Story by Given Magaling, Visual Communications Officer
Real change rarely begins with grand gestures. More often, it takes root in everyday conversations, quiet acts of encouragement, and the decision to keep showing up for people.
It can be seen when a family gains the confidence to start a livelihood, when a parent learns a skill that helps put food on the table, or when someone discovers an opportunity they once thought was beyond their reach.
For EJ San Jose, these moments are at the heart of meaningful development work.
As a Program Officer of Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc. (PSFI) under the Roots to Shoots (RTS) team in Pasacao, EJ spends much of his time visiting communities, speaking with families, and helping turn opportunities into tangible improvements in their lives. His role involves coordinating with partners, facilitating learning sessions, monitoring beneficiaries, and supporting program implementation. But beyond these responsibilities, his work is grounded in something deeply human: listening to people and understanding the realities they face.
This commitment reflects the spirit behind PSFI’s 44th anniversary theme, Driven by Purpose. Powered by People. For EJ, purpose comes alive through the relationships built in communities and the people who work together to create lasting change.
Finding a Path Aligned with Purpose
EJ joined PSFI in 2025 after seeing a Facebook post about an opportunity in development work. The position immediately caught his attention because it offered something he had long been looking for: the chance to work directly with communities and contribute to change at the grassroots level.
Before joining PSFI, EJ worked as a job order employee in a local government unit in Masbate, where he took part in community development initiatives. The experience exposed him to local concerns and strengthened his desire to work closely with people.
What drew him to the development sector was not simply a job title. It was the opportunity to understand people’s struggles and help connect them with resources that could improve their lives.
Kaya naman ako napasok sa development sector kasi gusto ko iyong engagement sa tao. Nakakausap ko sila, nalalaman ko iyong challenges nila, at kung ano iyong puwede kong maibigay na opportunity para ma-improve nila iyong pamumuhay.
At the time, EJ knew little about PSFI’s work. Like many Filipinos, he initially associated Shell primarily with its business operations. As he learned more about the Foundation and its programs, however, he discovered an organization committed to strengthening communities through social development.
He saw that PSFI’s work went beyond short-term assistance. Its programs aimed to equip individuals and families with the knowledge, skills, and opportunities they needed to move forward. This approach resonated with EJ and convinced him that he had found the right place to continue his journey in development work.
Growing Alongside the Communities He Serves
Today, EJ supports the implementation of Roots to Shoots Pasacao 2.0. While his formal responsibilities include coordination, training, and monitoring, much of his work takes place on the ground. He travels from one community to another, visits families in their homes, and listens as they share both their progress and the challenges they continue to face.
Some of these visits focus on helping beneficiaries establish home gardens and home-based livelihood projects. He also facilitates learning sessions designed to strengthen their skills, confidence, and ability to sustain what they have started.
When asked what he does for a living, EJ often gives a simple answer: he helps provide livelihood opportunities. Over time, however, he has come to understand that his role goes much further.
The families he works with are not merely receiving resources. They are gaining practical knowledge, building resilience, and developing a sense of ownership over their progress. Mothers engaged in home gardening, for example, learn techniques that can support household food security while becoming more confident in their ability to provide for their families.
Through these experiences, EJ’s understanding of development has also grown. Success is not measured only through outputs or numbers. It is also found in trust built over time, lessons applied at home, and people becoming active participants in shaping their own future.
Lessons Learned Through Listening
Development work requires technical knowledge and program management skills, but EJ has learned that listening is just as important.
His conversations with beneficiaries have given him a deeper appreciation of the difficulties many families face, as well as the determination they demonstrate despite limited resources. They have also shaped how he understands his responsibility as a representative of PSFI.
Every home visit, training session, and conversation influences how communities experience the organization and its mission
Sa PSFI, na-realize at na-appreciate ko iyong organization. Iyong organization iyong dala-dala mo, at naa-attribute mo iyong impact mo sa community. Kung ako, bilang isang Program Officer, dala-dala ko iyong organization na iyon. Dapat, sa lahat ng ginagawa ko, maipakita ko iyong mission at goal natin bilang isang organization.
This realization deepened his sense of accountability. Programs may provide the structure for development, but people build the trust that allows opportunities to take root. For EJ, how he engages with a family matters just as much as the support being delivered.
A Family, a Pig, and a Powerful Reminder
Among the many households EJ has visited, one encounter continues to stay with him.
During a monitoring visit, he met a family that had received a pig through the program’s livelihood support. As the family spoke about their experience, EJ saw that the project had brought more than an opportunity to earn. It had become a shared responsibility for the household.
Even the family’s child had taken an active role in caring for the animal.
For EJ, the experience showed how a seemingly simple intervention could bring a family together, encourage responsibility, and renew hope for the future. The pig was more than a livelihood asset. It became a learning experience and a shared investment in what the family could build together.
Moments like this remind him that impact is often found in changes that may appear small from the outside but carry profound meaning for the people experiencing them.
He feels the same fulfillment whenever beneficiaries voluntarily share their stories or express appreciation for an opportunity they have received.
Para sa akin, satisfied ako na nabigyan ko sila ng opportunity, nagawa ko iyong part ko, at nakita ko iyong impact natin sa kanila. Masaya sa pakiramdam.
Behind every project report and monitoring visit are people working toward a better life. Witnessing their progress gives EJ a reason to continue showing up.
Staying Because the Work Matters
When asked why he stays with PSFI, EJ’s answer is straightforward.
“Nag-stay ako kasi gusto ko iyong ginagawa ko at nag-e-enjoy ako.”
But his commitment is rooted in more than enjoyment. Since joining the Foundation, he has embraced opportunities to learn through workshops, training sessions, farm visits, and community engagements. Each experience has broadened his perspective and strengthened his capacity as a development practitioner.
More importantly, the work has reinforced his sense of purpose.
For EJ, a meaningful career is not measured only through compensation or personal advancement. It is also about remaining connected to the reason one chose the work in the first place. His motivation comes from knowing that not everyone is given the chance to contribute directly to improving another person’s life.
“Hindi naman tayong lahat nabibigyan ng opportunity na makatulong sa iba.”
This belief guides his work with communities, particularly with vulnerable and often overlooked groups. He believes that purpose and people are inseparable. Even the strongest mission can succeed only when people commit themselves to advancing it together.
Carrying the Mission Forward
In his work with PSFI, EJ has seen beneficiaries establish small businesses, strengthen their livelihoods, improve their families’ food security, and pursue goals they once considered out of reach. He has witnessed how knowledge and opportunity can create ripples that extend beyond a single household.
Looking ahead, he hopes PSFI’s programs will reach more communities and inspire more stories of progress. He also hopes beneficiaries will carry forward what they have learned and use it to help others.
Sana maging wave iyon para makapagbigay din sila ng impact sa iba. Hindi sa kanila nagtatapos iyong tulong. Bagkus, first step ito para makapagbigay din sila ng impact sa ibang tao.
That hope reflects the way lasting change moves: from one person to another, from one family to the next, and eventually across an entire community.
Through every home visit, training session, and conversation, EJ helps sustain that movement. His story is a reminder that PSFI’s mission is carried forward not only through programs, but through people who choose to serve with empathy, consistency, and purpose.
As PSFI celebrates 44 years of empowering communities, EJ represents one of the many people who bring that purpose to life each day.
“Nagpapasalamat ako na naging bahagi ako ng PSFI. Bilang indibidwal, natutuwa akong may naiaambag akong pagbabago, at ipinagmamalaki kong maging bahagi ng organisasyon.”
For EJ, being driven by purpose means helping people recognize what is possible. Being powered by people means working alongside them until that possibility becomes progress.
