9-year-old boy sells medals he won at school to buy food for family

A nine-year-old boy recently went viral for selling medals he had won at school to buy food for his family amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

On this Sunday’s “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho” episode, incoming Grade 4 student Kenneth shared that he had won 50 medals from school.

For P20 each, he was willing to sell the medals so his family could have something to eat.

His mom Cherryl, who worked as a security guard and househelp, had lost her source of income due to the pandemic. That’s when Kenneth decided to sell his medals.

“Pinaghirapan ko po ‘yun. Gusto ko ibenta kasi nahirapan na si Mama nang sobra, kasi kahit marami na kaming pinagdaanan na pagsubok, hindi niya kami iniwan (I worked hard for those medals. I want to sell them because my mom is having a difficult time. We’ve been through a lot, but she never left us),” he said.

Life in school

Kenneth was a bright child who joined his first Math competition when he was just in Grade 1, said his teacher. He and his brother Kyle needed little to no guidance on doing schoolwork.

It was good, Cherryl said, because she was a single mom and had to work extra hard to provide for the three of them.

Because she had to work long hours, there were times she couldn’t attend Kenneth’s recognition day.

At one point, her absence affected Kenneth so much that he didn’t want to go to school anymore.

Other kids would also bully Kenneth and his brother for the absence of their mother in school programs.

Despite all the challenges thrown in Kenneth’s way, he still made sure to study hard.

However, because of the pandemic and the possibility of classes resuming online, Kenneth felt hopeless because he didn’t have a computer or a strong internet connection.

“Hindi naman araw-araw may load kami. Siyempre mas pagkain pa rin priority kaysa load, internet (It’s not like we have cellphone load every day. Of course, food is our top priority),” Cherryl said.

Hope from a child

Because of their financial problem, Kenneth began selling his medals online.

Fortunately, generous donors responded and sent help to the family.

Dr. Khristian Santos, who owned an online laptop shop, gave the family a laptop. The “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho” team, meanwhile, gave the brothers their own internet broadband and financial aid.

“Hindi ko expect na mayroon pang handang tumulong nang walang kapalit. May mga taong nagmamalasakit kahit hindi nila kadugo. Sobrang laking pasasalamat ko sa mga taong may ganito ang puso (I didn’t expect that there are people who would help without expecting anything in return even if we’re not related. I’m so thankful to them),” Cherryl said.

Kenneth was willing to let go of all his medals for his family. After all, he said, his greatest pride was his mother. — RC/LA, GMA News

For those who want to help Kenneth and his family, please deposit to:

UNIONBANK ACCOUNT – P. TUAZON, CUBAO BRANCH
ACCOUNT NAME: CHERRYL Q MENDOZA
ACCOUNT NUMBER: 102040030220