It was such a heartwarming surprise when Ricky Reyes received a Viber message from an anonymous sender last December.
“My staff will deposit 100K to Childhaus today,” the message went, “Read an article about ChildHaus last December 24 and since I have excess funds remaining for charity this year, I decided to give it to ChildHaus. God bless us all.”
It was signed: Dragon xs, Friends of Hans.
Ricky Reyes — or Mother Ricky as he is fondly called — was so touched that ever since SM magnate Hans Sy came into the fold of ChildHaus, a temporary shelter for children with cancer, his good deeds have created a ripple effect in his circle and inspired others to extend a helping hand to the patients and families of ChildHaus.
Because of his untiring support to help the sick children and inspired by the sincere example shown by Sy, many have followed suit, including celebrities who have quietly been supporting the center for years.
“Who would expect that a busy young magnate like Hans Sy would still have the time to talk to me about the welfare of the Center and the children it serves?” said Ricky, “Hans would sometime cut short his trips and drop some appointments just to join in some important occasions at the Center. He would always come to Childhaus together with his wife Carol and their children. Last Christmas party was extra special since the family spent a lot of time with the children.
“Most of the time, Hans would tag along some friends around his business aircle and would personally show them around the Center, even bringing the NU Basketball Team one time just to give cheer to the children. And always, at his request, the children would always be Hans’ personal guests in some entertainment events in SM Malls and SM Arena, just like the previous visits of NBA superstar LeBron James, among others,” he further related.
Last year, Hans even saw to it to do something about the mothers of the children so they could be more productive while spending time taking care of their children. A livelihood program was formed for the caregivers to help augment their families’ income.
With Mother Ricky at the helm, the ChildHaus parents collaborated with bag makers to help in accessorizing export-quality bags. Their efforts paid off, and Hans Sy even provided a free space at SM North EDSA for the products to be sold. It was just a beginning, and Hans and Ricky were just too happy with the wonderful result.
Of course, the impact created by the sincere and selfless contribution of Hans Sy did not go unnoticed. He was recently cited by Forbes magazine as one of the “Heroes of Philanthropy” for the year 2019. Actress Angel Locsin was also part of the list.
“He is happy with the citation but quite a bit embarrassed as he is humbled by what he does for Childhaus. I think what he considered his big reward is seeing the happy faces of the children at ChildHaus and their grateful parents,” Reyes remarked.
Ricky couldn’t be any happier by the sudden turn of events. Over the past years, ever since Hans became involved in ChildHaus, the center has turned a lot of people into good Samaritans — some anonymously like the one mentioned above. Many people from the various sectors of society are inspired to lend a helping hand to ChildHaus because of the example Hans has set.
He is a titan in the business arena, but to the many ChildHaus residents, they have found a true hero of philanthropy in their Kuya Hans Sy.
