P.U.S.O. has established its first branch at BLD Newark (Catholic Youth Group) and is currently working on establishing branches at BLD Trenton, Union High School, Union NJ and Hudson Catholic High School, Jersey City NJ. I have finished organizing & outlining the logistics of the effort. I am currently working on networking and getting P.U.S.O. known throughout New Jersey. Here are some events/activities that the community can expect from P.U.S.O. in the future:
Fundraiser Events
Filipino Food Sales
Snack Sales
PUSO T-shirt Sales
Car Washes
Athletic / Dance Competitions
Filipino Fair
Concerts
General Donation Collections
Oversea Trips to the PI
& MUCH MORE!!! (once we think of new ideas)
P.U.S.O. will soon have a domain set-up to eliminate the annoying GeoCities pop-ups. Setting up a domain is quite cheap -- $7.95/yr at GoDaddy.com. Administration will have their own E-mail addresses, which is pretty cool.
Becoming a 501(c)(3) organization requires a LOT of paper-pushing. However, in order to gain reputability and to assure people that the money isn't being pocketed, P.U.S.O. will eventually have to become 501(c)(3). If you're wondering what 501(c)(3) is, essentially it means that the organization is non-profit, and thus tax-exempt. I'll probably need my guidance counselor's assistance or even my prinicipal in regards to this matter.
P.U.S.O. plans to expand & branch out to all states in the US as well as
all the provinces of the Philippines within the coming years. Since it is a very
new organization, P.U.S.O. will be concentrated in the NJ-NY-PA
area and serve parts Iloilo and other Visaya provinces. However, once communities all over the country get word of P.U.S.O.'s efforts, thousands of teenagers in the US will unite together in collaboration with teenagers in the Philippines to help put an end to poverty in the Philippines. P.U.S.O. will surely create new purpose-driven leaders that strive to attain a greater good in the world. I'm very confident that within the next few years, P.U.S.O. will have helped thousands of students acquire an excellent education, as well as give tens of thousands of teenagers the opportunity to help mold the future leaders of the Philippines.
Here is general outline of the steps required to establish PUSO:
Pitch proposal to a number of community members, such as youth groups, schools, etc
Catch members' interest; forward idea to other members
Pitch proposal to the head coordinators or administrators of the community
Arrange meeting with head coordinators/administrators
Discuss PUSO with coordinators/admin. face to face
Get approval of head coordinators/admin.
Create proposal for youth community members
Arrange a proposal pitch date
Present PUSO to youth community members
Ask members to volunteer their services; sign up sheets for PUSO leader positions
Q&A session about PUSO
Collaborate with selected subdivision leaders; brainstorm fundraiser ideas
Issue each subdivision leader a box
Initiate fundraiser/donation events
Contact balikbayan box service; request for discount if available
Ask for any volunteers to sponsor a box
Once box is filled, subdivision leaders contact branch leaders
Get inventory of box contents; contact balikbayan box service
Get in touch with Philippine contacts; collaborate & determine the box's destination
Ship the balikbayan box
Within 1-2 months, PI will receive box
PUSO coordinators overseas will receives box
PI PUSO coordinators will go to school & distribute goods
Head coordinators overseas will write a reflection on experience (positives, negatives, conflicts)
Coordinators in NJ will receive feedback; relay feedback to community.