(A Message of Gratitude from Dean Josefe Sorrera-Ty During the First KCPFI Grand Alumni Homecoming in September 2014)
Magandang gabi po sa inyong lahat.
Dreams are made in heaven and God sends angels to ensure dreams do come true.
I was eight years old when I told my parents I would be a certified public accountant and a lawyer. I confidently told them I would study accounting and law at the University of the Philippines. My father was filled with joy upon hearing this, but my mother cautioned me and said I should not be so ambitious because we do not have enough financial resources for this dream of mine. The words of caution from my mother did not discourage me because I was very confident God would look for a way to make my dream a reality. I knew God knew why I wanted to be a CPA and a Lawyer. He knew that my dream was born out of the experiences I had undergone as a small child.
God knew I wanted to be a CPA so I could help people start businesses and manage businesses so there will no longer be a need for spouses to be separated from each other when one stays at home and the other has to go abroad to look for a living; so that parents will not be separated from their children. I was separated from my father for two years because he had to be an overseas contract worker in Malaysia and in Singapore in order to save enough money so that we could manage to study in good schools.
God also knew I wanted to be a lawyer so that people would always be given a chance to be heard and explain their side of the story before they are judged and that everyone would have a fair and equal chance in their lives. When I was still five years old, our village was cordoned by military men. They barged into the houses. Although I was just five years old and didn’t even know I had the right to privacy, I felt it was not right for someone to be awakened early morning and to be asked to go out – we were still in our sleeping dresses – and these soldiers went to our house, opened our cabinets, opened everything. Although my father allowed them, I felt violated. I was only five but I felt that this should not happen – for strangers to just go in your house and look into the nooks and cranny that are supposed to be very private. I was five then. Maybe I was meant to be a lawyer because I didn’t feel comfortable at that time.
Why UP? I wanted UP because I wanted to bring knowledge given to a select few to the thousands of young people in my region who cannot avail of a UP education. I come from the poorest region in the country, still the poorest at this point in time – CARAGA region.
This dream of mine was slowly unfolding with the help of angels sent by God – like my dedicated teachers in elementary and high school who taught me well. I was able to pass the UPCAT and be admitted to the very competitive BS Business Administration and Accountancy course of UP Diliman. Unfortunately, there was a cloud hanging over my dream. My mother was right. Although I had passed the UPCAT, our finances did not pass the financial demands for college life in Manila. Scholarships then were very scarce. They were mostly granted to those who wanted to pursue science-related courses. My parents really wanted my dream to come true. They sold some of our assets so that we would be able to pay for my transportation to UP Diliman and to have money to pay for my dorm expenses. I know how my parents felt. They wanted to be the angels that would make my dream come true.
My father and I searched for scholarships. My dream came true when one day, my father informed me that he read in the K of C newsletter an announcement regarding the K of C scholarship. I filed my application and my dream was on its way of coming true. I got the scholarship.
My dream of taking up law in UP also became true because the doors of opportunity were already all wide open for me. In fact, after passing the CPA Board exam, I received a lot of invitations to work in high-paying corporations but I told myself I had a promise – I would be a lawyer. I’d go back to Butuan and help. And so I continued my law studies and after that, because I graduated in the Top 20 of my class in UP, I also got a lot of offers from reputable law firms. But I told myself, I have to go back to Butuan because that was where I could help more. There was really a Pull to go back – always to go back, and indeed, I went back. I worked as a public attorney in the Public Attorney’s Office and I always kept hearing people ask: Why are you here? Why are you not working somewhere else? The pay is so low. But my goal was never to have a high salary. My goal was to help. In fact, I pleaded that I be allowed to work as a volunteer lawyer in PAO. There was no vacancy. But I saw the need for more lawyers to serve the indigent litigants because there were only three (3) lawyers then serving the province of Agusan del Norte.
I have always asked the question: Why is there a yearning to be with those who are in the margins of society? Today, that question was answered when I entered the Museum and learned about this wonderful person who made my dream come true – Fr. Willmann. I told myself: Now I know why there was always the Call to go back and serve the poor. It’s because the man who was the angel that helped me with my dream when I was still in high school had a very soft heart for the poor.
Fr. Willman is an angel. He is a saint. He helped me with my prayer when we were looking for scholarships. He knew I really needed it badly and that’s why I got the Knights of Columbus Scholarship. Upon being informed of this alumni homecoming of K of C scholars, I did a research on the person/s behind my Knights of Columbus scholarship. I could not find anything-just a description about the Knights of Columbus. I was asking who is he? Who was this wonderful person, who was kind enough to intercede for me? Who felt my deepest desire? I was certain that there was a loving person who was the “wind beneath my wings”. Today, I met him. Today, when Roberto Cruz led us to the Museum and introduced us to Fr. Willman, I could not describe the joy in my heart. The joy of knowing the person who have loved me and I believe continues to love me. Now, I have met my benefactor. I have met the man who had been journeying with me – holding my hand and making sure my dreams come true. That’s why there is always that Pull in me. In fact, even now, I could feel Fr. Willmann is here.
I am at the crossroad of my life today. Two roads beckon me: the old road I have been taking – serving those who could not afford legal assistance, and a new road to concentrate in helping our family business. I have been thinking seriously of leaving the old road – the work I have been doing because of frustrations, because I am already tired, because I want to have a comfortable work. For years, I have climbed mountains and gone to far places and so I want to rest. But after meeting Fr. Willmann and seeing his eyeglasses with scotch tape. I know which road to take. Comfort is not a necessity. Love is a necessity. The path of love is not easy but it is the one that will make one’s life joyful. I know and I will continue journeying with the people close to the heart of Fr. Willmann. That is my Call.
There will always be a Call. Your Call might not be the same as my Call, but then, that Call will always be to Serve. Your Call might be to serve people in business, in government like Ma’am Glo. We should heed that Call because whatever it is, it’s our way of saying Thank You to this wonderful person and to the wonderful persons who are here with us who have been very generous.
You asked me, Bobby, to answer the question: What is the impact of my KC Scholarship to my career and life? The impact is here and it continues. The impact is that we must always be generous because we are what we are now because of the generosity of a lot of persons who do not even know us but have helped us and made us what we are now. And I want to express my gratitude to all of you, through a song. I am not a good singer but I found a song that is so meaningful. It is a love song but I think it is really something that should be shared or sung even if I’m out of tune. I’m not a singer. I’m an orator but I want to sing this song for you. It’s entitled “Ikaw” sung by Sharon Cuneta. If you know the song, sing with me. This song expresses the impact of the KC Scholarship on my career and my life:
Ikaw ang bigay ng Maykapal, Tugon sa aking dasal.
Upang sa lahat ng panahon, bawa’t pagkakataon
ang ibigin ko’y ikaw.
Ikaw ang tanglaw sa ‘king mundo, kabiyak nitong puso ko.
Wala ni kahati mang saglit, na sa ‘yo’y may ipapalit,
ngayo’t kailan may ikaw.
Ang lahat ng aking galaw ang sanhi ay ikaw.
Kung may bukas mang tinatanaw ay dahil may isang ikaw..
Kulang ang magpakailanpaman
upang bawat sandali ay… upang muli’t muli ay… ang mahalin ay ikaw.
A lifetime will never be enough to thank Fr. Willmann and all of you beautiful people of the Knights of Columbus. Thank you so much!
