God works in the most unfathomable way we can imagine, just like how He worked on the life story of Julie Ann Burio, an ANCOP alumna from Caloocan City. Julie is now a fresh graduate of Bachelor of Science in Business Administration major in Computer Application at the De La Salle-College of St. Benilde (CSB). She is an ANCOP Global Walk Scholar during High School then later on sponsored by ANCOP Australia during college.
Growing up, Julie did not have the best things in life. She is the second in the brood of four, her mother who accepts laundry works and her father as a helper in a mechanic shop. They live a life struggling with their finances. She is a witness of how much their parents try their best on managing everything on their own. She has experienced difficult things in life: going to school without breakfast or even allowance, and being evicted once at their rented house without prior notice.
However, their situation did not stop her from pursuing her dreams and in continuing her studies. Never in her life that she complained to her parents about how much have they struggled. Julie, with her gratefulness, really did her best especially in school, just to give back to her parents. Ever since she was in elementary, she has been a consistent achiever and doesn’t fail to make her parents proud. This is somehow her way to lessen their burden; in excellence and gratitude.
Julie believed in God and in all the things that He can do. She is always grateful to Him for His providence to her family, and for giving the people who help them in times of need. They are also blessed that her parents are members of Couples for Christ Metro Manila North A Sector, which is where they knew about CFC ANCOP. Her father’s co-worker and co-CFC member encouraged them to apply her as a scholar, and in God’s grace, she was accepted as an ANCOP Educational Sponsorship Program (ESP) scholar when she was in the middle of her 3rd year High School.
Ever since she became an ANCOP Scholar, the blessings she received was way beyond the things she could’ve wished for. She was worried about her college education with their family’s limited finances and resources, but with God’s providence, through the partnership of ANCOP and DLS-College of Saint Benilde, Julie also became a beneficiary T
Though she experienced many adjustments after entering CSB, given that the culture and environment are different from what she is used to, she strived to keep up and do nothing but the best out of it. It’s a good thing that the school promotes unity and diversity among its students, and it breaks barriers among different walks of life. This is why Julie felt welcomed, as she grew in a good environment with good people around her. There may be times that she struggled a lot in dealing with academic requirements due to lacking resources like laptop and internet, still, she kept on believing that God has been really faithful to her and that He provided everything that she needed. She also has the best support system that she could have—her family.
Now, Julie finished strong as she bagged an Honorable Mention during her graduation last March 9, 2019. She is now even more empowered to pursue her dreams for herself and her family; to have a stable career in order to give back to her parents and her family. To put-up a business for her parents, like a mini-grocery store, so that her parents would not have to tire themselves anymore. Lastly, to own a house, so that they would not need to worry about rents anymore.
Truly, God works in the most incredible way and is always better than what we could have imagined. Let us hope that just like Julie, our only response to God’s grace is to be at our best always, offering excellence in everything that we do. She reminds us that in excellence lies our gratitude. – PMB, CFC ANCOP Communication
