SOS receiver now SOS giver

A FEW weeks ago, I attended a meeting organized by DSWD for non-government agencies involved in shelters for abandoned boys and girls, victims of child abuse and street children. I was impressed with the story of the Director of SOS Children’s Village, Mr. Vicente Tejada so I asked him if I could relate his story in my Love Life column. I hope you will also find inspiration in reading the life of Arris Magallanes as he fulfilled his dream in spite of so many odds against him.

“We used to have a happy family despite my parents’ disability—both of them are blind—until one day they decided to separate for some reason. My sister Shelo and I decided to be with our father and our youngest with our mother. Home for us was the Quirino Grandstand, where we were also selling cigarettes as our means of living.

The NAYON NG KABATAAN, a government agency, referred us to SOS Children’s Village Manila. SOS accepted us and showed us how to live a decent way of life. I was ten years old when I was admitted at SOS Children’s Village Manila in October 1989, while my sister Shelo was 12 years old. House four or the “House of Understanding” became our home. Nothing compares to my new home, I thought to myself. I have a bed of my own, my sister has too, food on the table every meal that would not require us to sell cigarettes, brothers and sisters, and above all a mother who takes care and love us even though I know that she is not our real mother. Oh yes, I missed our father, but with the presence of the Village Director, “Papa Noel,” who hugged, talked to and encouraged us, somehow the longing that I felt for my father turned into joy, thinking that I had two fathers.

Our house was sponsored by SwissAir, and one day, a visitor came to our house. She was a former flight attendant of the said airline and her husband was a pilot. Mrs. Messmer approached and asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up. I smiled that she had probably expected me to reply A chef or Own a restaurant, seeing me preparing food for my family. But imagine her delighted surprise when I replied, “A pilot!”

Now, most young boys of around ten usually changed their ambitions from day to day, but not Arris. According to him, his determination to become a pilot was instilled in him during an educational tour in Philippine Air Lines.

“At the age of 20, I graduated in college with a degree of Bachelor of Science in Aircraft Maintenance. After I graduated, I worked in a well-known burger shop, until Swiss Air sponsored my flying school expenses in order for me to obtain a license to become a commercial pilot. Finally in 1998, I finished my bachelor’s degree in Aircraft Maintenance Technology. I further took up more Flying Courses at the Philippine Airlines Flying School. That year, my dream became a reality as I became a Second Pilot Officer of Philippine Airlines, of an International Flight, Manila-San Francisco, California route. “I feel so blessed now! With the help of my SOS family, I have finally reached my dream to soar up in the sky. Not only that, I am now starting to have a family of my own. Together with my beloved wife, Misty, we will be building our own family with dedication and unconditional love. “Memories… memories we have lots of them in SOS our home, I will never forget the people who mold our characters, and the benefactors who are continuously providing us with the much-needed financial and personal support.”

According to Mr. Tejada, Arris, in his pilot’s uniform, visits SOS Village many times a year to bring snacks, school supplies, and household items. Above all, he talks to the children to encourage them to persevere so that they will someday reach their dreams just as he has achieved his.

Indeed, our services to the least of our brothers and sisters, no matter how insignificant it might seem at the moment, will never be unrewarded. I am sure you also have your own stories of children whose dreams you have helped attain.