‘He wanted to serve; we gave him that wish’

First Lt. John Frederick Savellano was the family’s resident “kenkoy”—the funny man. And it is with the happy memories he left that he will be remembered.

“Of course, we do cry. We are hurting because we lost my  brother. But we have a lot of happy memories with him.  And that is what is most important, to remember the happy times we had with him,” Dian, Savellano’s older brother, told reporters on Monday.

Savellano’s selfie has caught the eye of netizens for his good looks and his cute little smile, flexing his muscle while carrying a heavy backpack.

Younger sister, Kristina, smiled at the memory of that photo.

“He’s the kenkoy in the family,” she said.

Childhood dream

To be a soldier was Savellano’s childhood dream, and despite the risks, Dian said, the family never discouraged him.

“He wanted to serve the country and we gave him that wish, although we knew this could happen. We have to accept this and we support him up to the very end,” Dian said.

Sevellano, 29, was among 13 Marine soldiers killed on Friday in the siege of Marawi City by Islamic State-allied terrorists.

Presidential Peace Adviser Jesus Dureza, during the 119th Independence Day celebration in Zamboanga City, paid tribute to the fallen soldiers in Marawi.

He specifically mentioned Savellano, who he said changed the public perception of soldiers.

Cash, checks recovery

On June 5, Savellano and his men recovered P52.2 million in cash and P27.7 million worth of checks from a house that the terrorists used as a machine-gun post in Marawi.

“A few days after that, we got a story that he was killed. What he did, these are acts of heroism that we should not forget,” Dureza said.

He also mentioned Pfc. Dhan Ryan Bayot of the 51st Infantry Battalion, who made the supreme sacrifice on May 24 when his commanding officer could no longer send reinforcements.

The 24-year-old from Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay province, was surrounded by terrorists, while nine other soldiers lay dead, when he gave his commanding officer his grid coordinates.

‘Just bomb us’

“Sir, I gave you my grid coordinates, just bomb us,” Dureza said, quoting Bayot’s message to his officer.

Bayot’s body and those of the nine other soldiers were retrieved five days later. Dureza said Bayot did not die from the military bombing as his body showed signs of mutilations. His throat was slit open.

“We have to honor our modern-day heroes. We don’t need big heroes. During the siege, there were ordinary people rising up, inspiring others,” Dureza said.

He cited the peace corridors created by different humanitarian organizations, the bravery and selfless commitment by individuals and ordinary people in order to save trapped civilians, feeding the hungry, taking care of the sick and sheltering the homeless.

Dureza also cited the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in securing civilians who were trapped in their homes.

Nursing profession

Savellano studied to be a nurse at Far Eastern University and practiced his profession for a few months before he joined the Armed Forces of the Philippines through the Naval Officer Candidate Course. He also took the Marine Basic Officer Course.

Savellano’s fiancée, Marine Lt. Grace Gallero, declined to be interviewed at Monday’s ceremonies at Acera Hall of the Philippine Marine headquarters. They were set to be married in August next year.

Kristine recalled how on June 5, the day Savellano’s  company recovered the money at a Maute sniper’s nest in Marawi, his mother excitedly told her about his feat.

“My parents were so happy with what he did. This was something that my brother always wanted to do, to give glory to the Marines; to give them something to celebrate about. And the fact that they recovered the money and every single cent was surrendered made my parents very proud,” Kristina said.

“This manifests the highest integrity and professionalism of our soldiers and with that you trust our soldiers, our Marines, in performing their sole duty as protector of the state and in securing our land,” the Marine commandant, Maj. Gen. Manuel Salamat, said on Monday night.