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Boy Who Studied at McDonald’s Now Lives a Better Life, Thanks to Viral Post

It was back in June 2015 when someone snapped a photo of Daniel Cabrera as he studied outside McDonald’s, diligently doing his assignments under the light of the lamp outside the store. The post had gone viral, with the kid gaining praise for his determination.

The photo was taken by Joyce Torrefranca, a student at Cebu Doctors’ University (CDU), Mandaue City Campus. The spot at the McDonald’s outlet at the North Reclamation Area in Mandaue City had been a regular place for the kid to study because he and his family don’t have a home.

Photo credit: Joyce Torrefranca / PhilStar

With three kids to care for, Daniel’s widow mom Maria Cristina Espinosa admitted that life was difficult for the family. She only earns Php60 a day as ‘caretaker’ of a food stall across the CDU during evenings while she works as laundrywoman during the day.

It’s tough to have no husband. In one day, we only get to eat twice. Sometimes, I wait for someone who wants their laundry done by me,” she told Cebu Daily News.

She admitted that the family did not have a home. She would only put flattened out boxes underneath the tables of the food stall so she and the kids can have a place to sleep. To protect themselves from stray animals, she would put the chairs as ‘fence’ around her children.

The McDonald’s outlet was near the food stall, making it ideal for Daniel to study his lessons there. At the time, he was still a Grade 3 student at Subangdaku Elementary School. He actually had to walk about 4 km to reach the school, but the young boy did not mind because he was determined to go to school and become a policeman someday.

After his photo went viral, help poured in for Daniel and his family. A police official has reportedly promised to shoulder his college education.

More importantly, Daniel no longer had to study at McDonald’s or sleep under the tables of a food stall. Through kindhearted netizens who gave various donations in cash and in kind, the family was able to start anew.

 

For instance, Fr. Carmelo Diola of the Dilaab Foundation Inc. gave the family Php3,000; Maria Cristina used the money to pay for the downpayment of a room where they are still staying now. Thanks to a sari-sari store netizens also helped her open, she no longer has to work at the food stall or as laundrywoman to support the kids. They also have a steady source of income for their daily needs.

Daniel’s 20-year-old elder brother also has job now and is helping with the family’s expenses.

Photo credit: Cebu Daily News

Recently, the McDonald’s North Reclamation Area branch had given him a congratulatory party for his graduation from elementary. But unknown to many, the store had actually been supporting Daniel since his story went viral!

He receives Php1,500 as monthly allowance from the management, something that he is set to receive until he finishes high school.

In return for all the help he received, Daniel made sure he focuses on his studies. He never misses a day in school because he wants to make sure he learns all the lessons.

The 13-year-old Daniel will be in junior high school this June. He hopes to take up BS Criminology in college so he could become a policeman as this was his dad’s dream…

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Jeepney Driver Offered Free Rides for One Day after Son Becomes Engineer

A jeepney driver offered free rides for one day after his son became a licensed engineer.

His story went viral after it was shared by a nursing student who became one of his passengers that day.

Jeepney Driver Offered Free Rides to Celebrate Son’s Success

Parents remain the proudest people when it comes to their children – and it’s really sweet to hear stories of proud parents announcing their children’s success to the world.

When Joseph Salcedo passed the February 2023 Mechanical Board Exams, his dad (Papa Rey) was so proud of his accomplishment that he offered free rides to all his passengers that day.

A jeepney driver, Papa Rey had promised to give out a free rides if his son passes the licensure exams.

He reportedly made this promise at their church.

According to the new engineer, his dad had initially planned on just giving out free rides for one trip or round. But his dad felt so proud of having an engineer son that he decided to treat all his passengers to the free ride for the entire day!

Mark Cynric Baldesco Beriña, a nursing student, was among Papa Rey’s lucky passengers.

jeepney driver offered free rides
Photo credit: Mark Cynric Baldesco Beriña / The Summit Express

According to Beriña, he had no idea about the free ride until he was about to pay for the fare. Papa Rey happily told him that he didn’t have to pay, proudly announcing his son’s success.

Although he was just one of the passengers, Beriña said that he also felt proud of Papa Rey and his son’s success as he congratulated them both.

Meanwhile, Papa Rey’s son was amused and also quite happy over what his father had done to celebrate his achievement. Because they don’t own the jeep, he said that he offered to pay for his dad’s “boundary” that day.

But here’s more good news: the jeepney owner was also so happy that Papa Rey’s son is now an engineer – and didn’t let him pay the boundary as well. Cool, isn’t it?

What’s a “Boundary” in Philippine Transport?

In the Philippines, public transport vehicle owners charge a “boundary” or a fixed amount of money that their drivers need to pay as rent for the vehicle.

Often, the drivers get to take home any amount they earn above the boundary, though they also have to pay the full boundary amount even if they didn’t earn enough for the day.

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Former Street Sweeper Sends Five Kids to College, Finds Fortune by Selling Tableya

A former street sweeper finds good fortune and sends her five kids to college by selling tableya – and she has become an inspiration to many.

Today, all her five kids have finished their studies, and their home is now a favorite tourist destination. Wow!

Former Street Sweeper Finds Good Fortune in Tableya

People are born with different challenges and fortunes in life. It is said that even if you’re born poor, you can turn your life around and change your destiny.

That’s what Elsa Polot, a mother of five in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, managed to achieve as she found good fortune through hard work.

Back in 1994, Polot worked as a street sweeper. It’s a blue-collar job with low pay. Her husband didn’t earn much as a tricycle driver.

former street sweeper
Photo credit: CDN Digital

With five kids to support, Polot decided to find other ways to earn extra income. That’s when she started roasting cocoa beans to make tableya. It’s a tablet-like traditional Filipino food product (“tableya” means “tablet”) made of ground cocoa beans.

To make ends meet, she spent time preparing these products and selling them to her neighbors. She also sold her products on the streets of their city.

Photo credit: Cebu Daily News

Thanks to her determination and hard work, Polot was able to send all her five children to college.

Kids Upgrade the Family Business

All her hard work didn’t go to waste. Not only are her children professionals, they’re also helping upgrade the business.

Dalareich, a Computer Engineering graduate, also studied in Belgium where she learned the latest technology in tableya processing. She also bought machines to improve their production.

Photo credit: CDN Digital

Amazingly, the family’s tableya products are now being exported to Japan, Australia, and Sweden.

From simply making tableya, the family business has upgraded into a chocolate factory!

Chocolate “Shoes”; Photo credit: CDN Digital
Photo credit: CDN Digital

Today, not only are they producing chocolate, their home has also become a tourist spot known as the “Chocolate House.”

Uses of Tableya

  • “Tsokolate” (syrupy chocolate to match with puto maya)
  • Hot or cold cocoa beverage
  • Chocolate shake
  • Chocolate cookies
  • Chocolate products
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“Mango Flute” Girl Who was Cyber-Bullied at 14, Now a Licensed Engineer

Do you remember the “mango flute” girl who was cyber-bullied back when she was just 14 years old? She’s a licensed engineer now – and looks back to the experience with an advice for others who are experiencing a similar situation…

Cyber-Bullied “Mango Flute” Girl Becomes a Licensed Engineer

People make mistakes. Whether big or small, it’s often how we handle the situation and our attitude that can help us overcome the challenges that this mistake brought to our lives.

Pauline Claire Arucan was only 14 years old when she was subjected to intense cyber-bullying, not just by her classmates but she feels like it was the “entire Philippines” that trolled her at the time.

Photo credit: PhilStar Life

It all started with an innocent post about a delicious dessert, which she called as “mango flute.”

The young girl soon posted a follow-up, telling off someone for correcting her that the spelling should have been “mango float.” Instead of accepting her fault or realizing her mistake, she laughed off the correction for being a mistake – after all, is the mango really floating in a mango float?

She added “magic???” to her post, before ending it with “aral poh kasi muna” (that’s why you really should study first).

Of course, she’s the one who made the mistake – and the “mango float” correction was, indeed, correct.

Due to her attitude at the time, and the fact that many people are actually unsure about the dessert’s correct spelling, the post went viral.

Arucan now recalls that she experienced so much cyber-bullying at the time. Still, even if she regrets the tweet now, she was able to rise up and overcome the challenges that followed.

Photo credit: PhilStar Life

Proving that the spelling mistake was a one-off, she went on to get 1st place in a spelling bee contest at her alma mater, Polytechnic University of the Philippines.

She didn’t let that one situation get her down – and she recently shared about becoming a registered mechanical engineer.

Photo credit: Pauline Arucan

What’s a Spelling Bee?

This is a competition wherein contestants are asked to spell a selection of words, ranging in difficulty. The contestants should provide the spellings of the words as written in dictionaries.

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