ROXAS CITY – Despite of a delay of one year in her studies brought by poverty, having to go through different jobs, and going to classes on an empty stomach, Rey Ann Peñaranda was able to graduate cum laude with a degree in Bachelor of Industrial Technology Major in Food Technology just this April last year.

Peñaranda, a 21-year-old alumnae of Capiz State University (CapSU) Main Campus, of Bgy. Lawaan, Dumarao, Capiz is an Expanded Student Grant- in Aid for Poverty Alleviation (ESGP-PA graduate. She described her family as simple and as one that encounters poverty while she described her parents as farmers who would pursue any job and would even try to withstand harsh weather conditions just to provide for the family.

“Wala man kami lupa nga ginapanagiyahan kag biskan ginapatindugan namon sang amon balay, indi man amon.” “Mapagarab (harvesting), tanom sang mais, tanom sang tubo, sulit, hilamon sa uyapad kag kon ano pa nga maayo nga ubra nga napagkitaan sang kwarta, wala gid nila napaindi-an.” “Mapainit man o ma-ulan ginaantos nila nga duha para matustusan lang ang kinahanglan namon sa balay kag sa eskwelahan,” she said in a vernacular.

Peñaranda said that during her days in elementary and high school, she had to walk from her home to her school which required her mom to wake up as early as 4 a.m. to cook and wake her and her siblings up so they can go to school when the sun is beginning to shine.

“Pagkakaita na namon nga masanag na, maamat-amat na kami lakat pa eskwelahan para makaabot kami sa klasi,” she added.

She said that prior to entering college, she had to stop because her father told her that he could not afford to pay for her requirements. This led her to work as a house helper at age 16 which made her “understand how hard it is to earn money.”

One day, her father called her to come home because they got a form that was to be filled up for the said scholarship. But after a few months of not getting any update on her inclusion as one of the beneficiaries of said scholarship, she decided to go to an aunt in Pototan, Iloilo where she later found work at a cellular phone store. She asked her aunt help her find a benefactor which led her to an opportunity to get a scholarship from the Commission on Higher Education (the exam thereof she passed).

She then enrolled at West Visayas State University (WVSU) and got scheduled for an interview that would have happened a week later.//dswd6/Edalyn Acta – The Capiz Times