January 26, 2026
Finally, her chance to shine
By Joy Rojas
In every family, there is at least one member who, whether by choice or default, puts everybody else’s wants and needs before their own. In the Gallito family, that role belongs to Merequiel.
The ninth of 11 children of a watch repairman and food vendor, Merequiel has spent practically all of her 22 years either attending to her elders or stepping aside so her younger siblings could get ahead in life.
Since kindergarten, she has woken up well before dawn. At first, it was to collect water her mother used for preparing the banana cue they sell in the market; today, she helps prepare ingredients for the dumplings her mama hawks.
Through the generosity of a neighborhood dentist whom she worked for part-time, she was able to finish junior high school, but deferred plans to pursue senior high so her two younger brothers could continue their studies.
Merequiel’s sacrifices paved the way for her brothers to obtain scholarships, most recently becoming the first members of their family to finish college (in marine engineering and business administration) and to graduate with Latin honors to boot. Her “lost years” have more meaning. And she now can carve her own path to achieve her own dreams.
Though Merequiel has secured her ALS diploma (a certification equivalent to completing high school), she still wants to pursue other advanced opportunities to secure a better future and earn stable income.
Caring by nature, Merequiel has had many experiences in extending medical care to relatives. As a child she tended to a head wound of an older brother who proclaimed, “That’s my nurse!” proud of how his little sister dressed his wound. “If we were rich, she could be a doctor!”
As a teenager, she took it upon herself to look after an aunt diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer that required surgical removal of the nose. Despite hardly knowing each other, the two hit it off. “She didn’t like being touched, but I was the only one whom she allowed to bathe her,” she says. “After her operation, the first person she looked for was me.”
Finally, witnessing her diabetic mother suffer a mild stroke made her realize the importance of proper healthcare. At the same time Merequiel, desperately wanted to financially provide for improving her mother’s condition and also for her father who started facing health issues.
Chancing upon a recruitment announcement in caregiving, Merequiel saw an opportunity to learn proper health practices. In November 2025, she was awarded a caregiving scholarship under the Technical-Vocational Program of Tzu Chi Foundation. In a small gathering held at the Harmony Hall of Buddhist Tzu Chi Campus in Sta. Mesa, Manila, she received her certificate and spoke before donors, thanking them for the privilege of a sponsored skills training.
“I am deeply committed to learning the proper skills and knowledge needed to care for others with compassion and professionalism,” says Merequiel.
Dutiful as she is, Merequiel is only human, and being saddled with one responsibility after another has made her angry and resentful at times.
“I’m not always nice. I have a bad attitude too. I say mean things to my parents,” she admits, wiping away her tears.
Beneath all her frustrations and bitterness is love. “I always tell them I want our lives to be better,” she says of her parents, Exequiel and Mercia. “I want to bring them abroad. My dream is to take them to Disneyland.”
Tzu Chi’s scholarship program is giving her much more than that. In Master’s Talk, a class on timeless values advocated by Tzu Chi founder Dharma Master Cheng Yen, she learned about how afflictions like anger, jealously, and pride lead to suffering, and to take deep breaths just before an outburst. “I can feel myself getting calmer. I think my bad attitude has lessened,” she says with a laugh.
For Merequiel, pursuing a career abroad and becoming financial stable are simply means to an end. “With resources comes the power to help,” she says. She doesn't just want to be successful; she also wants to extend her blessings to her family and to others who suffer afflictions. “I want to be able to give and share freely. I want them to feel loved.”
Merequiel Gallito (front row, second from right) poses with fellow caregiving batchmates and Tzu Chi volunteer James Cheng, Tzu Chi scholar alumnus Johniel Tuando, and Tzu Chi Education Committee Head Rosa So (fifth, sixth, and seventh from left) in a small gathering last November to recognize new scholars under Tzu Chi Foundation’s Technical-Vocational Program.
Flanked by Tzu Chi scholar alumnus Johniel Tuando (left) and Tzu Chi Education Committee Head Rosa So, Merequiel Gallito is grateful to be accepted into Tzu Chi’s caregiving course. “I am deeply committed to learning the proper skills and knowledge needed to care for others with compassion and professionalism,” she says.
With a fellow caregiving scholar, Merequiel Gallito learns how to properly fold an underpad.
Tzu Chi’s caregiving course allows scholars like Merequiel Gallito to familiarize themselves with assistive devices like a walker.
Learning how to take a patient’s blood pressure is one of many skills taught to caregiving students. When they have no classes, Merequeil volunteers to take vital signs of patients of Tzu Chi’s free medical and dental services.
A young Merequiel Gallito graduates from kindergarten.
With her mother, Mercia
The ninth of 11 children, Merequiel Gallito (seated, left) has been a reliable daughter and sibling since she was a child.