- Cheryl G. Cruz
SM Cares, the corporate social responsibility arm of SM Supermalls, held the seventh leg of the Emergency Preparedness Forum for senior citizens and persons with disabilities (PWDs) at SM City Bacolod July 31.
More than a hundred senior citizens and PWDs gathered at the mall’s atrium this morning to learn about natural hazards, such as floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions, and on how to be ready and cope with such situations.
SM Supermalls senior vice president, Engr. Bien Mateo, who is also the SM Cares Program on PWDs director, told the media that the elderly and PWDs are usually the ones at risk and most vulnerable during natural disasters.
“So sa mga ganitong forum, nakakatulong tayo na ihanda ang ating mga vulnerable population – the senior citizens and PWDs – against sa mga kalamidad,” Mateo said.
SM Cares believes that emergency preparedness should be inclusive. “We want these vulnerable sectors to be equipped and ready for whatever may come,” Mateo said in a statement. “The Emergency Preparedness Forum aims to build more resilient communities.”
In preparing for emergencies and calamities, SM Cares believes that no one should be left behind. “That is what inspires us to continue mounting this forum. Our goal is to empower our senior citizens and PWDs with the essential survival skills and know-how so that they will be ready for any circumstance,” he added.
The series of fora this year started July 5 at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City, as part of the National Disaster Resilience Month observance this July. Succeeding events were held at SM City San Pablo, SM Center Lemery, SM City Consolacion, SM Center Ormoc, SM Lanang Premier, and in Bacolod City. On Aug. 5, the last leg of the forum-caravan will be held at SM City Tuguegarao.
The mall said that prior to the holding of the series of fora, a pledge of commitment signing was held between SM Supermalls and partner-organizations, like the Office of Civil Defense, Department of Science and Technology, National Commission of Senior Citizens, and the National Council on Disability Affairs.
Senators Loren Legarda and Risa Hontiveros, and DOST Secretary Renato Solidum gave special video messages to forum attendees. University of the Philippines Resilience Institute executive director, Dr. Mahar Lagmay, was also one of the resource speakers at the event attended by Councilor Celia Flor, who is the chairperson of the Sangguniang Panlungsod Committee on Senior Citizens, and SM Bacolod executives, among others.
Each participant, meanwhile, received an SM emergency pack, a whistle with lanyard, and a survival tool card, among others.
The mall said that SM Cares has been able to provide training to more than 7,000 senior citizens and PWDs across the country since the forum started in 2015, and was awarded Gold in 2020 and Silver in 2023, at the Public Relations Society of the Philippines’ annual Anvil Awards.
SM Cares supports initiatives focused on communities and the environment, and is an active advocate for programs on the protection and preservation of the environment, PWDs, women and breastfeeding mothers, children and youth, senior citizens, and the SM bike-friendly initiative, the mall added./CGC
