When a father’s love knows no distance
In a country where almost 10 million of its citizens are based abroad, remittance services have become an essential solution for many Filipino families to survive. Even in the domestic front, the practice of regularly sending money from one part of the country to another has become a way of life. These remittance services have become integral among Filipinos, from different walks of life.
In the cases of Joel Canada of Leyte and Marino Jimenez of Ilocos – all fathers and long-time remittance clients of Cebuana Lhuillier, sending money has been a means to support their family – from everyday sustenance, to the achievement of life milestones, all while negotiating life’s constant challenges.
Joel Canada has led a hard life. Unable to obtain a college education, he has had to try different jobs, from being a construction laborer to being a fish vendor, just to make ends meet. But nothing could have prepared him when Yolanda ravaged Tacloban in 2013. He and his family were displaced by the natural calamity. Left homeless, they had to endure living in evacuation tents for three months until they were given financial aid, to rebuild their life in Tanauan, a nearby town.
Determined to succeed, Joel returned to Tacloban a few months after the disaster and took on two odd jobs – as a car washer during the day, and a security guard at night. Four years have passed since Yolanda struck, and though he may still have a long way to go to achieve his dreams for his family, Joel remains hopeful. Thanks to his hard work and dedication, he continues to support the education, not only of his three children, but also that of his wife who is now in the last year of her accounting degree.
As the only earning member of the family, Joel is unfazed, for as long as he is able to send remittances from Tacloban to Tanauan every single day, he will continue to sacrifice for the needs of his family.
“I get paid daily so I send money to my family every day as well. It’s tough, but I’m glad to be back on my feet after Yolanda. And once my wife finishes her studies, everything will be even better,” Joel said.
Hard work pays off
Just like any good parent, 51-year-old Marino Jimenez knows the value of education, which is why he attempted to work overseas when all four of his children started attending school. But fate has a different plan for him, as it turned out.
It has been eight years since Marino started to tirelessly roam around almost every street and corner of Salcedo, Ilocos Sur, selling peanuts, while his wife, who stayed in their hometown in Tarlac with their children, has been running a small business. He rarely goes home, choosing to work almost every single day to earn enough and support his family from afar. He spends long hours selling, rain or shine, to make sure he can make that daily visit to Cebuana Lhuillier and send the remittance that his family has relied on for years.
Thankfully, Marino is starting to reap the rewards of his hard work – his eldest daughter is now a teacher and his second child just graduated cum laude. He was also able to make enough that he now uses a motorbike with a sidecar for his business, and got the same for the water distribution business of his wife.
“Our life has become slightly better now compared to our situation years ago. My second child even told me to stop working and go home to Tarlac since two of them are already working, but I said I’ll continue working until I can. Poverty has really motivated me to work even harder for my family. I don’t want my children to experience the hardships that I’ve gone through. No father would want that for their children,” he said.
The challenges faced by Joel and Marino are just examples of dedicated family men who all sacrificed with unwavering determination for their family. The testimonial of these men serve not only as inspiration but more importantly, teaches everyone that no distance can ever be a hindrance to a father’s love for his family.