Other Programs


Emergency Response, Relief and Assistance (Operation Tulong Express)

Operation Tulong Express (OPTE), SM Foundation's quick-response system, gives immediate assistance to victims of natural calamities and disasters in the form of medicine and other basic needs.
During calamities, SM Foundation leads the implementation of relief operations in coordination with SM Supermarket, Savemore and Hypermarket for the distribution of kalinga (relief) packs. Relief packs consists of mineral water, rice, ready-to-eat meals and instant noodles.
SM establishments are also kept open to serve as temporary shelters for victims in times of calamities. In addition, charging stations are made available to the public in instances when there is no electricity in the affected area.
Through OPTE, SM Foundation distributed a total of 30,547 kalinga (relief) packs to 59 barangays in 2014. Recipients included the victims of the 2014 Cebu fires as well as those who were affected by Typhoons Rammasun (local name: Glenda), Fung-wong (Mario), Kalmaegi (Luis) and Hagupit (Ruby).
SM Foundation received a plaque of recognition from the Department of Health for its relief operations during and after the onslaught of Typhoon Haiyan (local name: Yolanda) at the Awarding of the Unsung Heroes: Typhoon Yolanda Responders event held in July 2014. In August 2014, SM Foundation was also recognized for its quick response during calamities during the 48th Founding Anniversary of the 520th Air Base Wing of the Philippine Air Force.


Felicidad T. Sy Foundation, Inc.

SM Foundation, through its religious affairs division Felicidad T. Sy Foundation Inc. (FTSyFI), actively supports the spiritual development of communities through various religious projects and activities.
In 2014, FTSyFI renovated and redesigned the Chapel of the Miraculous Medal Dedicated and Blessed in General Trias, Cavite. The renovated chapel can now accommodate 150 to 200 mass goers from the nearby villages of Heneral Uno and Heneral Dos.
Aside from church renovations, FTSyFI extended assistance to the construction, renovation, operational expenses and other outreach projects of various seminaries nationwide. Notable projects in 2014 were the renovations of the 50-year old San Pablo Seminary religious center in Baguio, Benguet and the 28-year old Graduate School of Theology of the San Carlos Seminary in Guadalupe, Makati City.
FTSyFI also attends to the mass requirements of 32 SM malls celebrating first Friday and Sunday masses nationwide. Other projects of the FTSyFI include support to various convents, orphanages, foundations and schools throughout the country.
FTSyFI, active in promoting spiritual development within the SM Group, also conducted its first ever Lectors' Training for SM employee-mass servers in January 2014, followed by a second batch in October 2014. A total of 88 employees were trained.
FTSyFI also held its first mass wedding for employees as a prerequisite to the Lectors' Training in 2014. Fourteen couples received the Sacrament of Matrimony on September 29.

Grow A Million Trees

The SM Group of Companies believes in creating a self-sustainable community through environmental-conscious efforts. Aside from its greening initiatives inside malls, SM continues with its greening advocacies through the Grow A Million Trees Program (GAMT).
An initiative of the SM Supermarket (SuperValue, Inc.), the GAMT was launched in 2013 in support of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources' (DENR) Forest Management Bureau's National Greening Program's goal of planting 1.5 billion trees from 2011-2016.
On July 21, 2014, the SM Group re-launched the GAMT to reinstate its commitment to the program. The GAMT was rolled out in six areas, namely: Camarines Sur; General Santos; Laguna; Negros Occidental; Magalang, Pampanga; and Subic. Over 20 kinds of saplings were planted throughout the year.
SM Foundation takes this initiative further by advocating the importance of not only planting but growing trees as well. Volunteers and the Peoples' Organizations (POs) who were involved in GAMT activities are guided on how to properly plant and care for the saplings. In addition to this, GAMT also generates jobs for POs by tapping them to help care, maintain and protect the trees for the next three years.
A total of 89,062 saplings were planted by 1,266 SM employees and affiliates in 2014. To date, 426,186 saplings have already been planted under the program.
To ensure the growth and care for the saplings, the DENR monitors the progress of the sites every three months in the next three years.



Haiyan (Yolanda) Rehabilitation Program

SM Foundation realizes that the road to recovery should be continuously sustained. This is why it has mobilized its many advocacies to help in its post-Haiyan (local name: Yolanda) rehabilitation efforts.

Education

For school year 2014-2015, 100 students from the Visayas region were granted additional college scholarships under the SM College Scholarship Program. These students, along with other SM Scholars, are provided with free tuition fees, monthly stipends and summer/Christmas part time opportunities.
SM Foundation also supports the government's rehabilitation efforts by rebuilding public school buildings. In 2014, SM Foundation completed the construction of 8 school buildings with 48 classrooms for Haiyan-stricken areas. They are Polambato Elementary School, Lantangan Elementary School, Ibajay National High School, Pedro E. Candido Memorial National High School, San Roque Elementary School and Tacloban National High School.
Each two-storey, four-classroom school building comes with 200 student armchairs, 16 wall fans, eight blackboards, four teachers' desk sets and four toilets. In addition to these, SM Foundation also handles the regular maintenance and upkeep of these school buildings.

Health

A priority project of SM Foundation under its Haiyan Rehabilitation Program is the renovation and refurbishing of the Tacloban City Hospital. The hospital serves 220,000 individuals from the nearby 138 barangays in Tacloban.
Included in the reconstruction are the hospital's main building, the outpatient department and the outbreak/epidemic ward. SM Foundation also upgraded the hospital's 50-bed capacity to 100 beds, expanded its emergency room, constructed a malnutrition ward and built a prayer room. Lastly, SM Foundation added a new Felicidad T. Sy Wellness Center for the Children and the Elderly.
The turnover of the Tacloban City Hospital on August 27, 2014 marked the hospital's accreditation as a level 2 medical facility under the Department of Health's Hospital Capability Levels. Through this accreditation, the Tacloban City Hospital can now accommodate surgical procedures of a larger scope and help even more patients.
In addition to this, SM Foundation completed the reconstruction of the Tabontabon Rural Health Center in Leyte and the San Remigio Rural Health Center in Cebu in 2014. SM Foundation also conducted 20 medical missions in the Haiyan-stricken areas of Cebu, Capiz, Iloilo, Leyte and Samar. Patients were provided with free medical services, tests, consultation, medicine and dental assistance benefitting 10,354 survivors in this rehabilitation program.

Farmers' Training Program (Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan)

Beyond relief assistance, SM Foundation created self-supporting opportunities for families in Haiyan-affected areas in Visayas. In 2014, SM Foundation, in partnership with Harbest Agribusiness, the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Social Welfare and Development, conducted 10 farmers' training in Haiyan-stricken areas, benefitting 1,682 farmer-trainees. Areas included in the training were Aklan, Cebu, Eastern Samar, Iloilo, Leyte, Negros Occidental, Samar and Panay Island.
Residents from affected areas found renewed hope through farming. Through the SM Foundation's Farmers' Training Program, they were given a chance to learn about modern backyard-farming methods to help them restore their livelihood.

SM Cares Housing Program

SM Cares, a division of SM Foundation, Inc., plans to finish 5 villages with 200 houses each or a total of 1,000 houses for those whose homes were totally damaged by Typhoon Haiyan. Each village will have a community center, playground, basketball court and other facilities for small and medium enterprises. Houses were built to be disaster-resilient with concrete ceilings and plenty of ventilation.
On November 9, 2014, SM Cares turned over its first SM Cares Village in Brgy. Polambato, Bogo City, Cebu. Other SM Cares Villages already identified and expected to be completed in 2015 are located in Tacloban City, Ormoc City and in Concepcion, Iloilo.
Potential beneficiaries will be responsible for painting the houses, beautification of the community, planting flower plants in the vicinity, and maintaining cleanliness and order. They will also be asked to help in the rebuilding of schools, hospitals and churches of the municipality. Lastly, SM Cares requires each family beneficiary to plant 30 trees in pre-identified areas near their village.