Honoring our fallen heroes

Four-year-old Joulean Casil was an incoming kindergarten student in Benguet province when her father, Police Corporal Marlon Casil, died in a bomb blast while in pursuit of radical terrorists. Joulean was left an orphan without safety nets.

Corporal Casil was the family breadwinner. With a household to feed, clothe and shelter, his widow could no longer afford to send Joulean to school. Little Joulean was destined to grow up uneducated and probably illiterate. Joulean’s fate consigned her to a life of poverty and need.

Zaryn Resurreccion is an eight-year-old student who was at the top of her class in North Cotabato. Her father, Major Joan Resurreccion, was the former chief of police of their town. Sadly, Major Resurreccion was killed in the crossfire after responding to a murder situation.

The young Resurreccion had to drop out of school due to financial difficulties. Like Joulean, she too would be consigned to a life of poverty and dependence.

The good news is that both Joulean and Zaryn are back in school, thanks to scholarship grants given by the Bayaning Pulis Foundation Inc. (BPFI). Both kids are doing well and thriving. Joulean is now in grade one and aspires to be a nurse, while Zaryn is in grade three and hopes to be an engineer. Both their futures look bright.

Joulean and Zaryn are among the lucky few. In the last five years alone, some 2,298 policemen were killed in action and collectively left 913 dependents with no choice but to drop out of school.

This is where Bayaning Pulis Foundation comes in. BPFI provides educational grants to the children of police officers who died or have become permanently disabled in the performance of their duties. It is a non-profit organization funded exclusively by sponsorships from the private sector. BPFI works in partnership with the Philippine National Police (PNP).

The scholarship recipients are evaluated by a committee headed by BPFI’s president, Police Brigadier General Noel Baraceros. Baraceros is a retired leader of the PNP with a well decorated career. BPFI’s initiatives augment the existing scholarships provided under Republic Act No. 6963.

BPFI has so far awarded 63 scholarships since 2021 worth some P4.8