28/02/2026
Congratulations kabayan. Proud SanPolihanon๐ช๐ช๐ช
๐๐๐๐ง๐จ๐ฅ๐ | ๐ฅ๐ผ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐๐ต, ๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ป ๐ง๐ต๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฝ: ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ ๐ฟ. ๐ฅ๐ผ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ผ๐ป ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ท๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐, ๐ฅ๐๐ด๐ฟ.
โPoverty does not equits to your capability.โ
With these powerful words, Mr. Robinson Pajares, a newly licensed Agriculturist of 2025, began not just a speech, but a testimony carved from soil, sacrifice, and steadfast faith.
Born on June 2, 1999, in Brgy. Binogawan, San Policarpo, Eastern Samar, Robinson grew up grounded in simplicity and nurtured by the values of his Seventh-day Adventist faith. He is a fourth-generation son of a farmer, a legacy that shaped his dreams long before he fully understood what dreams were. Farming was not merely a livelihood in their household; it was life itself.
The rhythm of planting and harvesting, the scent of earth after rain, and the quiet image of his grandfather tending crops planted something deeper in his young heart. Perhaps, he would later reflect, that was why he pursued agriculture. He was drawn to it early on as if the land itself was calling him home.
When Robinson stood before fellow graduates as a newly licensed agriculturist in 2025, his voice carried more than gratitude. It carried the weight of years spent surviving on little, dreaming beyond limits, and trusting deeply in Godโs provision.
He began not with himself, but with acknowledgment.
โI stand here this day able to testify because of Godโs faithfulness, because of family, because of teachers, classmates, church members because of many peopleโs prayers and support. Indeed, success is a team effort.โ
Behind the professional title โRAgr.โ is a story of quiet endurance. In 2018, he entered Eastern Samar State University (ESSU) as a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture student, full of hope yet burdened by harsh reality. An orphan, he faced college life with only โฑ300 allowance for two weeks, sometimes even longer. There were days when survival itself felt like an examination.
He recalls, with a faint smile, moments that were far from easy: accidentally tasting rice mixed with urea and eating โsinigang na saging hinogโ just to fill an empty stomach. What may sound humorous now were once painful reminders of how thin the line was between endurance and surrender. Yet giving up was never an option.
To sustain his studies, Robinson became everything he needed to be. He worked as a student assistant, a farmhand, a lawnmower, even a carpenter. If there was an opportunity for extra income, he took it. No work was too small. No task was beneath him. Every peso earned was a step closer to his dream.
After four challenging years, faith bore fruit. He graduated not merely as a survivor, but as a Cum Laude. With humility and quiet pride, he once said, โBisan pinobre, at least graduate nga Cum Laude.โ Poor, perhaps but victorious.
He often remembered a saying: โIf you love the bitter gourd, it will taste like honey.โ For Robinson, the bitterness of hardship turned sweet because he loved his dream. When passion is genuine, no obstacle becomes too heavy to carry.
As he concluded his speech, he turned to Scripture, reading from Hebrews 13:16: โAnd do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.โ For him, success was never meant to end in personal achievement, it was meant to overflow into service.
He reminded his fellow agriculturists that God is the owner and giver of everything, and that professionals are merely stewards. Their calling extends beyond titles and careers.
โWe are not just agriculturists for ourselves,โ he urged. โWe are agriculturists for our homes, for our communities, and for our nation.โ
His message was both a challenge and a commission to work with integrity, to innovate with purpose, and to feed not only bodies but hope. Wherever the profession may lead, he encouraged them to go and make a difference.
In a world quick to measure worth by wealth, Robinson Pajares stands as living proof that poverty never defined his capability. Faith did. Hard work did. Love for the land did.
And as he ended his speech with conviction โWork, innovate, and feed the world! Mabuhay po at God bless sa ating lahat!โ the room did not simply applaud a new licensed agriculturist.
It honored a story rooted in struggle, grown in faith, and ready to nourish the future.
Words by Kristine Cartago | The Crickets
