Can you help the selfless father in viral photo?

MANILA, Philippines – The image of a man watching his daughters eat their fried chicken in a fast-food restaurant moved online users as it spread rapidly through the Internet on Sunday,  March 12. He had no food in front of him. 

“This is a photograph of a father’s love. A depiction of genuine selflessness,” according to Jhunnel Sarajan, the Facebook user who posted the photo.

The man’s name is Ryan Arabuebo, a single father from the Tondo slums in Manila who struggles to make ends meet as a street vendor. He earns P100 to P200 pesos a day, according to Sarajan, who talked to Arabuebo’s family. 

Arabuebo suffered a stroke and has difficulty speaking. Despite his condition, he tries his best to provide for his children and give them a treat once in a while. 

 

 

 

From compassion to action

The photo has already generated more than 129, 000 likes and close to 72,000 shares as of posting, touching the hearts of many online users.

Sarajan urged online users to help Arabuebo and his family with their medical, educational, and livelihood needs.

“Let us convert our compassion into action,” he said in another Facebook post. 

According to Sarajan, donors may reach out to JR Arebuabo, the single father’s uncle, for any offer of assistance. Below are JR’s contact details:

• Mobile phone number: +63 947 767 0020

• Address: Barangay 61 Zone 5, District 1, Manila

 

 

DSWD to assist selfless father

Meanwhile, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) will assist Arabuebo, whose family is a Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiary, to avail himself of free check-up and medicines at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in Manila, Assistant Secretary Hope Hervilla told Rappler.

The DSWD has partnered with some hospitals to provide free medicines to poor patients with validated medical prescriptions. The program is covered by the P1-billion medicine fund from President Rodrigo Duterte’s Social Fund. 

Arabuebo can initially access the fund for three months, according to Hervilla. 

Under the program, beneficiaries will not receive any cash but referral letters from DSWD which beneficiaries will take to the agency’s partner-drugstores and hospital pharmacies.

Those who need medicine should bring and submit the following documents to the nearest DSWD Crisis Intervention Unit (CIU):

• Clinical abstract/medical certificate with full name, signature, and license number of the attending physician (issued not later than three months)
• The doctor’s prescription with date and the name of the patient. The prescription should be signed by the attending physician with license number indicated)
• Barangay certificate of indigency or Indigent Card issued by the medical social service of the hospital
• Any valid ID of the client

“If the prescription costs P5,000 or less, confirmation by the doctor or his/her duly certified representative of the veracity of the prescription is sufficient for the DSWD to provide the assistance,” Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo earlier said. – with reports from Voltaire Tupaz and Enrico Belga/Rappler.com