The Village That Santa Forgot / (Random Acts Of Christmas)

Pea sets the stage by explaining that Christmas in the Philippines looks nothing like it does in the West — most families have no tree, no lights, and no gifts, especially in the provinces. With COVID causing widespread job losses, she decides to take matters into her own hands. She enlists her friend Jen and, acting on behalf of a contact up north, organizes a full Christmas delivery and party for an entire remote village of about 75 people that's only accessible by motorbike and then by hiking trail.

What's Covered ​

• Pea opens with a reality check about Christmas in the Philippines

  • Most kids, especially in the provinces, receive absolutely nothing for Christmas
  • Christmas Day is often just like any other day
  • COVID has made 2020 even harder, with widespread job losses and hardship
  • She says she contacted "a friend up north" (a playful Santa reference) who authorized her to act on his behalf

• The delivery setup

  • Each family receives a bag containing lechon (roast pork), spaghetti, and 10 pounds of rice
  • Kids get toys and candies
  • She recruits Jen as her elf to help carry and deliver everything
  • The village is about 75 people in a close-knit community, located in the middle of a jungle accessible only by motorbike from a small town half an hour away, then by foot

• Door-to-door deliveries with individual family interactions

  • First house: A shy four-year-old boy who has never received a Christmas gift in his life
  • A woman confirms Pea is the first and only "Santa" to ever visit this area — she calls Pea "the crazy lady"
  • A boy who says he knows how to shoot guns gets a toy dart gun — Pea tells him "don't shoot the chicken or your mother"
  • A family with a 39-year-old mother (Ate) born and raised in the village, with five kids (three boys, two girls) — Pea hands out a sword, Spider-Man toy, school supplies, dart gun, and dolls to each kid, joking with each one ("if I find your mother with a dart in the forehead, I know who to look for")
  • Two sisters aged 15 and 16 who look like twins also get gifts

• Nanai — the most emotional encounter

  • Nanai is an elderly woman living alone deep in the jungle; her kids work in Manila
  • She lives by herself and wants to show Pea her modest home
  • When Pea gives her lechon and rice ("rice is life in the Philippines"), Nanai breaks down crying
  • Nanai says she was praying and thanking God, and that she didn't have any food that day — she had no one helping her
  • She says it was a blessing that Pea and Jen found her
  • Pea is visibly moved and decides to go back with extra packs of food — enough for Nanai to stretch out over a month
  • Pea tells her viewers the gifts came from her and her viewers

• Ate (solo parent) encounter

  • A solo parent living in the area since 2004 with a seven-year-old boy who has never been visited by Santa
  • The boy gets a sword and is dubbed "the soldier of this house"

• Ate Tiling's family — the most impactful individual story

  • Pea asks what the family normally does for Christmas: they prepare pancit (noodles, called "for long life") — no lechon, no spaghetti, no gift exchange, no Christmas party
  • Five people in the household (parents and three kids)
  • Pea notices the family cooks with firewood on a setup made of hollow blocks and steel bars — they have no stove or propane
  • A little girl named Reggie has never had a Barbie before; Pea finds one and tells her to brush the doll's hair 100 times so it'll be shiny, sleep next to her, and take care of her — she'll check on the girl next visit
  • Pea explains from personal experience how difficult cooking with firewood is, especially during rainy season (which can last half a year) when wood is hard to dry
  • She gives Ate Tiling 5,000 pesos to buy a stove and propane tank, which makes both of them cry
  • Pea says she grew up cooking with firewood and understands the hardship firsthand

• Village Christmas party and games after all deliveries are complete

  • "Flower Power" game: kids blow flour off a cup to find a hidden peso coin, then pick it up with their teeth — winners get 100 pesos, consolation prize 50 pesos; kids end up looking like "Casper the Friendly Ghost"
  • "Pass the Gas" game: contestants hop on a course with a balloon between their legs — "battle of the sexes" format with a boy vs. a girl
  • "Balloon Blast" relay: two teams of three race to pop balloons
  • Three bags of candies as prizes
  • Jen is hilariously afraid of balloons popping

• Pea closes with a custom-written Christmas poem

  • "'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the village, it looked pretty sad like it had been pillaged / No stockings were hung, not even a tree / Not much of a Christmas for you or for me / But outside a row, such a cheerful clatter / That the people inside wondered what was the matter / And there at the door was a wonderful sight / A crazy red lady and an elf in green tights / The children stared as they looked right through her / To the huge bag of presents provided by viewers / And that made our spirits feel light as a feather / Be good to each other and make the world better"
  • Thanks viewers for making it possible

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