We welcome tax-deductible donations to our Palo projects!

Palo, Leyte, Philippines

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Palo, our oldest Sister City, is on the beautiful Philippine island of Leyte and includes 33 outlying villages. Palo and Palo Alto have been sister cities since 1963. Palo is well known as the site of the 1944 landing of General MacArthur and the Allied troops that launched the liberation of the Philippines during World War II. 
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For decades, thanks to generous donations from the Palo Alto and broader Silicon Valley community, Neighbors Abroad has been able to sponsor a host of impactful, often life-changing projects for and with our Palo family, including:

• Establishment and support of a long-running Children's Library, the only public library in the region. The library is one of Neighbors Abroad's flagship projects and the longevity of the program speaks to our dedication to our oldest Sister City. To extend our reach, we helped create satellite locations of the original library to give children in remote areas of the community access to books. We continue to expand our offerings and seek ways to give access to the library to all underserved areas of Palo, including by providing more books in Tagalog. 
• Financial support for our Palo Scholars, young college students from Palo who would otherwise have trouble paying for books and expenses if not for Neighbors Abroad's support. One of the annual scholarships we offer is named in honor of a former Neighbors Abroad president and champion of the Palo relationship, Iraida Espinosa, who was also a Palo Alto Unified teacher for many years. The Iraida Espinosa Scholarship is given to a college student studying teaching and education. We are working to expand the Palo Scholarship program to support high school students pursuing technical and vocational careers. Many of our students have gone on to professional careers--as teachers, engineers, social workers--thereby giving back to the community by helping to shape the next generation of Palo leaders.
• Expanding science and technology offerings for Palo students, pre-school trough high school.

In October 2022, Palo Alto was honored to send a Neighbors Abroad delegation to Palo.  A gallery of photos and news from that visit can be found here.

We welcome tax-deductible donations to our Palo Projects!

The Children's Library is one of Neighbor Abroad's most enduring contributions to the Palo community.

A Palo Alto delegation had the honor of marching in a town parade in 2022.

Neighbors Abroad then-president Bob Wenzlau with young friends in Palo in 2022.

Neighbors Abroad supports local daycare centers in and around Palo, providing critical support for families.

The 2022 delegation members, all wearing the traditional Barong Tagalog, with members of the Giants Organization, a non-profit Neighbors Abroad has supported for many years.