Around 500 Badjao families here received Christmas goodies during a gift-giving activity initiated by SM Cares, a division of SM Foundation, on Monday.

“I extend my gratitude to SM Cares for this heartwarming initiative,” Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella said.

The mayor hoped the in-kind assistance would give joy to these families this Christmas.

He cited the good partnership between the private sector and the city government in carrying out community projects like this.

He said the city government, through the Cebu City Anti-Mendicancy Office (CCAMO) and Department of Social Welfare Services (DSWS), supported the SM Seaside City Cebu’s gift-giving activity dubbed as “Christmas Kalinga” at the Plaza Independencia.

Personnel from CCAMO and DSWS assisted in the distribution of the goods to the Badjao beneficiaries who currently reside in Barangay Mambaling.

Michelle Llanes, vice president of SM Seaside Supermarket, said the Christmas gift-giving is a nationwide initiative of the SM Group, which helps the poor, including the Badjao families.

Meanwhile, the city government also distributed on Monday sacks of rice to almost 400 street vendors here.

The Prevention, Restoration, Order, Beautification, and Enhancement (PROBE) office held the distribution at the Plaza Independencia.

Most of the vendor-beneficiaries are those who are stationed in Colon Street and were affected by the clearing operation in the city’s sidewalks following an order from the Department of the Interior and Local Government. (PNA)