You are never too young to make a difference.
You must have heard millions of times how young people have the power to change the world.
Most of you probably regarded this only as a saying and never dwelled deeper to check whether the youth really holds that much power.
But it does – Umanday, Bugallon Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) chairperson Edren Llanillo and his “Go Bike Project” show us exactly why this is true.
The Go Bike Project was founded in 2019 by Llanillo and two of his friends.
They called themselves Team PadyaRescue and partnered with the Sangguniang Council of Umanday.
“The Go Bike Project aims to encourage the youth to be emergency responders in times of crisis; we train the youth to be responders when it comes to health emergencies and natural disasters,” Llanillo said during the Network Briefing News of the Presidential Communications Operations Office on Monday.
He added, “We also customize bicycles we call Go Bike where we put first aid kits, BP apparatus, and disaster response paraphernalia that the trained volunteers can use in responding to emergencies.”
Its operator is a volunteer, aptly called a Go Biker, who undergoes multiple capacity-building programs to become adequate first responders.
These Go Bikers have a common goal: to save lives – one ride at a time.
Using Go Bikes, bike patrollers do regular checking of blood pressure and monitoring of blood sugar level and other vital signs to residents in need.
Through the Ronda Kalusugan Program, the bike patrollers also help in distributing relief goods and instructional materials on coronavirus safety guidelines from the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (MDRRMC) to homes in the barangay.
Equipped with basic life support skills, bike patrollers got their training from the Philippine Red Cross-Dagupan Chapter and the MDRRMC of Bugallon.
Llanillo aspires to bring the project to other barangays as he aims to work closely with fellow SK officials in the province.
Aside from Barangay Umanday, the villages of Poblacion, Banaga, Salasa, and Salomague Norte have also replicated the use of bikes for their emergency response.
This story proves that age isn’t an obstacle to helping others.
No matter how young you may be, if you have a heart for serving others, you can participate in positively changing your society.
If you have a strong passion for something, you should do it and make the greatest impact on your community. (JCR/AMB/PIA Pangasinan)
