Libingan ng mga Bayani is source of tuition for 15 studes

ARNOLD ALMACEN/ INQUIRER

MANILA, Philippines—At least 15 college students roamed the Libingan ng mga Bayani on All Saints’ Day Thursday in what they said was a 24-hour effort to sell “good luck” bracelets to raise funds for their tuition and heighten the “spiritual elevation” of those buried on the hallowed grounds.

Mary Ann Villano, Jerome Precia and 13 other students at the International Peace Leadership College in Tanay, Rizal, approached relatives of war veterans and military men to offer bracelets costing P100 each.

“It may be expensive but it’s for a good cause. We will use the money for our tuition this second semester,” Villano, who is working on a  bachelor’s degree in secondary education, told a prospective customer.

She and her companions had been in the cemetery since the eve of All Saints’ Day.

Villano, 18,  told the Inquirer she and the other students started selling their products at 11 p.m. Wednesday. “It’s a 24-hour activity. We will stop at exactly 11 p.m. today,” she added.

Precia, 17, said: “From time to time, we rest for five minutes but we haven’t slept yet.”

But the business student said he did not feel tired because of “spiritual cooperation.”

The “heroes” buried in the cemetery were helping them, he said, adding they chose Libingan ng mga Bayani because it is the final resting place of people who voluntarily fought for and served the country.

“The ancestors guide us in finding their relatives so they can help us with our needs,” Precia said.

He said “fund-raising” activity was called “chusok” or ancestor’s liberation.

“We believe in the spirit world,” he said. “By helping us, the ancestors will be elevated to a higher spiritual level.”

Asked if he had any encounters with ghosts  or other spirits while at the cemetery, he replied: “None so far but I would really like to see one. Sometimes I would even call them, ‘Ghosts where are you?’”

Precia’s tuition for the second semester is P10,000. He is the youngest of two children. His mother is a seamstress and his father doesn’t have a job.