01 Bayabas St. Western Bicutan, Taguig City, Metro Manila 1630, Philippines

Community Profile: Western Bicutan is an area of metropolitan Manila. There are about 6000 people living there. Most congregants are settlers from other parts of Metro Manila. Many have roots in the southern part of the Philippines, in the Visayas and Mindanao. Reaching Bicutan is not difficult as international air flight is common to Manila. However arrangements would need to be made with the local UU community for a visit to Bicutan once one arrives in Manila. The Metro area of Manila is very large and local assistance is important in making visit arrangements.

Tagalog, also known as Filipino, is spoken by everyone. Cebuano, or Visayan, is spoken by a significant percentage of the population. English is widely understood but not as well spoken.

Members of the community are vendors, factory workers working in garments, electronics, food processing companies. Some are carpenters and do odd jobs. A few are employed as caddies or umbrella girls in the two nearby golf courses. Many also have “sari-sari” or variety stores.

Cleanliness is an issue in Bicutan. The streets near the area are quite dirty. Crime has improved since a new village captain introduced a roving patrol. Drug use is a problem, but the neighborhood crystal meth dealer was caught by the new village captain. Unemployment is a big problem. Many are jobless or underemployed. Running water is privately provided and is expensive for most of the people in the area, at P600 a month. Electricity is also private and is relatively expensive compared to other Asian countries.

The community is in general crowded, and the sewage is poor. Raw sewage sometimes overflows onto the streets. Improvements are supposedly in the offing.Dengue is a problem because of the prevalence of stagnant water. Flu cases are common. Most community members also do not have health insurance. Roads are too narrow and not designed for the population of the community. Double parking by some residents who own vehicles makes passage very difficult.

The UU community celebrates the major Christian holidays of Christmas, Easter, All Saints Day and also Independence Day. The UUs are seen as Liberal Christian and generally are not seen in a negative light. Some think that UUs have no God because they have researched UUs on the internet.

The congregation meets once a week for Bible study with Pastor Carlos. The Sunday worship leaders change every week. Often youth lead the worship.

The congregation has 3 programs. One is a microfinance program that has over 60 borrowers. The second is the scholarship program that is helping send three youth on to higher education. The third is the “tempah” or soy meat alternative making program. It was started when Michael Lim got some of the ladies in the community to join a seminar on how to make it. But the program of late has been having some difficulties finding a market for the product.

The Congregation: : The Bicutan congregation started in 2005 as a Bible study group of Greg Polistico, an ex-Jehovah’s Witness. It was an offshoot of the Dawn Bible Student group he started in 2001. In 2005, Bicutan became a UU congregation with the help of Michael Lim and Bob Guerrero. They have been meeting as UUs ever since.

Michael Lim, a Malaysian former Senior Restructuring Specialist for the Asian Development Bank, used to attend UU congregations when he lived on the States and was very influencial in bringing UU ideas to the Metro Manila area. He has retired and now lives in Malaysia. But he continues to be very supportive of the Manila UUs.

Bob Guerrero found the UU faith on the internet in 2005 and has been active with the Bicutan congregation ever since. He runs the microfinance program and is the President of the congregation.

Norma Maesa is the treasurer. She also helps Bob run the microfinance program. Norma is one of the pillars of the community: she is very committed.

Greg Polistico is a former Jehovah’s Winess. Although he founded this UU community, he now concentrates more on his Bible study group. But he attends occasionally and remains a dear friend of the community.

Fidela Escalera is a Board Member who owns the land where the structure sits. She has leased it to the group for free for two years stating January 2006.

The Minister: Rev. Carlos Gomez Angana. Wkm. P. dela cruz St.s Kaybiga Caloocan City. Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, San Francis Xavier Seminary, Catalunan Drande, Davao city. He also graduated with a Bachelor of Art in Economics, Bukidnon State University. He speaks some English.

Make up of the Congregation: The congregation is composed of 15-20 adults, about 5-6 youth and 20 children.

Partnership Contact Person: Bob Guerrero, 60 Aries St., Bel-Air 3. Makati City, Metro Manila, 1209 Philippines. Email: bhobg@yahoo.com Mobile phone: +63 917 532 4785 Bob speaks excellent English and is very good at communications.