Poverty didn’t stop the youngest of seven siblings from fulfilling her parents wish—to become the first degree holder in the family from the fourth-class municipality of Can-Avid in Eastern Samar.
Gene Samoray, or Uday (which means youngest daughter), as family members would call her, recalled how difficult it was for their family to survive amid extreme poverty and having to deal with the perennial predicaments of striving farmers in the upstream portion of Barangay Salvacion.
According to Uday, his Tatay Juan, a farmer, could hardly earn enough to feed a family of nine members, and it was even more difficult to send her to school. Notwithstanding their predicament, her parents chose to work harder, if only to send Uday to school, which is about a two-hour boat ride from Barangay Salvacion.
First Big Break
Because of the distance, Uday was forced to stay in her aunt’s house on the mainland of Can-Avid while making ends meet with the meager allowance sent by her father and an older sister.
Soon after graduating high school, Uday knew only too well that college education was a tough economic challenge for Tatay Juan, who could have been skipping meals just to save something to keep his daughter’s dream alive.
Aware of her family’s plight, Uday braved a provincial government education initiative—a scholarship program just for the poor but deserving students.
To cut the long story short, she passed a scholarship grant under the provincial government’s “Isang Pamilya, Isang Propesyonal (IPIP) program and transferred to a boarding house near the university, where she crawled her way, relying on her Tatay Juan’s meager income and support from an older sister.
The IPIP Factor
Under IPIP, the provincial government provided Uday with a P3,000 monthly allowance, which defrayed part of the expenses expected of a college education—until after she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA), majoring in Financial Management.
“Tatay, salamat ha iyo ni Nanay, Kan Ate, kay kun wara kamo, wara dama ak dinhi yana, wara ak pakatangpos. Damo liwat nga salamat ha provincial government, gidamo-i nga salamat kan Gov. Ben,” said Gene in their vernacular.
Unlike other scholarship programs, Eastern Samar’s IPIP Program was primarily conceptualized to cover at least one member of each family in the province in what appears more like an effort to advocate formal education in each family.
In the case of the Samoray family, Uday’s degree should serve as a wake-up call for other families in Barangay Salvacion, where sending kids to school seemed too costly for a family heavily relying on farm yields.
“Makuri magpa-eskwela han una ha college kay damo an baraydan asya nga gidaku-i an ak pasalamat nga mayda sugad hin nga programa hi Gov.,” Tatay Juan said.
(Sending our children to college before was difficult for us because it was too costly, which is why I am grateful to the Governor for this program.)
One graduate per family
Interestingly, Uday’s story isn’t the first, as no less than Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone himself went through an equally challenging situation during his younger years.
The young Evardone, who sold pudpod (fish cakes) in nearby towns to help his family and worked as a waiter and balut vendor in Manila to sustain his education, came from an island barangay himself.
A living testament to how education can lift people out of poverty, Evardone conceptualized an educational assistance program targeting (at least) one professional with a permanent job for every Estehanon family to help alleviate the economic plight of their living condition and somebody who would serve as an inspiration and a role model worth emulating by other members of the family.
Hence, the Isang Propesyonal, Isang Pamilya Program was born.
Uday, among others
Gene is just one of the 67 IPIP scholars and 467 Bulig Para Estudyante (BPE) scholars who the provincial government of Eastern Samar recognized for successfully pulling through college during a ‘Day of Thanksgiving for Class 2024 Graduates’ on June 24 at the Provincial Capitol Gym in Borongan City.
Several BPE and IPIP beneficiaries and their parents shared their experiences on how the scholarship programs helped in their journey through college.
Evardone, the brains behind both programs, congratulated the graduates and parents for their diligence and hard work in braving the challenges, if only to fulfill the dreams of people from the same village where he grew up.
“Edukasyon la an magtatalwas ha aton ha kakuri-an, kun nalilipay kamo kay nakabulig kami ha iyo, mas nalilipay kami Kay nakapaangbit para ha iyo,” the provincial government chief said.
(Only education can save us from poverty; if you are happy that you received support from us, know that we’re more than happy because we were able to help you.)
Not Just Evardone
Evardone also thanked the Sangguniang Panlalawigan members, headed by Vice Governor Maricar Sison-Goteesan, for their approval of the funding for all the educational scholarship programs of the provincial government.
The governor also shared that part of the funding came from the Waray-Waray Golf Club through a golf-for-a-cause activity last year, which raised over P2 million.
He added that, upon knowing that the recipients of last year’s golf tournament were scholars, Department of Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco expressed her intention to spearhead a separate golf tournament for IPIP and BPE scholars on August 13 this year.
Re-affirming the provincial government’s commitment to supporting the graduates until they secure a job, Evardone encouraged the graduates of board courses to avail of the provincial government’s Board Exam Financial Assistance, while first-time job seekers who wish to travel to other provinces for job opportunities may avail of the travel assistance for job seekers.
“Ayaw kamo patandop, magtiwala kayo sa sarili niyo, ayaw kamo kawara-i hin paglaum, kay deri ak nawawarayan hin paglaum nga maghihinga-upay kamo,” Evardone added.
(Do not cower; believe in yourselves, so do not lose hope, because I never lose hope that someday you will all be successful.) (VTG, PIA Eastern Samar)
