Key Points
- Filipio Australian business owner Elizabeth Hermosura is supporting Bahay Tuluyan.
- Bahay Tuluyan supports street children by providing them shelter and develop skills to assist in future employemnt.
- They provide both monetary support and mentorship programs.
Elizabeth Hermosura's IT company, DysruptIT is currently based in Manila, Philippines. They provide services to companies around the globe, 'when we started the company, we chose the Philippines because this is where I was born, and providing employment to the Filipinos was one of our main objectives in positioning our company in the region.'
Elizabeth and her family, Andrew McCarroll – CEO of DysrupIT. Alexandra Brookes, Hendrix McCarroll, Cooper McCarroll, Bowie McCarroll, Frankie McCarroll and our dog Roco. Credit: supplied by Elizabeth Hermosura
Mother of five, Elizabeth has always had a soft spot for children, 'l love kids, ever since I was young I always looked after kids'.
While living in Sydney, she devoted her free time to teaching children coding, 'in my corporate roles, I always made sure I gave something back to the kids, because I was in the IT industry, I helped set up CoderDojo NSW, teaching kids aged 5-12 years old code.'
Finding a new home in the Philippines
Always on the lookout for ways to pay it forward, Elizabeth formed another partnership with Manila-based Bahay Tuluyan. 'I saw a video on YouTube and the work that Catherine is doing with children who have been affected and used in drug trafficking during then President Duterte's war on drugs. When all the drug lords were captured or their operations seized, these kids were left on the streets with nothing.'
That prompted the Filipino Australian business owner to contact Bahay Tuluyan's Catherine Scerri and take action. 'A percentage of our profits go to Bahay Tuluyan to help provide for their basic needs but more than that we assist them in developing skills that will not only help them find employment but their life purpose too.' Apart from supporting the children in learning new skills, they also assist Bahay Tulyan staff in improving their skills through a mentoring program.'
