Cadet 1st Class Catherine Mae Gonzales and Cadet 1st Class Resie Jezreel Hucalla. Photos by EV ESPIRITU / INQUIRER NORTHERN LUZON
ZAMBOANGA CITY – Salvador Gonzales Jr. and his wife Evelyn knew they would be traveling from Zamboanga City to Baguio City, by way of Manila, to attend the gradution on March 12 of their daughter, Cadet 1st Class Catherine Mae Gonzales, from the Philippine Military Academy (PMA).
That would be an achievement enough for a poor family, originally from Pagadian City. Then on Monday, they found out that Catherine would graduate 10th in the PMA Salaknib Class of 2017 – one of seven other women in the top 10.
(Salaknib stands for Sanggalang ay Lakas at Buhay para sa Kalayaan ng Inang Bayan.)
READ: Female cadet tops PMA Class 2017; Seven more ladies in Top 10
“She never told us that she is graduating top 10,” Salvador said.“ We learned about her academic standing today, this morning, when we read the newspapers. I guess she wanted to surprise us. We never expected this,”
“Catherine is very secretive,” he added.
On reading the news, Salvador and his wife cried “tears of happiness and pride.”
They had sacrificed a lot for Catherine.
“We all sacrificed,” Salvador said. “I don’t have a permanent work. My wife sells anything from home and we have kids who wanted to finish education.”
Salvador, a carpenter, and his wife has six children. They were originally from Pagadian City, where Catherine graduated from Pagadian City Comprehensive National High School.
She decided to take up engineering in college to “uplift the condition” of her family. So she took the entrance examination to the Western Mindanao State University, which is in Zamboanga City.
When she passed the exam, her parents decided to move the entire family there.
“It was harder than we thought it would be,” Salvador said of their life in Zamboanga City. “If there is no house to build, I have no work.”
‘They walked miles’
“They are very poor,” according to Teresita Esparsiya, the purok leader in Barangay Zambowood, where the Gonzaleses live. “They moved from one small hut to another because they couldn’t pay rent – until one neighbor suggested that they stay in a vacant lot. And that’s where they started putting up a hut of their own.”
Esparsiya cried as she recalled how Catherine and her mother would walk miles to solicit money for her trip to Manila.
“We even asked help from the mayor,” Esparsiya said, referring to Maria Isabelle Salazar, who still holds the position.
“And we walked because we didn’t have enough money for our fare,” she added.
The Gonzales were considered “indigents,” who got help from the barangay, according to Zambowood Barangay Chairman Rommel Bacasong.
“I remember the Gonzaleses visiting me years ago, requesting for requirements for her entry to the PMA. And I wished them good luck,” Bacasong said.
Overwhelmed cadet
In a phone interview with the Inquirer, Catherine said she did not expect she would graduate in the top 10.
“When I got here, in my fourth class (the first year at the PMA), I was ranked 50th,” she said. “Then in my third class, I was ranked 30th. In my second class, I was ranked 14th. And now, top 10. This is really overwhelming.”
“I come from a very poor family,” she added. “We are poor, but we are one big happy family. I thank God for making me strong.”
When she was admitted to the PMA, her parents failed to attend the reception.
“We didn’t have money to send her off,” Salvador said. “This is the second time we will see her. The first was during her recognition, and this time, her graduation.”
After graduation, Catherine will be joining the Philippine Air Force.
9th placer is from Compostela Valley
The ninth placer, Cadet 1st Class Resie Jezreel Hucalla, will also join the Air Force and, like Catherine, is also a native of Mindanao – Barangay Mipangi in Nabunturan town in Compostela Valley.
Her parents, retired Army Tech. Sgt. Renato Hucalla and Daisy, only learned her status also on Monday, when journalists called her and her husband for interviews.
Of course, they were elated.
“Thanks be to God. (We’re) proud of RJ,” Renato said. “She’s a pride of ComVal province.”
Her mother saw in RJ, as they call her, the desire to excel even in a field traditionally dominated by men.
“At first, I was apprehensive she might not be able to withstand the rigors of the academy but she was persistent,” said the 54-year old housewife.
The 23-year old would-be air force officer finished secondary education at University of Mindanao in Tagum in April 2012. But she opted not to attend the graduation rites as she had already been called to the PMA.
It was a decision well received by the family, Daisy said.
Two of the four Hucalla children – RJ’s older sister and brother, a licensed nurse and a business degree holder, respectively – are serving in the Air Force.
“It’s sort of a dream come true,” Daisy said. “She’s a consistent achiever from elementary up to high school and had landed on the dean’s list at college.” /atm