MANILA, Philippines -- CNN Hero of the Year Efren Peñaflorida arrived in the country on Wednesday night, somehow helping uplift the country’s mood soured by the slaughter of at least 57 people, including more than 20 journalists, in Maguindanao on Monday.

Beaming while holding the CNN plaque, Peñaflorida was welcomed by a hundred students and Dynamic Teen Co. (DTC) co-teachers, who screamed and waved Philippine flaglets upon seeing him.

They mobbed, hugged and kissed him, while chanting “Kuya Ef” and “Bayani!”

Reacting to the roaring crowd, a woman at the airport said, “Wow, it was pure joy!”

CNN honored him for starting a “pushcart classroom” to bring education to poor children as an alternative to gang membership.

He created a program that brings books to children in slums and on the streets. His DTC has brought reading, writing and hygiene to 1,500 children.

Clad in T-shirt and jeans, Peñaflorida arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport via Northwest flight (NW281) at 11:25 p.m.

The 28-year-old native of Cavite City will be receiving the Order of Lakandula from President Macapagal-Arroyo.

Resolutions in the Senate and other provinces to honor his deeds have also been passed.

Unlike the hero’s welcome for boxing champ Manny Pacquiao, the CNN Hero said on Wednesday night that he was expecting ordinary days ahead except that he was scheduled to meet Ms Arroyo in Malacañang for a courtesy call.

“I will still push carts. Don’t think Kuya Ef has changed. I just represent all the selfless and hardworking Filipinos,” Peñaflorida said.

His mother Lucila said no feast would await him at home.

“We don’t have money. What Efren got from the award was not his,” Lucila said but she kept reiterating how proud she was of her son.

Lucila, who earns money from repacking fish crackers in the market, said that what the family earned was just enough for their daily needs.

“He knows that. And he might get mad at us if we prepare a lavish treat,” she said.

Peñaflorida said he would build a Center for Learning somewhere that would be accessible to street children.

He said 90 percent of the $125,000 cash prize he bagged from the CNN award would go to DTC for its expansion, while 10 percent would be donated to the Church. He received $100,000 for being named CNN Hero of the Year and $25,000 for earlier making it to the top 10 CNN Heroes.

“We are happy to say that the pushcart classrooms have been replicated in various places in Metro Manila, Bacolod, Zamboanga, and as far as Kenya and Indonesia,” Peñaflorida said.

He said the CNN award served as an inspiration for Filipinos with hearts for heroism. “We just need to open our eyes and hearts for those who need help the most,” he said.

A full-time teacher at the Palm Ridge School in Cavite, the CNN hero remains a bachelor with no girlfriend at 28 years old. “There were no sacrifices at all because this is a calling and I enjoy helping the kids,” he said.

Asked about his reaction to the massacre of civilians and journalists in Maguindanao, Peñaflorida said he was not aware of the killings while he was abroad until a CNN employee told him about it.

“A (staffer) of the CNN was the one who first told me. And I was really shocked and saddened,” he told the Inquirer.

An employee at the NAIA terminal said Peñaflorida’s arrival might change the country’s mood at least briefly.

On Friday, Penaflorida is expected to get a hero’s welcome in his home-province, Cavite.

Cavite Gov. Ayong Maliksi, who also welcomed Peñaflorida at the airport, said the provincial government would donate P1 million for Peñaflorida’s pushcart classrooms.

Maliksi has also offered Peñaflorida a job at the provincial capitol as consultant for education.