Fun’s the word at DWC’s first anniversary

It may have been the first time many of them had met, but the more than 100 Filipino migrant workers who attended the first anniversary party of Domestic Workers Corner at Pier 9 in Central on Sept 25 certainly did not show it.

The DWC members who attended the ground-breaking event all took delight in taking part in the contests, dancing, games, and the overall merriment led by the group’s founder, Rodelia Villar, who is known to most of them by her Facebook name, “Lovely.”

Members and guests fill one end of Pier 9.

Villar, a church volunteer who also contributes articles to The SUN, said about 300 members had signed up to join the celebration, but she was not sure how many had actually turned up.

She said the members agreed to just have a good time on the day, so they pooled their money to get food delivered to them during the party, and the rest used to buy gifts for winners of the fun games and contests.

Members managed to show that without spending more than their usual allowance during their days off, they could stage beauty contests, fashion face-offs and have a lot of clean, good, fun.

In a Facebook post after the successful event, Villar said: “Thank you, Lord. Di ko man akalain na ito ng marating ng isang adik sa Facebook.”

Among the guests at the event was Daisy CL Mandap, editor of The SUN, who congratulated the group for being relevant and helpful to the migrant workers community in Hong Kong despite being around for just a year.

She also praised members for helping each other in times of need, both big and mundane, as when they give advice on how certain Chinese dishes should be cooked. She also encouraged them to encourage each other to save and avoid getting enmeshed in debt so they can rejoin their families in the Philippines faster.

Villar first formed Domestic Workers Corner Hong Kong a year ago, hoping to turn it into a forum for exchanging ideas among migrant workers, but it became very successful that she felt compelled to form other pages to manage members’ concerns better.

These include the “It’s All About Food” page, where members are encouraged to share recipes and cooking tips, and extend help to newcomers struggling to cook food to their employers’ liking. This appears to be the most popular among the DWC groups as it now has more than 34,000 members.

Another page, DWC Group for Cantonese, is a tutorial page for migrant workers who want to learn the local language to be able to manage their way around better, and maybe score points with their employers.

Two groups, DWC Help Group and Help Group Chat, allows members to consult about work-related problems and other concerns. These extension groups have enabled Villar and her fellow administrators in the main page to extend help to hundreds of migrant workers, including those in extremely dire situations.