A Woman's Grit

Twenty. That is the total number of years that Gladys Cuenca has been peddling foodstuff along the streets of Rosario in Bacolod City. The seemingly quiet street during the day turns into a beer alley when plastic tables and monobloc chairs occupy an entire lane for late night drinking sessions among locals. Gladys sits on the pavement in the hope of selling all 200 packs of deep fried pork fat called chicharon to her intoxicated clients.

Gladys has always been a woman of grit. She grew up in her grandmother’s care because her parents, after separating, had families of their own. She learned independence at a young age. But, she had too much of it. She later on became wayward, enrolling in De La Salle University but never even attending a single class. Then it all came spiraling down when she got pregnant at 17 years old. From then on, life wasn’t a party anymore.

In order to make ends meet, Gladys learned to work. Like any other out of school youth in the Philippines, she really didn’t have a lot of options but to peddle goods on the streets. This has been her life for the past decades. In between those two decades, Gladys managed to get a job in Kuwait as a domestic helper. While it helped her feed her family, it starved her from the love that she’s supposed to have by being around them. After two years, Gladys came back to the Philippines and resumed selling chicharon.

By early 2014, three out of six of Gladys’ children were in college. While her husband works as a driver, she knew that both their income weren’t enough. Gladys was once again lured into working as a domestic helper in Malaysia. But Gladys’ grit gave her enough courage to look for other options instead of going out of the country again. And, as fate would have it, the very street she walks along at night is where Bagosphere is alive during the day. She was able to talk to some students about the program and eventually walked in the Bagosphere office to inquire about it.

With the help of Dungganon, Gladys obtained a scholarship for the 2-month call center training of Bagosphere. Despite her insecurities being surrounded by students half her age, Gladys pressed on and by the end of the training was offered a job in a call center.

From dark alleys to lighted hallways, from intersections to glass doors, from pavement to cubicle, Gladys made a full 360 change of her life. This goes to show that there is no obstacle strong enough to stop a woman’s grit. 

Written by: Din Sevilla