ISM strives to achieve ‘integrity, meritand service’, and therefore it comes as no surprise that there has always been a strong emphasis on service and working closely with the local community, so much so to the point that various aspects of service have become an integral part of student life at the school. In the high school, there are over thirty student-run clubs that make regular visits to a designated service partner. One such example is the SPECS (Spiritual, Physical, Educational, Cultural, Social) club.
Senior Ayra Siddiq, this year’s SPECS president, states that she had a shift of mindset as soonas she visited the Parañaque dumpsite, the location in which the club’s partner organization is situated. “The families lived among graves, unburied bones were put into plastic bags, and their main source of income was picking trash at the garbage dump,” recalls Ayra. Although living conditions were anything but clean and picturesque, it was the smiles on the children’s faces in spite of these conditions that inspired Ayra and made her realize that “[she] was not going to pretend like the problem does not exist.” Junior Reine Mendoza, co-PRO of the club, added, “SPECS was my eye-opener to the cruel reality that those kids have to face.”
Although service in ISM is extensive and plentiful, connected to a wide range of organizations, there also seems to be a problem of the lack of genuine enthusiasm for these service activities. Some students still see Saturday Service trips as merely a way to obtain CAS hours. “It is important to open our eyes and see the real world, to see people who live a hard life, and if we can, give them a helping hand,” maintains Ayra. At its core, SPECS, like many other organizations, wishes to allow less fortunate children to see a brighter future by simply switching on a light of hope.
Learn more about SPECS here: http://specstecc.wordpress.com/
Written by: Isabel Wilson
Photographs by: Ayra Siddiq
