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What’s It Like to Be a RAFI Micro-Finance, Inc. Nanay?
By Danielle Ann Tan | November 28, 2018
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A mother’s love is immeasurable; it could make her go the extra mile for the sake of her family’s welfare or makes her sacrifice her own priorities over that of her family’s. For RAFI Micro-finance, Inc. (RMF) nanays, working an average of 8-12 hours in their respective businesses is nothing compared to the feeling of seeing their children achieve their dreams.
A nanay takes risks when she decides to put up a business from scratch or join a micro-finance institution just so her business improves. RAFI Micro-finance, Inc. nanays like Leonarda Calleno, 58, a resident of Barangay Sudlon, and an RMF client selling hollow blocks, admitted that being a mother and a businesswoman at the same time is not easy.
“Life was really hard, especially when my husband and I were just newlyweds. He ventured into almost anything just to make ends meet. After some time, we decided to just try our luck in starting our business just so we’d have a stable income,” said Calleno.
But like any other nanay running a business, there were rough times for Calleno and her husband.
“Life was really hard, especially when my husband was diagnosed with cancer and was in and out of the hospital. We had to close shop for a while because I was the one delivering our orders to customers and was the one taking care of him,” she said.
Months after her husband died, her only son was also diagnosed with the same disease and died a year after.
“It’s hard to lose your husband and son one after the other. My life may be comfortable now but I have to admit to still feeling lonely,” Nanay Leonarda added.
For Nanay Leonarda, being an RMF nanay helped her rebuild her business. It allowed her to set a goal for herself and her family, and be determined to rise above the trials that came her way.
The Microfinance Program of the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI Micro-finance, Inc.) provides financial and non-financial services to micro-entrepreneurs with a mission of elevating lives of the vulnerable and disadvantaged communities through stable and rewarding livelihood.
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