shelters caring for abandoned and abused women and children, as well as patients with mental illnesses.
At the Sto. Niño Bethany Orphanage House in Guiguinto, Bulacan, children who were abandoned or neglected by their parents danced and sang gaily for their guests from Papua New Guinea.
Their happy, bright faces did not betray their sad, dark past as they performed for around 100 delegates to the orphanage who watched them intently.
“The young ones are also excited to share how the Divine Mercy has worked in their lives,” said Sister Yna Suello, a daycare coordinator at the orphanage.
Their wards’ ages range from as young as four months old to 14 years old with different circumstances–some were temporarily left there by their parents, while others were totally abandoned and left alone by their families.
The orphanage cares for such children within the Diocese of Malolos and the province of Bulacan. The orphanage currently has 42 children in its care.
“Some of the kids’ families are extremely poor, that’s why they had to leave their children here. Others were single parents who couldn’t care for their children,” Suello said.
The WACOM 4 delegates from Papua New Guinea were toured around the orphanage and interacted with the children, who eagerly hugged back their visitors.
“We usually have lots of visitors during Christmas, our children are really happy that we have lots of different visitors today,” Suello added.
This scene was repeated in 14 other “places of mercy” in Bulacan that the international delegates to the WACOM 4 visited on Thursday morning.
The other charitable institutions that the WACOM 4 participants visited are: Galilee Homes and the Dumagat community in Doña Remedios Trinidad; Bahay ni San Martin, Nazareth Home for Street Children, Hospicio San Juan de Dios for Women in Bustos; Bethlehem House of Bread in Baliuag; Bahay Pangarap, Ephesus House, Tahanan ni Mother Rita in Guiguinto; Tahanang Mapagpala, Emmaus House of Apostolate in Malolos City; Lingap Bata Center, Bahay Kalinga in Sta. Maria; and Hospicio San Juan de Dios for Men in Bocaue.
The WACOM is an international gathering held every three years, in which devotees of Jesus as the Divine Mercy come together to share their experiences and accelerate the culture of mercy in the Catholic Church. CDG
