Carina Rodriguez: From bags to riches

If you love fairy tales with a happy-ever-after ending, this one’s for you — one that’s really down-to-earth and guaranteed to tug at your heartstrings. So, sit back and listen up!

Once upon a time, there lived a six-year-old wisp of a girl, with sun-burnt skin from a long hard day of toiling under the scorching sun. Day after laborious day, her tiny work-gnarled hands would compress dozens of tin cans with stone, her pale face bathed in beads of sweat. And gingerly, she’d put the compressed cans into a sack and lug it off to a junkshop half a kilometer away. She’d turn over her priceless haul to the junkshop owner who’d fork over 10 centavos per kilo of her merchandise.

Some days, this enterprising and courageous girl named Carina Rodriguez is up even before the sun is out to go to the bakery and purchase a carton of hot pandesal with her younger brother in tow. The pandesal they’d faithfully peddle in their neighborhood that’s half-awake. And then they would walk back home just in time to feed their younger siblings with the pandesal they were not able to sell.

Life was never easy and money was hard to come by for Carina and her brood. In her early teens, she would make sago at gulaman, matamis na saging, and ginatan to sell during the hot summer months. Her earnings she stashed away for emergency use. Of course, she never failed to give whatever food was unsold to her younger siblings.

But there were days when there was no food on the table. They would end up indebted to sari-sari stores and many times, the store owners would not even lend them a can of sardines because their list of unpaid utang was just too long.

Training the trainors: Section ZB-RC of Ateneo de Manila University learns the ropes of paper bag making.

Through life’s harsh realities, the young Carina trudged on. Her mother watched her go about her daily routine with so much pride. Carina’s mother was a food service worker in a university while her father was a casual security guard. While her parents were away at work, Carina looked after her four younger brothers and sisters. Poverty taught Carina invaluable lessons in self-reliance and perseverance at a young age.  

But more than the basic necessities, Carina’s parents worried about their children’s education. With the price of education rising every year, the family income was never enough to give the children quality education.

For Filipinos, especially the poor, a good education is worth more than wealth. It’s the parents’ most precious gift to their children.

But truly, God works in mysterious ways! In 1978, before she entered fifth grade, Carina’s aunt Viring helped her apply for a scholarship given by the Norwegian Missionary Alliance (NORMA). Carina qualified; NORMA paid for all her school expenses and provided her with books and school supplies. They even gave her a new pair of shoes and school uniforms.

NORMA sent Carina to spiritual camps and retreats. Carina was filled with faith, hope, and love even as she came home to her family that was on the verge of a breakup. Her father was throwing fits of tantrums because of an illness and some of her brothers had become wayward, straying from the straight and narrow path. But Carina stood firm, determined to keep her family together.

Carina’s Norwegian sponsor also gave her immediate relatives free quality medical and dental attention — from consultation to provision of medicines. Of course, Carina repaid her benevolent sponsors by being a consistent honor student and a frequently awarded one, too.

One day, Carina finally walked up the stage to receive what she had always dreamed of — a college diploma. With that and an exemplary scholastic record tucked under her belt, she was armed and ready to face life’s daily battles.

What Carina learned as a NORMA scholar helped her hone her skills in leadership, in the arts, in dealing with people, and in tackling life’s uncertainties head on.

 Carina landed her first job as an accounting clerk in a hardware company. She moved on to Kameraworld, where she climbed the ladder from junior auditor to branch manager. Today, with a wealth of experience and expertise, Carina runs a fast-growing company owned by a friend who is also a Christian. Caratrade International Incorporated is involved in trading, financing, and printing businesses.

It was in 1995 that this story appeared in a Norwegian magazine, which hailed Carina as “A Cinderella of God.” End of our modern Cinderella story? Not quite, so please read on. Having been the recipient of so much kindness from Norwegian Christians at a time when she was most in need, Carina now wants to give back and share her blessings with those in need.

Paper work: An environment-friendly paper bag

She is now actively involved in the Nehemiah Alumni Association, an organization of NORMA graduates, and she plans to help strengthen and widen its vision and mission.

With passion and compassion, Carina asserts, “Success is measured not in terms of how much you have in material wealth but in how much you show God’s love to people — by giving to those who have less and by being an example of the joy given to those who live a simple and godly life.”

In 1994, she started sponsoring public high school students from out of her own pocket, setting aside part of her salary to give allowances to 10 students while conducting leadership training and fellowship for the youth. In 1998, with her scholars increasing, she decided to start an NGO with some Christian friends and family members, guided by Nelson Mandela’s riveting words: “Education is the most powerful weapon with which you can change the world.”

Doing her bit for a green and clean environment, Carina gives free training on paper bag making as a livelihood program. Among civic organizations helping her in her tireless mission is the Rotary Club of Pasay Maharlika, which is sponsoring two training sessions using their grant from District 3810 for two urban poor communities in Quezon City, which were badly hit by typhoon Ondoy. (Those who wish to help can call Carina at 09175012235 or e-mail carinarcpm@yahoo.com.)

Indeed, Carina has gone from bags to riches, but not in the material sense of the word as she helps enrich other people’s lives every day.

* * *

We’d love to hear from you. E-mail us at ching_alano@yahoo.com.