Beaming with pride, Johanna Heart Genon went up on stage to receive her diploma. Her parents, seated on the bleachers inside the Cebu Coliseum, elatedly watched her accept the certificate of graduation, a proof that she succeeded in her quest to finish senior high school.

On April 8, 2018, she joined other University of Cebu (UC) senior high school graduates under the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) strand in their commencement exercise. It was a momentous day in the life of these students who belong to the first batch of senior high school graduates under the K to 12 Basic Education Program of the government.

“My graduation means a lot to me because I never thought that I could reach this far in my quest for knowledge,” expressed Johanna Heart.  This teenage girl who used to live with the dead in a burial ground is still awed by her success.

Raised by homeless parents, Johanna Heart and siblings had to live in the cemetery.  The Chinese cemetery in barangay Carreta, Cebu City became their home. It was also their playground together with the other children living there.

“Maulaw gyud ko sa una kung mangutana akong mga classmates kung asa mi nagpuyo (In the past, I would be embarrassed whenever my classmates asked me where I lived),” Johanna said as she recalled the discrimination she went through.

Her father, Wilfredo Genon, Sr. is a construction worker while her mother, Nenita Genon, is a plain housewife. “Dili man nako ikaulaw ang akong family kay nagtrabaho man og tarong akong amahan ug wala man pud mi nanglimos sa dalan (I’m not ashamed of my family because my father has a decent job and we are not begging in the streets),” Johanna said.

But despite all the struggles, Johanna Heart remained focused on achieving her dreams. In 2014, her family became one of the partner-beneficiaries of the Modified Conditional Cash Transfer (MCCT) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and started receiving the cash grants, which helped sustained Joanna Heart and her two siblings’ education. Of the four siblings, only three have been included in the MCCT program to include Johanna Heart.

The MCCT covers poor families who were not included in the regular Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program.

It provides assistance to homeless street families, families in need of special protection and indigenous families, which are not limited to education and health grants, but also include safe and responsive housing assistance with access to social services and economic opportunities for the improvement of their living conditions.

In 2016, through the MCCT, the DSWD has started the provision of rent subsidy for a maximum of Php 4,000 per month to Johanna Heart’s family.

“Sa pag-implementar sa rent subsidy, nangita dayun sila mama ug papa og maabangan nga balay aron makabalhin mi og kapuy-an (Upon the implementation of rent subsidy, my mother and father immediately looked for a house-for-rent so that we could transfer from the cemetery to a decent home),” Johanna Heart said.

“Our life now with MCCT is much better than before. The support we have been receiving from the government gives us a decent place to live and continuous education,” shared Johanna Heart.

“Para nako ang edukasyon ang nag-inusarang yawi aron mahaw-as sa kalisod ug usa ka dakong ang-ang aron makab-ot ang akong mga pangandoy sa kinabuhi (For me, education is the only key to rise from poverty and a big step to reach my dreams),” uttered Johanna Heart.

Moreover, she said in dialect, “In the past during the opening of classes, our parents could not afford to buy our needs at the same time so they had to alternately buy our needs like school shoes. With MCCT, our parents could now afford to buy our school needs at one time when the school year opens),” she added.

Johanna explained that she is really determined to finish her studies and when she was able to avail of the Cebu City Scholarship Program for K-12, she knows she has a real shot at getting an education.

Wearing her school uniform, graduation toga and cap, Johanna Heart was a picture of a happy teenage girl who rises above all challenges.

Despite graduating with no award, Johanna Heart said she will take all the knowledge, skills and learning insights and will use these as motivation in the pursuit of her college education.

In the final part of their commencement exercise, Johanna Heart together with her classmates, sang their graduation song, “A Million Dreams”.

She shared that the chorus of the song strikes a chord to all her dreams and aspirations in life.  The lyrics say, “Cause every night I lie in bed, the brightest colors fill my head, a million dreams are keeping me awake, I think of what the world could be, a vision of the one I see, a million dreams are all its gonna take, a million dreams for the world we’re gonna make.”

Johanna Heart said that the song is full of hope and encourages people to look at the bright side instead of the negative side of life.

Armed with perseverance and determination, she will pursue a degree in Civil Engineering.

“Na-inspire ko nga mukuha og civil engineering tungod sa trabaho sa akong papa isip usa ka construction worker. Gusto sad ko nga makatabang unya sa mga tawo nga walay balay (I am inspired to pursue civil engineering because of my father’s job as construction worker. Also, I would like to help the homeless),” emphasized Johanna Heart.

In March 2017, Johanna Heart’s family is one of the 20 MCCT partner-beneficiaries who were able to have their own house in Mountain View Village located in Barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City.

This rent-to-own scheme is a partnership of DSWD and Pagtambayayong Foundation, Inc., whose mission is to provide low-cost housing to the underprivileged.

To those students who are already losing hope in life, she would be more willing to share her story to them.

“Ako silang estoryahan sa akong kinabuhi aron makahunahuna sila nga kung naa kay gustong makab-ot ug kini kinasingkasing, way makababag nila (I will share my life story so that they will realize that if they really aim for something and it comes from the heart, no one can stop them),” underscored Johanna Heart.

To the young people out there she has this to say, “have faith in your dreams, have faith in yourself and most of all trust God’s plan for you.” ###

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