Lil-Esper S. Duhina, an Extra-Ordinary Nurse

Lil-Esper S. Duhina, an Extra-Ordinary Nurse
Melcichon
September 3, 2012

“Good afternoon, everybody!” says a nurse holding a sphygmomanometer or blood pressure meter and a stethoscope as she entered the library where I work.

“Good afternoon,” I answered her. “I am glad you came over. May I help you?” I asked her.

“Thanks,” she said. “Actually, I came here to extend our medical service to you and your library staff. I know you are all too busy to visit our medical clinic even just to have your blood pressure checked up. So I came over here.”

It reminded me of the old saying: “If Mohammed cannot go the mountain, let the mountain go to Mohammed.”

“Oh, how nice of you,” I said. “You are the first nurse I know who goes around to extend medical services to the college personnel.” My observation about her was also observed by my colleagues at St. Therese-MTC Colleges Library when I asked them of what they can say about this nurse.

This is Ms. Lil-Esper Sumergido Duhina of Pototan, Iloilo and presently the college nurse of St, Therese-MTC Colleges, La Fiesta Site, Molo, Iloilo City. Her name came from the combination of her mother’s name, Lira, and from the name of her father’s mother, Esperanza.

Days after that visit, she again came to our Library informing us that there were seminars on brain attack and on eyesight, and encouraged us to attend to these seminars. She said that the resource persons are all experts in their respective fields. Indeed they were. The resource person on eyesight was Dr. Julia Z. Villanueva, MD, of the Department of Health, Western Visayas, while the speaker on brain attack was Dr. Steven G. Baclaian, MD, FAFNI.

So I said to myself, I will write something about her. She deserves to be emulated.

That led me to ask her why she is doing all these things.

“I’m just doing my job as your college nurse.” And she added:  “we (nurses) are blessings. She continued, “being a nurse is a gift, sir, and I don't want to waste that gift.”

That is right. Nurses are blessings. I wish all nurses are like her—concerned of the health of her fellowmen, and very approachable.

Ms. Duhina was born in Gharian, Libya. So was her brother, Jian Paolo.

She told me that her parents were then working in Libya where she was born. Her mother was a nurse then. Her father was an all around steward in a French company in Libya.

While in Libya, Lil-Esper learned English with an Indian tutor because her mother did not want her to speak Arabic.

After five years of stay in Libya, her mother decided to bring Lil-Esper to Iloilo mainly for academic reason. Her brother was brought to the Philippines before he reached one year old.

She was enrolled at Colegio de las Hijas de Jesus, Iloilo City, It was also there where she finished her high school.

After graduation from high school, she enrolled at Central Philippine University (CPU), Iloilo City for a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree.|

Although a nursing degree was not her first choice, but because her parents wanted her to be a nurse instead of becoming a lawyer, she yielded to her parents' desire.

And eventually, she slowly loved the profession.

It was in CPU where she learned the value of knowledge, attitudes and skills.

“Even if you are intelligent and skillful, but if you have unacceptable attitude, you are nothing,” she said. “These three things,” she continued, “must have equilibrium.”

And this philosophy has been his guiding principle in her professional life as a nurse.

She finished her BSN degree at Central Philippine University in 2008 and passed the nursing licensure board exam in the same year.

To improve her nursing skills, she volunteered as a nurse-trainee at the following hospitals St. Therese-MTCC Hospital, Iloilo Doctors Hospital and at Great Saviour International Hospital, all in Iloilo City from August 17, 2009 to November 28, 2011.

Before the end of her training at Great Saviour International Hospital, she had applied in one of the hospitals in Libya and at St. Therese-MTC Colleges as a nurse. She said that whoever will be the first to hire her as a nurse, that would be the place where she would work with.

And fortunately, it was the St. Therese-MTC Colleges that accepted her first. So, she set aside Libya. It was also a double blessings in disguise because had she been accepted by a Libyan hospital, she would have experienced the hardship of the recent war in that country.

And if she had been hired by the Libyan hospital, I could not have written this short profile.

Evelyn Nabor Revestir: A Pride of Lezo, Aklan

Evelyn Nabor Revestir: A Pride of Lezo, Aklan
By Melchor F. Cichon
November 24, 2012

Can we predict whether a child will grow to be an achiever or not?

I do.

What could be my bases?

First, if that child is healthy both in body and mind.

And she/he has developed self-confidence and dedication in whatever he/she does.

I am thinking of a lady achiever from Lezo, Aklan. Her name is Evelyn Nabor Revestir.

She came from a family of achievers.

Consider the following. Her father, the late Gabriel Navarrete Gubatina Nabor was a painter, sculptor and teacher, while her mother is Mrs. Adela Cezar Isidro Ibuyan was a retired Elementary School teacher. Her brothers are Rev. Fr. Jerome I. Nabor and the late Gabriel I. Nabor, a B.S. Architecture, UP Diliman, Quezon City graduate. Her other brother is Victorico Ibuyan Nabor, a graduate of Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, Central Philippine University, now residing and working at the Department of Agriculture in Iloilo City. Her sister is Mary Grace N. Cajels, a B. S. Nursing, now in Brooklyn , New York, USA.

Early in her studies, Evelyn had already shown her top caliber intelligence. From Grade I to Grade V, she was always their First Honors and when she graduated in her elementary grades, she was their Valedictorian.

Her academic achievements did not stop there. She graduated as Magna cum laude with the Highest Distinction in Religion when she received her BS in Commerce, Major in Accounting degree at the Aklan College, now the Aklan Catholic College, Kalibo, Aklan.

Even before she graduated from college, Evelyn employed as a working student at De Paul Community Credit Union, Kalibo, Aklan; Aklan College Employees Cooperative, and at Aklan College Treasurer’s Office as a bookkeeper.

Immediately after her graduation from college, Evelyn worked as a bookkeeper in Rural Bank of Buruanga (Aklan), Inc., then as an Accountant at Rural Bank of Lezo (Aklan), Inc., in Lezo, Aklan, and retired as manager of UCPB Rural Bank, Inc, in Lezo, Aklan.

With this background, I have no doubt that whatever endeavor Evelyn or Eve will get into, she will surely give her best, most especially when it comes to public service.

Like · · · November 25 at 12:09pm

• 

  Evelyn Nabor Revestir Your effort is very well appreciated. Thank you so much Nong Melchor you're such a very great writer and I wish there will be more Melchor Cichon in the new generation of our beloved town Lezo.

  November 25 at 12:38pm · Edited · Like
• 

  Alberto Teston Jr. Evelyn Nabor Revestir also have a brother Vic Ibuyan Nabor who as well is a great achiever. He was our first honor from first to sixth grade and carried on to be our valedictorian in High School. A UP scholar with a Degree in Agricultural studies.

  November 25 at 2:11pm · Like · 1
• 

  Evelyn Nabor Revestir Thanks Jr. Vic was a COCOFED scholar. Anong Jerome was also a consistent honor pupil in LES, Gracia 3rd Honorable Mention and the late Gabriel Jr. was also 1st honors from Gr. I to VI and also in LI. Di gid ako mahuya magpost kara ar ruyon manlang ro amon nga ikapabugae nga manggad paagi sa hugod ko amon nga loving parents.

  November 25 at 9:13pm · Like · 3
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  Erick Cawaling Crispino Cahilig Mga makarayang tawo ro kinahang ean it anong Banwang Lezo...

  November 26 at 12:52am via mobile · Like
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  Evelyn Nabor Revestir Sana thanks

  November 27 at 9:54pm · Like
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  Vic Ibuyan Nabor with your support we can make a difference. Thanks gid kinyo.

  November 27 at 11:10pm · Like · 1

• Erick Cawaling Crispino Cahilig and 7 others like this.
• View all 6 comments
• 

  Evelyn Nabor Revestir Sana thanks

  November 27 at 9:54pm · Like
• 

  Vic Ibuyan Nabor with your support we can make a difference. Thanks gid kinyo.

  November 27 at 11:10pm · Like · 1

Mariah Reden Nicopior Montaño: A Model Librarian

by

Melchor F. Cichon
December 11, 2012

She is an orderly and intelligent lady.

These words came from her best friend, Christine Dianne Macuro popularly known as Apple Manzanas. 

Reden was born in Antique. 

Through Apple,  I gathered that Reden graduated cum laude  at Central Philippines University, Jaro, Iloilo City in 2011. 

After her graduation, she worked as a librarian at AMA Computer College in Iloilo.

But like many other young professionals, Reden transferred to the West Visayas State University (WVSU). She is still at the WVSU Library.

According to Reden, she realized that it is not only money that makes her happy. It is also the contentment of the library clientele that makes her smile even after her duties.

According to her, there are some supervisors who do not realize the hurt feelings being experienced by their subordinates when the latter are being scolded in front of their colleagues for a little mistakes they committed.  It seems that the supervisors do not also commit mistakes.  This deviant behavior of some supervisors is at times the main cause of the subordinates' decision to transfer to other libraries.  And when they are being asked during the exit interview, they would just say, their families have changed residences. Or they just want to have a new experience. But the truth is, they just want to get out of their undesirable environment.

But these librarians do not change their professions.

When I asked Reden what sticks her to librarianship, she told me this:

“The information. I learn to love this profession because I have no other choice. I have the privilege of saying I have a great job that I really enjoy. It also has endless varieties and frequent updates, and it makes an important contribution to the world by providing up-to-date and relevant information to the readers at the fastest way possible. What if there’s no library? Maybe the readers will only rely on the internet. But not all information in the internet is reliable and accurate. So books and internet must complement each other.

“And I have this job that pays well when compared to other professions. Not so big cause I’m just a newbee. But I know of some librarians who receive more than thirty thousand pesos a month—thanks to CHED’S accreditation program of schools, colleges and universities.”

When I asked her what advice she can share to our young men and women to make librarianship enjoyable/ challenging, she said: 

“Librarianship is a challenging and enjoyable profession especially when you put your heart into it. Always eager to learn and work for the best. I have this quote from Bob Marley, 'Don’t gain the world and lose your soul, Wisdom is better than silver or gold.' Serve heartily. Don’t mind competition. Just learn and share your knowledge to others.”

Reden continued: “In my experience as a librarian, I faced different clients with different attitudes and personalities. I can’t cater to all of them at the same time  because at times I am a one-man librarian. One time, I experienced anger. I had this one client who shouted at me because I did not allow him to enter the library because he had no library card. Library card is the requirement to enter the library. That’s the policy. I was just consistent with the policy of the library, I explained to him. He was so angry that he banged the door when he left the room. He also said bad words at me. That moment made me teary. For the first time in my life I experienced that. But because I’m a professional librarian, I just instructed him to bring his library next time.

"I told myself to be patient. I remembered this quote from a Chinese proverb, 'If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.' So I always wear a cheerful countenance at all time."

What a wise word from a young lady librarian.

 

 

Apple Manzanas: the Stress Reliever

by Melchor F. Cichon
December 8, 2012

She is popularly known as Apple Manzanas.


But her real name is Christine Dianne Macuro. So sometimes, her friends call her Mac. She got her Japanese name from her grandfather who was a half-Japanese. Apple was born on April 20,1991 in Iloilo City. She is the eldest of two siblings. Her father is an OFW who works in Saudi Arabia, while her mother is a housewife.


Apple graduated at Central Philippines University with a degree of Bachelor of Science in Library and Information Science.

This was not her first choice as she wanted to take up Bachelor of Science in Hotel and Restaurant Management.  She wanted to work abroad. But because her mother convinced her to take up library science degree, she had to take it. She did not realize that as a librarian, she also has a lot of opportunities to work abroad like any other professionals.

Like many other librarians, Apple eventually developed to love the profession.

After graduation, she prepared well for the board exam. Her aim was to land on the Top Ten.

She did not land on the Top Ten. But she passed it.

Now, Apple works as a librarian at St. Therese-MTC Colleges La Fiesta Site, Molo, Iloilo City. Prior to this, she was with AMA Library in Iloilo City.

When I asked her if she has regretted for having taken library science, she said NO. "I enjoy my work."

And the rest of her co-employees when she is around because she has a Mt. Everest-size storage area of interesting topics to share.

And she can deliver her stories in a funny way. That's the reason why I call her, the stress reliever.

Tata_Goloy, the Philantrophist and Poet

Tata_Goloy, the Philantrophist and Poet
by Melchor F. Cichon



I "met" him in the internet.

And in our first "meeting", we immediately sealed a bonding.

Perhaps because his interests and mine are almost the same.

He writes poetry, and so am I.

He likes to write criticisms on the state of our country. That is also my forte. But in our criticisms, we both offer alternatives or solutions.

We do not know however if our write-ups are being read by the people concerned.

Not now perhaps.

But just in case our government officials would listen to our small voice, that would be enough.

Just enough.

But there is one thing which I admire about Tata_Goloy. He is honest and frank.

And very accomodating and thoughtful.

And a Good Samaritan.

He once said to me that if only people would ask forgiveness on the things s/he commits to him, he would surely forgive him/her.

But then those people who made mistakes on him do not ask for forgiveness.

When our book, Luwa, Haiku and Other Poems by Aklanons, was being prepared for publication, there was always Tata_Goloy to give a hand.

And each time, a member of our group in the Akeanon.com does not log for a week or so, he would always "call" him/her to come back.

And indeed, they come back.

Tata_Goloy is not just a poet and essayist, he is also an artist.

He told me once that when he was still in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to design a replica of the spacecraft Columbia. Because of his artistic ability and through his leadership, he was able to finish the replica on time.

When he went to America, Tata_Goloy's artistic ability was utilized at General Motors where he works in the designing and in the modelling of cars.

Tata_Goloy was born in Badio, Numancia, Aklan, Philippines on September 12. He is the youngest among the siblings.

His name is Cirilo Castillon, Jr.

Because his father died three months before he was born, Tata_Goloy experienced growing up without seeing a father.

But his mother was a strong person. And through their cooperation, determinations and talent, Tata_Goloy was able to finish his studies while working.

One at a time.

Because he was not given the opportunity to study when he was still young, he founded a foundation that would give free tuition fees to the scholars.

So far he was able to graduate two doctors of medicine, and a CPA. He is still supporting two or three nursing students, a social worker (an Aeta from Burianga, Aklan), and some high school students.

Today, Tata_Goloy works in America together with his wife and children.

Antonio L. Ong: The Tropical Fish Breeder

Antonio L. Ong: The Tropical Fish Breeder
By
Melchor F. Cichon
December 31, 2005

The first time I met him, he was riding on a carabao.

The last time I met him he was riding in an air-conditioned D Max pick-up car together with his beautiful wife, Cristina, and their three children, Anne Kristin, Bryan Lester, and Anthony III.

Not only that, he has a five-story apartment and a house of his own in Makati City.

What made him a successful entrepreneur? Read on.

It all started as a hobby.

Antonio L. Ong, a native of San Remigio, Antique was amazed on the various species of tropical freshwater aquarium fishes of their neighbor at Ponti, Makati City.

That was in the 1980s.

Because he had no money to buy some pieces of those fishes, Tony, as his friends call him, befriended the owner, Mr. Toti Javier.


Mr. Javier noticed that Tony was really interested in culturing tropical fishes, so he gave him some pairs as a gift.

Tony was so happy of his gift.

But he was not just satisfied with that gift.

He wanted to know more, especially on how to breed them. The wage was not that important. What was important to him was on how to culture them and later on how to economically profit from them.

Tony volunteered to be an assistant. Luckily, Mr. Javier accepted him.

So he worked at Mr. Javier freshwater fishes for nine continuous years, long enough to know the whole trade.

Part of his job was to deliver live aquarium fishes to different pet shops in Metro Manila. Mr. Javier would give him twenty pesos for his travel allowance.

But the money given to him was more than enough. The minimum jeepney fare then was less then one peso.

He kept the rest of his allowance for his studies.

In one occasion, he discovered that the people whom he delivered aquarium fishes was a middle man and this middle man would sell his fishes in much higher prices to Chinese aquarium fish dealers.

With this information, he decided to deal directly with the Chinese fish dealers. With that he got higher commission.

If he was not delivering fishes, he would clean the aquaria, feed the fishes and treat them when they contacted diseases,

He would also observe how to breed fishes.

Then one time, he was asked by a certain fish dealer, Mr. Leoncio Chua, to breed a certain angel fish. At that time, angel fishes were exported to the United States of America.

Mr. Chua assured him that if he could make it spawn, he would get a five percent commission of the net sale.

Aside from his monthly salary of Ph P3,000.

For Tony, that offer was the opportunity he had been dreaming of. So he accepted the challenge.

Since he had no educational background on fish breeding, he asked helps from his friends and from the technicians at the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.

After several attempts, he was able to breed it. He duplicated his experiment. Again, he was successful.

With that, he was given twenty-five thousand pesos as a commission. In the 1980s that amount was already something.

That event encouraged him to learn more about the aquarium fish industry, including its business aspect.

Meanwhile, he invested his earned money on taxis. He was able to buy one taxi unit, which he himself drove it. Later, he was able to buy three more taxi units.

But he was not meant to be a taxi driver.

So he sold his taxis and invested on ihaw-ihaw restaurant together with his half brother, Sonny Cabrera.

Their restaurant business was earning enough, but later he noticed that there was something wrong with the way the business was being managed. So he decided to quite from the partnership and decided to establish alone a tropical fish breeding industry. This time, it would be located at the yard of the ancestral house of his wife.

He bought large aquaria with all the necessary accessories like aerators and power filter. He put up grow-up cement tanks. He purchased high quality fish breeders and begun his culture on tropical aquarium fishes. He hired a male relative as a helper.

As time went by, his business progressed.

And the demand for more tropical fishes grew.

But then other countries like China begun to penetrate the local aquarium fish industry by bringing in more attractive and high quality fishes, and at lower prices.

But as they say, the more the merrier.

The other problem cited by Tony is the lack of technical assistance from the government on how to improve the quality of tropical fish breeders so that they can compete with the imported tropical fishes from China and Taiwan.

“Kaya, kanya-kanya na lang na diskarte,” he said.

So he planned proper strategies to stay put in the business. Otherwise, he would be gone.

One of these strategies employed by Tony is to keep himself abreast with the market situations by reading the newspapers and listening to radios and television broadcasts. He listened to the suggestions of his customers.

“If it is necessary to lower the prices, then so be it,” he said.

The other strategy he thought of was to culture as many varieties of tropical fishes as possible. This way, the buyers will have more choices.

“And I make sure,” he said, “that the fishes I produce are healthy so as not to lose my suki.”

“But if my delivered fishes die within a certain period of time, I will immediately replace them,” he assures this writer..

He told this writer that he keeps his helpers by giving their wages on time and he regularly supplies them with free rice.

“If they are hungry, they cannot work well,” he told this writer. “And they will leave you,” he continued.

So until now, Tony is still culturing and selling tropical aquarium fishes.

Some of the species he is culturing are black moley, short tail, carp, oratus, janitors, black moor goldfish, blue flatty, bleeding heart, angel fish, and hammerhead shark.

“Why no flower horn (Genus Cichlasoma) and arowana (Osteoglossum sp.)?”, I asked him.

“Aside from being difficult to culture them,” he said, “we cannot compete with the species being shipped in by the Chinese and the Taiwanese.”

"Why not do some experiments to improve what we have?, " I asked him.

"We have no more time for that, " he said.

Looking back, Tony remembered his childhood days.

Immediately after he was born on November 22, 1963 in Makati, he was deposited by his mother to his uncle, in San Remigio, Antique. There he was raised in the farm. When he was bigger enough to plow the field, he would get up at five in the morning and bring their carabao to his uncle’s rice field and plow.

At nine in the morning, he would gather grasses for their carabao or just let it feed itself in their backyard.

But he never ignored his studies.

He finished his high school at St. Vincent School in San Remigio, Antique, a private high school.

During summer vacation, her Ninang Rita Dollolasa, would bring him to Manila to meet his mother, Mrs. Perla Llera, and his two half brothers, and returned to Antique when the vacation was over.

After finishing his high school education, he decided to stay with his mother, along with his half-brothers and his step-father in Makati, Metro Manila. After several years, his half-sister was born.

There he continued his studies at Makati Polytechnic College.

Because of poverty, he was not able to finish a college degree.

But it was there where he met his beautiful wife, the former Cristina Morales of Bangkal, Makati.

After their marriage, Tony transferred to Bangkal and put up his tropical freshwater fish aquarium business. It is in Bangkal where he breeds his fishes and transport the fries to Laguna to grow in his freshwater earthen ponds.

With this, he harvests twice a week and sell his product in whole sale to the different pet shops in Metro Manila.