At a young age, he already has experienced heartbreak.

Fourteen-year-old Roger Renz Almazan, a resident of Brgy. San Jose in Alitagtag, Batangas Province, experienced the pain of not being able to fulfill his dream of being an accountant.

“Napakahirap pala talagang maging isang mahirap. Nawalan na ako ng pag-asa na makapagpatuloy pa ng pag-aaral, kahit sa high school man lang,” shared Roger Renz.

Just when he thought there’s no more hope, a good opportunity opened to his family.

“Kahit di marangya ang buhay namin ngayon, nararamdaman ko na ang mga pagbabago sa buhay namin. Nararamdaman ko na rin na ang mga pangarap ko ay hindi pangarap na lang ngayon,” he said.

A new hope

Roger Renz narrates how their family struggled, even to meet their daily needs.

“Dahil sa kahirapan, naranasan kong pumasok na walang laman ang tiyan o di kaya ay makatulog na lang sa gabi na naghihintay sa aking ina sa pagbabakasakaling makapaghapunan na kami,” he said.

He also shares that despite his parents turning night into day just to earn money for the family, there’s still not enough income to support the needs of their family of seven.

“Ang tatay ko po ay naglalako ng kumot at ang nanay ko ay barangay tanod. Pero kahit nakikita ko silang nagsusumikap para sa amin, isinantabi ko ang aking mga pangarap dahil alam kong hindi talaga namin kakayanin,” said Roger Renz.

Thankfully, he found hope again when their family became a beneficiary of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in 2012.

The Pantawid Pamilya program is a project of the national government that provides conditional cash grants to qualified poor families to support the needs on health and education of children zero to 18. Child-beneficiaries like Roger Renz are provided with PhP500 monthly cash grant for his needs in school (PhP300 monthly if child is in elementary) and PhP500 monthly grant to support his health.

“Noong nagkaroon ng Pantawid, nabuhay ang aking pag-asa. Alam ko na ito ay pagkakataon ko na para makapag-aral at makamit ang aking mga pangarap,” he said.

Towards his dreams

As a child coming from a poor family, Roger Renz knows that it is through education that he can change the course of their life.

“Hindi po ako nangangarap na magkaroon ng maraming pera. Ang tanging hiling ko lang ngayon ay ang makapagtapos ng pag-aaral dahil alam kong ito ang magiging susi ng aking tagumpay,” he emphasized.

With this, Roger Renz continuously works hard in school. He graduated as class valedictorian in elementary. Now in high school, he is a consistent honor student and also a student leader.

And for him, there’s something he can do to give back to the opportunity to chase his dreams.

“Nagiging isang huwaran ako sa aking mga kaklase dahil sa aking pangunguna sa klase at sa pagiging kinatawan nila. Pinapakita ko rin na hindi hadlang ang kahirapan sa pag-abot ng pangarap,” he shared.

At this point in his life, Roger Renz knows that given all his experiences and his dreams, he can be the start of a change.

“Kapag nagtagumpay ako, hindi lang ang sarili ko ang mababago ko kundi ang pamilya ko at ang lipunan natin,” he shared with conviction.

With his heartbreak in the past, Roger Renz just became more inspired now to chase his dreams.#