“Nagpapasalamat ako sa Panginoon sa binigay niyang talento sa akin. Gusto ko din pong pasalamatan ang mga magulang ko, lalo si Mama para sa pagsuporta niya sa akin” (I thank the Lord for the talent he has given me. I would also like to thank my parents, especially my Mama for her support to me.)
In the recent poster making contest for Pantawid Pamilya field staff and partner-beneficiaries held on April 08, 2015 at the DSWD Field Office NCR, John Christophen U. Jurban, 16 years old, from Barangay South Daang Hari, Taguig City was among the 23 contestants who showcased their talent in drawing. Thanks to his perseverance and with the help of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, he is among the thousands who graduated from high school this school year.
The first of three children, John Christophen is a hard-working student who never misses a class in school. While his father is an auto mechanic, his mother, Bonnafe is a housewife. With this schedule, she is able to religiously attend to her compliance responsibilities on being a Pantawid Pamilya program beneficiary under Set 5 program implementation, such as regular Family Development Sessions, among other activities.
According to Bonnafe, not even poverty can hinder her son from going to school. “Kahit minsan walang-wala kami, basta may pamasahe, papasok pa din siya.” (Even at times when we have no resources, as long as he has transportation allowance, he will go to school.) Ms. Jurban proudly said that despite their meager income, her son managed to graduate from high school as fifth honorable mention. When asked if the program had impact to their family, Ms. Jurban immediately affirmed and added that “dati, di makasali ang mga anak ko sa mga activities nila sa school o kapag nilalaban po sila sa contest, kasi walang pambili ng project. Pero ngayon, dahil sa Pantawid, nairaraos na ng mga anak ko ang pag-aaral nila.” (Before, my children cannot join school activities or any competition outside the school because we don’t have enough money to buy their projects. But now, my children are able to submit their school requirements, thanks to Pantawid.)
Having placed seventh in the over-all ranking in his batch meant a lot for John Christophen, as he recalls his daily struggles just to reach where he is now. There was a time when he almost lost his drive to go to school due to the increasing difficulty of the topics they tackle per subject matter and the torrential submission of requirements. But just as he was about to give up, his MTAP (or the Mathematics Teachers Association of the Philippines) coach Mr. George, encouraged him by providing not only additional knowledge but also words of encouragement. What he learned from his coach is that “may mga problema na mapapasuko ka na lang. Huwag mong isipin ang hirap, isipin mo lang ano ang makukuha mo.” These restored this enthusiasm despite the heavy schoolwork.
Joining the MTAP proved to be an advantage for John Christophen, as this paved the way for his recognition both within and outside the campus. For the recent school year alone, he has reaped several awards, such as being the 4th place in the Mathematics Quiz Bee and Slogan making contest, 3rd place in Math relay, 2nd place in Poster making during their English and MAPEH month celebration and Champion in both Calculation skills and Poster-making contest in Technology and Livelihood Education (TLE) and Mathematics month celebrations.
John Christophen is not only good in Math, he has a generous heart as well because he shares his knowledge through tutorial sessions to his fellow classmates who are lagging behind in that subject. To do this, he does advance reading to be able to teach his classmate the topic for the following day’s discussion. Accordingly, he revealed that he has a knack for simplifying complex formulas, to which he shares to the class after the teacher finished the lecture. Furthermore, he said that he is doing this “to inspire his classmates to enjoy Mathematics.”
John Christophen is one of the 93 Pantawid Pamilya High School graduates with academic excellence awards for batch 2015 who were featured in the recent Pantawid Pamilya high school graduation, which carries the theme, “Pagtatapos Ninyo, Tagumpay ng Pilipino,” and was held at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) on April 09, 2015. The event aimed to recognize the high school graduates and share with them a very meaningful milestone in their academic life. Moreover, the event was a venue for sharing the graduates’ experiences and their sojourns throughout their high school years.
When asked what he can say to other students who has the same struggles as his, John Christophen says “Libre lang ang mangarap. Pag may pangarap ka, gawin mo, huwag mo lang isipin ang mga problemang kakaharapin mo. Hindi lang dapat hanggang yearbook ang pangarap, huwag lang sa salita, isip, bagkus gawin mo.” (To dream is free, when you aspire for something, just do it and do not just think of the problems you might encounter and let them hinder you from achieving your goal. You should not let your dreams stay in the yearbook, nor should you just think or speak about it. Do something to achieve it.)
John Christophen already passed the entrance examinations and will enroll in Civil Engineering at the Technological University of the Philippines – Taguig Campus, under the full scholarship grant of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). ###