By Raymund Antonio
Raymond Papellero’s kindness to needy people in this time of health crisis did not go unnoticed by Vice President Leni Robredo.
Raymond Papellero
(Raina Ominga / MANILA BULLETIN)
Papellero, a pizza delivery rider whose act of kindness of buying bread for indigents has gone viral on social media, caught the attention of Robredo so she featured him in her Istorya ng Pag-asa (Stories of Hope) project.
For Robredo, his story is worth telling to inspire his fellow Filipinos in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Noong una kong nabasa iyong kuwento mo, talagang sinabi ko sa staff namin na hanapin ka,” she told Papellero, whom she interviewed in her radio show.
(When I first time read your story, I really told our staff to look for you.)
Papellero, a father of two, has been spending his hard-earned tips from his work to buy bread in bulk for people he has encountered on the street begging for food during his delivery trips.
He has been working for Pizza Hut since 2009 as a delivery rider.
Like other ordinary Filipinos right now, he is also grappling with the uncertainty due to the health crisis.
His wife is pregnant with their third child, but this did not stop him from helping those in need.
“Ang dami po talagang apektado po ngayon dito sa lugar ko dito sa Quezon City, sa area ko po ng paged-deliver. Ang hinihingi po talaga nila, ma’am, pagkain po talaga. Kaya iyon talaga ginawa ko, inaraw-araw ko na,” he said.
(Many are those affected here in Quezon City, in my area, where I deliver. They were really asking, ma’am, for food. So that’s what I did everyday.)
“Marami naman pong paraan diyan para tumulong po. Walang dahilan po na hindi tumulong,” he said.
(There are many ways how to help. We have no reason not to help.)
The Vice President lauded Pepellero, calling him as one of the country’s heroes in these trying times.
“Ikaw iyong tunay na Istorya ng Pag-asa dahil sa panahon nang ganito, iyong mga bayaning kagaya mo ang dapat namin tularan,” she said.
(You’re a true story of hope in a time like this, we should emulate a hero like you.)
In recognition of his good deed, Papellero earlier received P10,000 and P100,000 in cash from Pizza Hut and Araneta Group of Companies, respectively.
Read more: Pizza delivery guy buys bread to give to people on streets