For nearly a decade, she worked to help keep her siblings in school while her own college education remained on hold. Years later, she returned to the classroom and earned magna cum laude honors at age 30.
Grace Labrador Bacus, the third eldest of nine children from Talisay City, Cebu, grew up struggling to afford food, transportation and school supplies. She recalled eating rice with salt or coffee and attending classes without money for a pen. Despite those hardships, she graduated elementary school as valedictorian.
In high school, Bacus frequently missed classes to care for three younger siblings while her mother worked. She recalled that an adviser told her to stop studying because babysitting did not require grades.
“I promised to myself I will never treat my students the same way as I was treated back then,” she wrote.
After high school, Bacus worked as a housemaid, nanny and garment worker, helping her parents pay for her siblings’ education. She spent almost 10 years working before pursuing college.
In 2015, she enrolled at Talisay City College, initially aiming to complete 72 units to qualify for a waitressing job in Canada. Encouraged by her academic performance, she continued toward a Bachelor of Secondary Education degree major in English, with scholarship assistance supporting her studies.
She also sewed uniforms, bedsheets and dresses to help cover school expenses. Bacus thanked the Alay Lakad Foundation, then-Mayor Eddie Gullas and Benjie Cabigas for scholarship support.
She earned magna cum laude honors and was selected to deliver the graduation speech at a ceremony scheduled for April 8, 2019.
“It’s never too late to pursue your dreams,” she wrote.
The distinction crowned an education she had postponed for years while helping her family.
