Charities

“In all things I gave you an example, that so laboring ye ought to help the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that he himself said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

(Acts 20:35, ASV)

While one may say that Brother Eli was vocal when it comes to preaching God’s words, it is known to many that he was not all talk. He practiced what he preached.

In fact, despite his old age, Brother Eli continued to labor so that he could keep the varied charities he initiated and supported.

Feeding Program

Bro. Eli Soriano began his
feeding program as a local mission in the Church of God International during his days as a young Church worker.

Today, through the relentless perseverance of the Members Church of God International (MCGI), his feeding programs in the Philippines and abroad continue to help many, especially those who are living on less than a dollar a day to get through to their next meal.

This endeavor of Brother Eli is rooted from a virtue he developed early on in life.

Charitable works by Bro Eli Soriano
School children and their parents were treated to hot meals from the Members Church of God International on December 14, 2018 at the Malipay Elementary School in Bacoor, Cavite.

I know what it’s like to work on an empty stomach or go home after work and have only rice and sugar to eat.”

Charitable works by Bro Eli Soriano
A feeding program held in Caliking Elementary School in Atok, Benguet in the Philippines in September 2019 provided meals to over 150 pupils.

A feeding program held in Caliking Elementary School in Atok, Benguet in the Philippines in September 2019 provided meals to over 150 pupils.

Early Inspiration

They say that “Charity begins at home.” In the case of Brother Eli, it was solidly through the good examples his parents had shown that he learned this virtue.

The Soriano family’s warm and welcoming home was always ready to feed their fellow Church members, relatives, neighbors, friends — even passers-by asking for directions or weary street vendors dropping by to sell their merchandise.

Brother Eli’s parents would treat them to a breakfast of hot coffee, stir-fried rice, dried fish, smoked meat, and eggs.

In abundance or shortage, they cared for their house guests — one of the reasons why they were well-loved and respected in their community.

A Biblical Virtue

Brother Eli loved feeding others, be it by sponsoring or by personally cooking for them.

And while he saw this example from his parents who were already members of the Church of God then, more importantly, he found it as a biblical virtue that ought to be upheld and be taught to others for them to practice also:

Charitable works by Bro Eli Soriano
Members of the Church of God International in Africa serving free food to their fellow people in need.

Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

This was the reason why in the early years of MCGI, Brother Eli would go around the Thanksgiving venue with food on hand and served it to the poor brethren who came to the event without money for meals.

Upon learning that Haitian children ate cookies made from mud and sugar due to extreme poverty, Brother Eli launched a feeding program in the country in September of 2019.

With God’s help, Brother Eli tried his best to conduct feeding programs for people ranging from schoolchildren to the elderly — with the hope that one day, he will be warmly welcomed in Paradise because he fed the Lord Jesus Christ through His brethren.

Charitable works by Bro Eli Soriano
Together with their parents, students at the Sto. Rosario National High School in Nueva Ecija await the free food given during the 100-Day Feeding Program by Brother Eli Soriano and MCGI.

To this day, even after his passing in February 2021, the Church members are ensured to be always fed, as Brother Daniel Razon continues the efforts that Brother Eli had started.

In March 2021, MCGI launched a regular global feeding program that aims to put warm meals in the stomach of the non-members of the Church. 

Charitable works by Bro Eli Soriano

Apart from checkups and medicines during medical missions, the Members Church of God International also hands out free food to inmates in municipal jails in the Philippines.

Apart from checkups and medicines during medical missions, the Members Church of God International also hands out free food to inmates in municipal jails in the Philippines.

La Verdad College

We have spent much to establish this school, and much is to be spent still to sustain it. But we do not look at the amount.

The idea of a person giving someone, or in this case, many, a good chance to quality education may be easily regarded as remarkable. But Brother Eli, together with Brother Daniel Razon, had a more profound reason and inspiration in making education accessible even to the poor:

“It is a sign of those who profess they are of God to understand the needs of their poor fellows. As we can read in I John 3:17, that if you see your brother in need and you have something to share but you shut up your mercy, how will the love of God dwell in you?

“So for God’s love to dwell in a man, he must have the ability to understand the needs even of those who do not ask for his help.”

Starting Small

Being the Overall Servant of MCGI for over five decades, it meant that Brother Eli was no stranger to the wishes of members, and even non-members. One of which is providing education to their children. However, it often happened that when parents became problematic of their children’s tuition fees they would usually run to Brother Eli for help.

And even when Brother Eli just had small businesses to help finance his preaching needs, he usually found himself paying the school fees of other people’s children. But in faith, he happily did so.

Time came when, as the organization grew, requests for educational assistance likewise compounded.

And this gave way to the birth the La Verdad Christian School, situated at the MCGI compound in Apalit, Pampanga, Philippines. Initially, it only had a few hundred of elementary and high school students.

Eventually, with God’s help and mercy, it became La Verdad Christian College (LVCC), with two campuses – one in Pampanga and another in Caloocan City, Metro Manila – both of which offer free education, inclusive of free uniform and free lunch.

The school has now given thousands of its indigent scholars coming from different religious and ethnic backgrounds a college degree and a chance for a better life — all because of the two men who put into practice the Christian values that the Bible teaches.

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Transient Home

It was during one of MCGI’s weekly Thanksgivings when Brother Eli told the congregation that he had talked with Brother Daniel about a film he saw which showed “a place where homeless people could spend an evening for free.”

The movie was Will Smith’s “The Pursuit of Happiness” in 2007.

Charitable works by Bro Eli Soriano
A homeless man sitting by a sidewalk in the U.S.

And thinking of his fellowmen in the Philippines, Brother Eli wished to have the same in his home country.

Little did Brother Eli know that Brother Daniel had also watched the same film and bore the same idea in mind.

And with God’s help and mercy, Brother Eli and Brother Daniel inaugurated the Kamanggagawa Foundation Transient Home along EDSA in Quezon City on October 29, 2008.

Apart from offering a free meal and a bed, social workers were also on standby to assess the cases of the transients to find out whether they still need further help.

The Transient Home welcomed hundreds of transients that needed safe shelter overnight.

Charitable works by Bro Eli Soriano

A street dweller slumps by his belongings on a pavement.

A street dweller slumps by his belongings on a pavement.

After all, that is what it is for. A beacon of hope and an edifice of safety, indeed. But more importantly, through the transient home, Brother Eli and Brother Daniel were able to follow God’s admonition to do good works unto all.

As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

Supported Charities

UNTV Cup

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UNTV Cup

The first-ever charity basketball league on television was supported by Brother Eli Soriano since the launch of its first season in July 2013. The UNTV Cup gathers public servants from various government agencies, and each participating agency has a chosen charitable institution which would be their beneficiary.
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Songs for Heroes

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Songs for Heroes

Songs for Heroes, a series of benefit concerts that started in 2015, was dedicated to the bereaved families of the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The endeavor had given over PHP 21M with personal donations from Brother Eli Soriano.
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Elderly Care

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Elderly Care

Brother Eli's care for the elderly was demonstrated through the Charity Home for the Aged established in 2005 in Apalit, Pampanga. With God’s help and mercy, residents of the charity home are provided with free meals, clothes, vitamins, and necessary medical assistance from MCGI. The group also opened other charity homes for the elderly in key areas across the country to serve more abandoned senior citizens.
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La Verdad Diagnostic Center

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La Verdad Diagnostics Center

The La Verdad Diagnostic Center opened in December 2017 in Apalit, Pampanga. Among the free services it offers include hematology, blood chemistry, x-ray, dental x-ray, ultrasound, 2D echo, and EKG. The diagnostic center, which features state-of-the-art machines and laboratory equipment, is free for anyone in need.
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Medical Missions

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Medical Missions

From the checkups to the equipment to the medicine, Brother Eli helped fund the medical missions of MCGI in the Philippines and in other countries.
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Orphanages

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Orphanages

Brother Eli and Brother Daniel established an Infant Care Center in Apalit, Pampanga. The haven for abandoned babies runs under the guidance of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). MCGI also has centers for minors who were neglected or were voluntarily turned over by their parents or guardians due to poverty.
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Libreng Sakay

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Libreng Sakay

Libreng Sakay, a project of Brother Daniel Razon, was launched in 2007. It offers free transportation to the general public, primarily in Metro Manila's main highways, as well as in some provinces and areas around the country.
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Livelihood Programs

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Livelihood Programs

Brother Eli supported the needy and less fortunate through UNTV's program, "Munting Pangarap" (Small Wish). Launched in October 2008, the program has helped numerous recipients put up their micro-businesses, aside from granting other requests. Brother Eli started the endeavor in MCGI where he grants such requests by poor members of the Church. Today, Brother Eli’s initiative to provide a source of livelihood to others is fulfilled through MCGI’s wish-granting activities.
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And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

Produced by the Members Church of God International for the honor of the Lord God Almighty