Lots Of Members Few Postings

[Travis]

I have been gone a while for personal reasons & came back recently to see there are lots of new members but the same old problem of only a group posting & it makes me wonder what the reason is? I know I got a lot of useful information from this forum & had I only listened to it all then I would have waited a few more years to get my full social security instead of taking the earlier 1 which was much lower & not then able to make it in Cebu on that smaller amount. why is it that we read but think we know better & jump in head first anyway? I know my reason was because I listened to some of the other forums that wrote live like a king for under $1000 & I found that to be bull so I tried to give back to others so they would not make the same mistakes I made. how about all of you who read. did you learn any helpful stuff that you could share with the rest of us so I do not screw up again? I know it is not my place to ask this stuff but Roys post about giving made me think why we are all fast to take in life but do not give? if I was rich then I would start a feeding & clothing program in a church in Cebu or another place where people need it. is there any way all of us could somehow get together & start such a program? :tiphat: :508: :yes: :th_need_vac: :th_grouphug: :wave:

[Old55]

I have been gone a while for personal reasons & came back recently to see there are lots of new members but the same old problem of only a group posting & it makes me wonder what the reason is? I know I got a lot of useful information from this forum & had I only listened to it all then I would have waited a few more years to get my full social security instead of taking the earlier 1 which was much lower & not then able to make it in Cebu on that smaller amount. why is it that we read but think we know better & jump in head first anyway? I know my reason was because I listened to some of the other forums that wrote live like a king for under $1000 & I found that to be bull so I tried to give back to others so they would not make the same mistakes I made. how about all of you who read. did you learn any helpful stuff that you could share with the rest of us so I do not screw up again? I know it is not my place to ask this stuff but Roys post about giving made me think why we are all fast to take in life but do not give? if I was rich then I would start a feeding & clothing program in a church in Cebu or another place where people need it. is there any way all of us could somehow get together & start such a program? :tiphat: :508: :yes: :th_need_vac: :th_grouphug: :wave:

That is a nice thought Travis there are so many in Philippines that could use a little help. Lee & Tom have attempted to start a collection or project but there has been little interest so far. We give to a foundation my wife's cousin and her husband support. It installs wells and pumps for rural schools in Philippines and other SE Asia country's. We have helped with a well in Southern Leyte. Expats are kinda like herding cats. They all seem to want to go their own way. Many are on a very tight budget. Unfortunately Philippines has such a bad reputation most of us are unwilling to give money to those we don't know very well.

[sjp52]

I have been gone a while for personal reasons & came back recently to see there are lots of new members but the same old problem of only a group posting & it makes me wonder what the reason is? I know I got a lot of useful information from this forum & had I only listened to it all then I would have waited a few more years to get my full social security instead of taking the earlier 1 which was much lower & not then able to make it in Cebu on that smaller amount. why is it that we read but think we know better & jump in head first anyway? I know my reason was because I listened to some of the other forums that wrote live like a king for under $1000 & I found that to be bull so I tried to give back to others so they would not make the same mistakes I made. how about all of you who read. did you learn any helpful stuff that you could share with the rest of us so I do not screw up again? I know it is not my place to ask this stuff but Roys post about giving made me think why we are all fast to take in life but do not give? if I was rich then I would start a feeding & clothing program in a church in Cebu or another place where people need it. is there any way all of us could somehow get together & start such a program? :tiphat: :508: :yes: :th_need_vac: :th_grouphug: :wave:

That is a great idea and very generous of you Travis. I would love to get involved but between paying for my wife,s kids tuition's and helping out the family I am all spent. I have just learned that my wife,s mother is in the hospital and it does not look good. Unfortunately for me my wife has a big family and very poor. I don,t know how most families here do it when their elders get sick and go into the hospital, Maybe for the last time. If it wasn,t for me the family would have to beg borrow and steal to pay the medical fees that add up very quickly every day. It is day 2 and already it has cost 25,000. To the average Filipino that is a lot of dough

[JJReyes]

We are still located in the United States (Honolulu, Hawaii). My wife and I support several non-government organizations (NGO's) in the Philippines by sending, from time to time, Balikbayan boxes. The shipping costs for "door-to-door" service is $50 plus $5 for the container. The shipper even takes a picture of the box and recipient as proof that it was delivered. One of the most popular items are back issues of National Geographic magazine, which we obtain from the exchange desks of public libraries. Another are old toys donated by our neighbors. Old towels, clothing, shoes, etc. are dumped into a bin and sorted before shipping. Anything and everything is welcomed by the NGOs.

[Mr Lee]

We are still located in the United States (Honolulu, Hawaii). My wife and I support several non-government organizations (NGO's) in the Philippines by sending, from time to time, Balikbayan boxes. The shipping costs for "door-to-door" service is $50 plus $5 for the container. The shipper even takes a picture of the box and recipient as proof that it was delivered. One of the most popular items are back issues of National Geographic magazine, which we obtain from the exchange desks of public libraries. Another are old toys donated by our neighbors. Old towels, clothing, shoes, etc. are dumped into a bin and sorted before shipping. Anything and everything is welcomed by the NGOs.

Welcome to the forum. First, I changed the title of the topic so that we can discuss helping since that was one of the items mentioned in the OP. My wife and I basically do the same thing but without the NGO's. We let it be known to friends that we need most clothing items and especially baby and children clothing etc, and then we end up getting lots of items that way, and then my wife washes and gets them fresh to ship in BB boxes to Cagayan de Oro and our condo in Cebu, and we also bring some in our suitcase on each trip over, and then we end up giving items out to family and those we meet that we can tell need it, and would appreciate the items. There are many who need the help we all can provide with only a small cost to ourselves, so we prefer to do it one on one, but I like Travis's idea and maybe we could find a way to arrange something like that in the future.

[Travis]

what I see Lee is doing is something we all can do & then ship over the boxes to church groups to distribute. I wonder if any of the churches are doing that? anyone know? also it is good to wake up this afternoon to see a lot of posts going on so I can learn from you experts with the experience & hopefully I will not be as stupid next time :lol: