The Extra Mile
By Apolinario Villalobos
The extra mile I am referring to is about the effort that we exert to help other people without expecting any return. While some companies make such effort an integral part of their service to gain promo mileage, there are people who just do the act as if it is a part of their system. And, it is nice to know that despite the prevailing modernity in our environment today, this kindly act is still very much noticeable.
Volunteerism is a simpler word that can easily define the effort. For those who are fond of browsing the electronic web to while their time away, a prominent group of volunteers composed of medical practioners, can easily catch the attention, and whose advocacy is to serve the persons with disability (PWD’s). It is the group of Dr. Josephine Bundoc of UERMMMCI and UP-PGH which has been instrumental in providing artificial limbs to PWD’s who live in as far as the southern island of Mindanao.
Unsung heroes of calamities deserve profound appreciation for joining the throng of volunteers from all walks of life who show up at relief operation centers to repack donated goods or find their place in a line of donation handlers at evacuation sites. They are one in saying that they have no money to spare but they have the hands to serve.
These “angels” just pop up at a moment and just anywhere when help is much needed. One Wednesday morning, while waiting for a ride to Cavite, I saw a woman who panicked when a bulging plastic bag that she was carrying just gave up and let go of her groceries. As I doubled my steps toward her, a boy in a tattered shirt appeared from nowhere and helped her gather the groceries. When I finally reached her, the boy told us to wait while he would get another bag for the groceries. In a few minutes he was back with a bag as promised and after all the groceries found their way into the bag, the boy bid us goodbye, leaving the woman and I unprepared for we were not given the chance to say thanks or hand him a few coins for his snacks as an expression of gratitude.
The country’s flag carrier, Philippine Airlines had the so-called Total Passenger Care Program during the ‘80s that further illuminated its image. Practically, all employees were encouraged to make an extra step for the comfort of customers, from mere inquiry by phone or at any office to their arrival at destination. Answering the phone the proper way and speaking in unhurried manner is already an extra mile to make callers comfortable and at ease, thereby, encouraging them to ask more questions. A sincere smile of the counter personnel attending to the needs of customers at the ticketing office, makes the latter happy to be served by the company.
In Davao airport, I had the chance to witness how all staff of Philippine Airlines, manning the check- in counter and the load control office where the supervisor was also based, managed to handle a critical situation due to unexpected overflow of passengers. The situation was made worse by those who came all the way from General Santos airport where they got bumped off. All personnel act in synch with each other without even a faint trace of snootiness despite the pressure. Instead, every now and then, they would apologize for the inconvenience, although, their best effort to accommodate everybody was evident. The supervisor himself, Archie Batu showed coolness that the rest of the staff emulated until the last flight was dispatched. Although, about three or four were forced to wait for the next day’s flight for accommodation, no grumbling from them was heard, because they saw how miles and miles of extra effort were exerted but to no avail. The following day, the rest of overflow was accommodated. I was among them.
The extra mile can go a long way in developing satisfaction among customers. It also gives hope to those who consider themselves unwanted by society because of their deficiencies. If the extra mile that a person takes can be connected with the rest of extra miles of the millions of people on earth, it can go around the globe. And, that is the idea…extra miles of kindness that can unite humanity.
The Extra Mile
By Apolinario Villalobos
The extra mile I am referring to is about the effort that we exert to help other people without expecting any return. While some companies make such effort an integral part of their service to gain promo mileage, there are people who just do the act as if it is a part of their system. And, it is nice to know that despite the prevailing modernity in our environment today, this kindly act is still very much noticeable.
Volunteerism is a simpler word that can easily define the effort. For those who are fond of browsing the electronic web to while their time away, a prominent group of volunteers composed of medical practioners, can easily catch the attention, and whose advocacy is to serve the persons with disability (PWD’s). It is the group of Dr. Josephine Bundoc of UERMMMCI and UP-PGH which has been instrumental in providing artificial limbs to PWD’s who live in as far as the southern island of Mindanao.
Unsung heroes of calamities deserve profound appreciation for joining the throng of volunteers from all walks of life who show up at relief operation centers to repack donated goods or find their place in a line of donation handlers at evacuation sites. They are one in saying that they have no money to spare but they have the hands to serve.
These “angels” just pop up at a moment and just anywhere when help is much needed. One Wednesday morning, while waiting for a ride to Cavite, I saw a woman who panicked when a bulging plastic bag that she was carrying just gave up and let go of her groceries. As I doubled my steps toward her, a boy in a tattered shirt appeared from nowhere and helped her gather the groceries. When I finally reached her, the boy told us to wait while he would get another bag for the groceries. In a few minutes he was back with a bag as promised and after all the groceries found their way into the bag, the boy bid us goodbye, leaving the woman and I unprepared for we were not given the chance to say thanks or hand him a few coins for his snacks as an expression of gratitude.
The country’s flag carrier, Philippine Airlines had the so-called Total Passenger Care Program during the ‘80s that further illuminated its image. Practically, all employees were encouraged to make an extra step for the comfort of customers, from mere inquiry by phone or at any office to their arrival at destination. Answering the phone the proper way and speaking in unhurried manner is already an extra mile to make callers comfortable and at ease, thereby, encouraging them to ask more questions. A sincere smile of the counter personnel attending to the needs of customers at the ticketing office, makes the latter happy to be served by the company.
In Davao airport, I had the chance to witness how all staff of Philippine Airlines, manning the check- in counter and the load control office where the supervisor was also based, managed to handle a critical situation due to unexpected overflow of passengers. The situation was made worse by those who came all the way from General Santos airport where they got bumped off. All personnel act in synch with each other without even a faint trace of snootiness despite the pressure. Instead, every now and then, they would apologize for the inconvenience, although, their best effort to accommodate everybody was evident. The supervisor himself, Archie Batu showed coolness that the rest of the staff emulated until the last flight was dispatched. Although, about three or four were forced to wait for the next day’s flight for accommodation, no grumbling from them was heard, because they saw how miles and miles of extra effort were exerted but to no avail. The following day, the rest of overflow was accommodated. I was among them.
The extra mile can go a long way in developing satisfaction among customers. It also gives hope to those who consider themselves unwanted by society because of their deficiencies. If the extra mile that a person takes can be connected with the rest of extra miles of the millions of people on earth, it can go around the globe. And, that is the idea…extra miles of kindness that can unite humanity.
The Extra Mile
By Apolinario Villalobos
The extra mile I am referring to is about the effort that we exert to help other people without expecting any return. While some companies make such effort an integral part of their service to gain promo mileage, there are people who just do the act as if it is a part of their system. And, it is nice to know that despite the prevailing modernity in our environment today, this kindly act is still very much noticeable.
Volunteerism is a simpler word that can easily define the effort. For those who are fond of browsing the electronic web to while their time away, a prominent group of volunteers composed of medical practioners, can easily catch the attention, and whose advocacy is to serve the persons with disability (PWD’s). It is the group of Dr. Josephine Bundoc of UERMMMCI and UP-PGH which has been instrumental in providing artificial limbs to PWD’s who live in as far as the southern island of Mindanao.
Unsung heroes of calamities deserve profound appreciation for joining the throng of volunteers from all walks of life who show up at relief operation centers to repack donated goods or find their place in a line of donation handlers at evacuation sites. They are one in saying that they have no money to spare but they have the hands to serve.
These “angels” just pop up at a moment and just anywhere when help is much needed. One Wednesday morning, while waiting for a ride to Cavite, I saw a woman who panicked when a bulging plastic bag that she was carrying just gave up and let go of her groceries. As I doubled my steps toward her, a boy in a tattered shirt appeared from nowhere and helped her gather the groceries. When I finally reached her, the boy told us to wait while he would get another bag for the groceries. In a few minutes he was back with a bag as promised and after all the groceries found their way into the bag, the boy bid us goodbye, leaving the woman and I unprepared for we were not given the chance to say thanks or hand him a few coins for his snacks as an expression of gratitude.
The country’s flag carrier, Philippine Airlines had the so-called Total Passenger Care Program during the ‘80s that further illuminated its image. Practically, all employees were encouraged to make an extra step for the comfort of customers, from mere inquiry by phone or at any office to their arrival at destination. Answering the phone the proper way and speaking in unhurried manner is already an extra mile to make callers comfortable and at ease, thereby, encouraging them to ask more questions. A sincere smile of the counter personnel attending to the needs of customers at the ticketing office, makes the latter happy to be served by the company.
In Davao airport, I had the chance to witness how all staff of Philippine Airlines, manning the check- in counter and the load control office where the supervisor was also based, managed to handle a critical situation due to unexpected overflow of passengers. The situation was made worse by those who came all the way from General Santos airport where they got bumped off. All personnel act in synch with each other without even a faint trace of snootiness despite the pressure. Instead, every now and then, they would apologize for the inconvenience, although, their best effort to accommodate everybody was evident. The supervisor himself, Archie Batu showed coolness that the rest of the staff emulated until the last flight was dispatched. Although, about three or four were forced to wait for the next day’s flight for accommodation, no grumbling from them was heard, because they saw how miles and miles of extra effort were exerted but to no avail. The following day, the rest of overflow was accommodated. I was among them.
The extra mile can go a long way in developing satisfaction among customers. It also gives hope to those who consider themselves unwanted by society because of their deficiencies. If the extra mile that a person takes can be connected with the rest of extra miles of the millions of people on earth, it can go around the globe. And, that is the idea…extra miles of kindness that can unite humanity.
The Extra Mile
By Apolinario Villalobos
The extra mile I am referring to is about the effort that we exert to help other people without expecting any return. While some companies make such effort an integral part of their service to gain promo mileage, there are people who just do the act as if it is a part of their system. And, it is nice to know that despite the prevailing modernity in our environment today, this kindly act is still very much noticeable.
Volunteerism is a simpler word that can easily define the effort. For those who are fond of browsing the electronic web to while their time away, a prominent group of volunteers composed of medical practioners, can easily catch the attention, and whose advocacy is to serve the persons with disability (PWD’s). It is the group of Dr. Josephine Bundoc of UERMMMCI and UP-PGH which has been instrumental in providing artificial limbs to PWD’s who live in as far as the southern island of Mindanao.
Unsung heroes of calamities deserve profound appreciation for joining the throng of volunteers from all walks of life who show up at relief operation centers to repack donated goods or find their place in a line of donation handlers at evacuation sites. They are one in saying that they have no money to spare but they have the hands to serve.
These “angels” just pop up at a moment and just anywhere when help is much needed. One Wednesday morning, while waiting for a ride to Cavite, I saw a woman who panicked when a bulging plastic bag that she was carrying just gave up and let go of her groceries. As I doubled my steps toward her, a boy in a tattered shirt appeared from nowhere and helped her gather the groceries. When I finally reached her, the boy told us to wait while he would get another bag for the groceries. In a few minutes he was back with a bag as promised and after all the groceries found their way into the bag, the boy bid us goodbye, leaving the woman and I unprepared for we were not given the chance to say thanks or hand him a few coins for his snacks as an expression of gratitude.
The country’s flag carrier, Philippine Airlines had the so-called Total Passenger Care Program during the ‘80s that further illuminated its image. Practically, all employees were encouraged to make an extra step for the comfort of customers, from mere inquiry by phone or at any office to their arrival at destination. Answering the phone the proper way and speaking in unhurried manner is already an extra mile to make callers comfortable and at ease, thereby, encouraging them to ask more questions. A sincere smile of the counter personnel attending to the needs of customers at the ticketing office, makes the latter happy to be served by the company.
In Davao airport, I had the chance to witness how all staff of Philippine Airlines, manning the check- in counter and the load control office where the supervisor was also based, managed to handle a critical situation due to unexpected overflow of passengers. The situation was made worse by those who came all the way from General Santos airport where they got bumped off. All personnel act in synch with each other without even a faint trace of snootiness despite the pressure. Instead, every now and then, they would apologize for the inconvenience, although, their best effort to accommodate everybody was evident. The supervisor himself, Archie Batu showed coolness that the rest of the staff emulated until the last flight was dispatched. Although, about three or four were forced to wait for the next day’s flight for accommodation, no grumbling from them was heard, because they saw how miles and miles of extra effort were exerted but to no avail. The following day, the rest of overflow was accommodated. I was among them.
The extra mile can go a long way in developing satisfaction among customers. It also gives hope to those who consider themselves unwanted by society because of their deficiencies. If the extra mile that a person takes can be connected with the rest of extra miles of the millions of people on earth, it can go around the globe. And, that is the idea…extra miles of kindness that can unite humanity.
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