“Para kanino ka bumabangon? Para po sa aking pamilya at pangarap.” (For whom do you get up? For my family and my dreams.

When asked Cienna, a 14 year-old child shared that her everyday life is a challenge being the eldest with four (4) siblings in a broken family which prompted them to live with their grandparents and a struggling student of Manila Science High School. However, her situation inspires her to dream big for her family and have high hopes that someday, she can lift them from dire poverty.

A Life under the Bridge

Cienna and her family have lived their lives under the bridge since she was born. At a very young age, she is aware the danger attached to this reality. Growing up, she learned to embrace a simple life as she understands the limited resources that her family has.

In order to help her grandmother, she takes the responsibilities of repacking and selling different goods to sustain their daily needs. At times, she does the household chores or teaches her younger siblings to do the same. She also guides them in their school assignments and assists them in their other needs.

During typhoon, their family always evacuate to the nearest shelter to ensure everyone’s safety. Despite the difficulty of this scenario and the inevitable thought of having nothing to go back to, she did not pity their situation and instead, used this as motivation to study hard so that someday, they will not experience it anymore.

Acceptance of having a broken family helps her to become stronger. She never hates her father for having another family rather she was challenged to perform some roles of a ‘father’ for her siblings. At first, she felt disappointed but she learned to wholeheartedly accept him and what he did. She always says, “Okay lang naman po sa ‘kin. Wala naman po kasi akong magagawa kung paiiralin ko ‘ung hindi ko pagtanggap sa kanya” (It is okay as nothing will happen if I will not accept him). To date, she remains to have communication with his father.

When she was in elementary, living under the bridge created stigma which caused her to be bullied by her classmates however, what is commendable about her is the way she handled these situations. Instead of minding them and letting it affect her, she diverted her focus in studying hard. She was a consistent Honor student which led her to be the Class Valedictorian and the first student from their school to be admitted to Manila Science High School. In fact, she was also featured through an interview by GMA 7 due to her hard-earned success despite of their family’s situation. Until now, she is striving hard to remain an Honor student in MaSci.

Silent Achiever

Mrs. Diana Grace Aniban class adviser of Cienna, expressed how proud and grateful she is that Cienna will be the representative of NCR in the National Search for Exemplary Child 2017. She admires her student as she is a simple and very industrious child. She shared that during weekdays, Cienna has to struggle waking up early just to take a boat ride from their home to school. Although she can have different routes using different means of transportation such as jeepney, she chose this mode as this is the cheapest.

During lunch time, her English teacher who is well-aware of her family’s situation, she was supported through provision of free lunch. Cienna would always say, “Maswerte po ako na kahit ganito po nangyari sa pamilya naming, marami pa rin naming nagmamahal sa ‘kin” (I’m lucky that even though this happened to my family, there are many people who love me.). She always expressed her true self not to gain sympathy of others but she knows that by being true, she gains respect. She also makes sure that the people around her feel her overwhelming gratitude.

Despite of her battles, she would have known for being a “Silent Achiever” by her adviser. She works on her success silently through giving so much attention to the value of education.

“Siya kasi ‘ung tipo ng tao na hindi mo mapapansin sa umpisa dahil tahimik lang siya at hindi siya loud, pero kapag nakita mo ‘ung ginawa niya, nag-eexcel talaga siya.” (At first, you will not notice her as she is quiet but eventually, you can see that she excels on what she does).

She always tries her best to cope with the discussions during class and she never stops asking questions until she understood the lectures. Cienna is also friendly and responsible in schools. She was also recognized as one of the outstanding students in their class and never fails to receive Honors every end of the school year.

Kanlungan ng Pangarap…Kanlungan sa ErMa

Cienna is also a youth volunteer in Kanlungan sa Ermita Manila, also known as Kanlungan sa ErMa, a non-government organization which caters to street children. She feels blessed to be part of this organization as one of their scholars. She enjoys the commitment and dedicates herself to give helping hands to reach the organization’s noble goals.

She has a heart in serving the organization as she shares almost the same situation with the children-beneficiaries who also struggle to live their lives every day. She is an active advocate of the organization. She assists and teaches the children. She even joins the different trainings and seminars for the children.

Cienna feels the fulfillment and satisfaction in sharing her time in the organization. “Masaya po ako na nakakatulong ako sa mga batang katulad ko…katulad ko na mahirap din pero iisa ang adhikain. Itong Kanlungan na ito ang magtutupad ng pangarap ng maraming batang Pilipinong katulad ko.” (I’m happy that I’m able to help these children who lives in poverty like me and shares the same aspirations as I have. Kanlungan will make my dreams together with these children come true.)

As Cienna continues her journey in life, she vowed to remain humble and wakes up every day still having the belief that what she does is for her family and her dreams.#