Sean James Camello who graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy, magna cum laude, at the University of San Carlos in Cebu, was one of those who responded on behalf of the scholars.

“Survival was the first idea that came up to my mind when I entered college;’ Camello said.

His father is a housekeeper and his mother is self-employed cooking biko, a glutinous-rice delicacy cooked in coconut milk and sugar. Camello’s parents never questioned his decisions and always backed him up whenever he had to make choices.

“My parents believed in what I believed in” he said. In order to survive college life away from his parents, Camello learned to work on his own by selling chicharon to his friends and classmates. He never felt ashamed of what he was doing because he knew that was part of a bigger plan God has in store for him.

Camello said it was like all the positive forces of the universe - faith, love, magic, gravity-conspired to make his dream come true. “When I was a kid I dreamed of becoming a taxi driver, a teacher and a businessman. When I grew older, I realized that dreaming is not enough because one has to work hard. What we have experienced in the past is just part of growing up. Nothing is impossible as long as we help ourselves,” Camello said.