“We were taught to dream from the heart (Itinuro sa amin na mangarap mula sa puso),” Bessie Ocariza, 45, a resident of Toyota-City of Santa Rosa-Gawad Kalinga Village since 2014, said near the end of the 80-minute interview where she sat quietly listening to the stories of a neighbor.

An overseas Filipino worker on-and-off for six years, there was no shyness when it was her turn to tell her story, outpouring gratefulness to Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation (TMP) for giving her family a house. From “owning nothing to owning things - house appliances and two motorcycles,” she gushed. And more than that, valuable lessons on life and community.

“Itinuro sa amin na mangarap mula sa puso—na balang araw, magkakaroon kami ng mas maginhawa at masayang buhay, makakaalis kami sa Gawad Kalinga Village, at maipapasa namin ang aming bahay sa pamilyang tunay na nangangailangan at walang matirhan (We were taught to dream from the heart, that someday, our lives will be better and we can leave the Gawad Kalinga Village, and pass on our house to a family who truly needs shelter and a home).”

Above the deafening sounds of heavy downpour and thunder, Bessie’s statement was the proverbial show-stopper. It defined not only the life-changing effect of being awarded a house but also teaching a sense of community responsibility to pass this on to a family in need of shelter.

“Pinasigla kami ng Toyota GK na mangarap—na hindi habambuhay ganito ang kahirapan namin, at kaya naming pagandahin ang aming buhay, (Toyota GK inspired us to dream, that we will not be poor like this forever; that we can improve our lives),” Bessie emphasized over and over again, the smile all over her face now, her eyes turning teary.

To work hard to have a better life; to get out of the village where one learns the meaning of dignity; to pass on one’s house to someone poorer than you – those were the values that shone from the inspiring stories we heard that rainy afternoon. It told of the impact that TMP Foundation’s community development and education programs have made on the lives of many people. In a nutshell, it presented how Toyota’s CSR programs to “give back to the community” had been successfully transferred from board room plans to people.

Bessie’s life before the Toyota-City of Santa Rosa-Gawad Kalinga Village is the stark reality of poverty. She, her husband and two children were living under a bridge, next to a pigsty. When it rained, the river water rose, swallowing much of her house, they had to endure knee-deep water through the night. “Minsan ang kasama naming mga ahas at basura na lumulutang sa baha (Sometimes we find ourselves surrounded by snakes and debris drifting in the floodwaters).”

Benedicta Patapat, 64, community leader, adds to the images of poverty, to where they were before the Toyota-City of Santa Rosa-Gawad Kalinga Village: “Nagtinda akong gulay sa palengke. Kung hindi, wala kaming kakainin. Nang humingi ng gatas ang anak kong si Romel, sabi ko: Anak, wala tayo pambili. Isawsaw mo lang ang kanin sa asukal at isubo. Kung gabi, meron kami isang lampara na pang ilaw (I sold vegetables in the market. If I don’t, we won’t have anything to eat. When my son Romel asked for milk, I said: Son, we don’t have money to buy it. Just dip the rice in sugar and eat it. At night, we only had one lamp for light).”

Made possible through its P24-million donation, TMP, through its social and humanitarian arm, TMP Foundation, awarded 160 houses to informal settlers living around the area of Santa Rosa in 2013 and funded the construction of a multi-purpose hall within the village. The project was carried out in partnership with the local government of Santa Rosa and Gawad Kalinga Community Development Foundation. Each beneficiary contributed “sweat equity” providing the labor to build their houses.

“Iba talaga kung meron bahay, hindi ka nag-uupa. Hindi nag worry kung malakas ang ulan baka pasukin ng tubig ang bubong, o baha sa loob. Malaking bagay na binigyan kami nito ng Toyota (It’s really different when owning a house, you don’t have to rent. There’s no worry when it rains hard that water might leak through the roof or flood inside. It’s a big deal that Toyota gave this to us), Benedicta and Bessie said.

TMP’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs do not stop there. They provided livelihood opportunities to residents, one of them candle-making production that has made the village known for the craft. Although there are now fewer residents participating in candle making because most have been hired by companies operating in the export processing zones, people go there to purchase candles. Benedicta said the sales increase during the last quarter of the year for All Souls Day, All Saints Day, and for gift-giving in December.

Flower-shaped candles handcrafted by village residents as part of their candle-making livelihood

The CSR programs also included a scholarship grant under TMP Foundation’s Automotive Education Program (AEP), which supported training in auto technician courses at Toyota Motor Philippines School of Technology (TMP Tech), a premiere automotive technical-vocational institution in Santa Rosa City, Laguna. One of its success stories, Romel Mendoza Pajarito, lives in the Toyota-City of Santa Rosa-Gawad Kalinga Village. Romel is the adopted son of Benedicta, whose partner is Imelda Radorez Mendoza, Romel’s mother.

A few years ago, Romel passed the entrance exam given by TMP Tech to the children of informal settlers in the Santa Rosa area. After graduation, he was hired by Toyota Santa Rosa City, Laguna dealership. There, he began to feel that his life had taken a turn. Years ago, in an interview, he was asked when he felt that his life was better now. “Nang pwede ako mamili ng pagkain para sa isang linggo. Dati kaya ko lang mamili para sa isang araw lang. At meron na kami refrigerator para sa mga frozen food (When I could buy food for an entire week. Before, I could only afford to buy enough for one day. And when we had a refrigerator for frozen food).”

The rewards of his dedication to his job allowed Romel to help his family, not only by putting food on the table but also buying appliances to make routines easier, and a motorcycle for mobility and business. In June 2023, Romel moved to Australia where he now works with an auto service company, assigned as express maintenance technician. “Like my last job in Toyota Santa Rosa,” he said.

“The Toyota training really helped me get this job. Kasi during nung pag-apply, tinanong nila ako kung ano yung mga training na natake mo (When I applied, they asked about the training I had already taken) Nagustuhan nila yung mga sagot ko, at masasabi kong hindi talaga ako makakapunta dito kung hindi dahil sa training ng Toyota (They liked my answers, and I can say that I won’t be here if not for the Toyota training),” he said.

Romel is grateful for his new life now. “Bukod sa knowledge na natutunan ko sa training (Other than the knowledge I got from the training), the training really flipped my life from nothing to something. Nabibili ko na yung mga gusto kong bilhin. Bago ako natanggap sa TMP Tech, factory worker ako. Pero pinilit ako ng nanay ko na kumuha ng entrance exam. Sabi ko, may trabaho na ako at Disyembre na kaya kailangan ko ‘yon o wala kaming handa sa Pasko. Pero sinubukan ko dahil sabi ng nanay ko (I can buy what I want now. Before I got accepted at TMP Tech, I was a factory worker. But my mother insisted I take the entrance exam. I said I already had a job and it was already December, so I needed it, or we won’t have food for Christmas. But I tried it because my mother said so).”

“Sa totoo lang, mahirap talaga ang buhay namin dati. But dahil sa TMPF program, eto na ako ngayon (Truthfully, my life was hard before. But because of the TMPF program, I am here now). Salamat kay Lord (Thank you to the Lord) that he used TMP Tech to better my life.”

At present, Romel is waiting for his application for permanent residency in Australia to be acted on. He took the English test last April and “by God’s grace, I passed!”

“Lubos akong nagpapasalamat sa TMPF sa lahat ng ibinigay nito sa akin (I am very grateful to TMPF for what it gave me). My life was from nothing to something,” he said.

Incidentally, Romel’s first purchase in Australia was a Toyota Yaris because he believes in the brand and he needs a good car to be able to report for work even when the bus schedules do not meet his duty hours.

There must be 1,203 success stories from TMP Foundation's scholarships under AEP since 1990. Another one is Edward Marzan’s story which now continues in a company named Toyota Corolla Kagawa Co., Ltd. in Japan.

Graduating from Lingayen Technological Institute, Inc. in 2017, he joined Toyota Dagupan the same year where he worked until he moved to Corolla Kagawa in June 2023.

There, Edward, now 28, faced the challenges of being an auto mechanic working with mostly hybrids. His first assignment was a preventive maintenance service (PMS) for a small Toyota SUV. “Pinaka-difficult po na binigay sa akin yung nagpalit ako ng Alphard hybrid automatic transmission (The most difficult task I was given was replacing an Alphard hybrid automatic transmission).”

“Naging confident naman po; lalo galing naman din po tayo sa Toyota dyan sa Pilipinas. So marunong din naman tayong gumamit ng repair manuals kahit naka-Japanese po yung word nila dito. So nag-request po ako ng English na manual so nagawa ko naman po ng maayos (I became confident; especially since we’re trained by Toyota there in the Philippines. So we also know how to use repair manuals even if the words are in Japanese. I requested an English manual, and I was able to do the job properly).”

Edward’s confidence now leads him to seek more opportunities where he can upgrade his skills in a country where he can start a family with his girlfriend who is now working in the Middle East. They plan to marry in August next year.

“Ang pangarap ko po, hindi naman ganun po kataas pero at least i-provide to my family po. Doon sa magiging family ko na hindi tulad po sa nakagawian ko nung kabataan. Nung kabataan ko po kasi parang lalo sa mga schools, hindi kami nakakasama sa mga field trips. Kasi nga dalawa yung nag-aral dati as seaman po. So nakukulang-kulang sa budget si father po (My dream isn’t very big but at least I want to provide for my family, for the family I will have, unlike how it was during my childhood. When I was young, especially in school, we couldn’t join field trips because two [siblings] were studying to become seaman, so my father’s budget was always tight).”

He said the skills he learned from Lingayen Technological Institute, Inc. will bring him anywhere in the world. “That you can use to get your dream,” Edward said.

We asked: Where are you now in your life? He had a ready answer – “Parang sabihin natin sa percentage po is nasa 60 percent bago dun sa life na hinahanap ko (Let’s say, in percentage, I’m about 60 percent toward the life I’m aiming for).”

Edward clearly is a man-with-a-plan. He said “paunti-unti naman is nadadagdagan naman yung gusto kong mangyari sa buhay (Little by little, what I want to achieve in life continues to grow).”

And he rates his advance in life with – “Malayo pa, pero malayo na (Still have a long way to go, but already far ahead).”

At the Toyota-City of Santa Rosa-Gawad Kalinga Village, Benedicta continues to do her job as village leader, now paid by the local government unit. She also attends to a sari-sari store funded by Romel before he left for Australia in 2023. “Mabait talaga ang batang ‘yan (That child is really kind),” the serious expression of Benedicta softening to a smile.

In 1994, “Nakita ko lang siya nang baby pa, umiiyak sa tabi ng daan kasi kinagat siya ng langgam. Binuhat ko siya at hinanap ang kanyang ina. (I first saw him when he was just a little child, crying by the side of the road because he was bitten by ants. I took him in my arms, and looked for his mother).”

As TMP Foundation approaches its 35th founding anniversary this July, Benedicta, Bessie, Romel and Edward continue to carry the heart of the Foundation in the stories of their lives. This sums up what TMP Foundation had done to their lives – still a long way to go, but already far ahead in the transition to a better life, reflecting the vision of Dr. George S.K. Ty, the founder of TMP and TMP Foundation, who deeply believed in the importance of education and community-building in pivoting one’s life to a progressive a path.