DAVAO CITY”•A woman Citizen Armed Forces Geographical Unit reservist here was among 49,626 secondary teachers who passed the September 2017 Licensure Examination for Teachers, thus fulfilling her dream of becoming a teacher.
Miriam Plaza, 33 and a mother of two, is currently detailed at the Task Force Davao in Barangay Sirawan, Toril detachment site. She recalled that she was at her post when she received the good news from her mother, who is also a teacher.
“I could really hear the happiness in my mother’s voice when she told me the good news. I was so overwhelmed at that time when I found out that I passed the LET exam,” she said.
Plaza has a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration Major in Banking and Finance degree from Surigao del Sur Sate University in 2004, and in 2016 added a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education at the Rizal Memorial College.
Plaza is also a first-year law student of the University of Mindanao. She was forced to skip the second semester because she was unable to take the Philippine Law School Admission Test (PhilSAT), as it was the same day of the LET.
Students who failed to take the PhilSAT were not allowed to enroll for the second semester of law school.
Plaza always dreamed of becoming a soldier. However, she was not accepted owing to various circumstances, until an opportunity came for her to join Task Force Davao in 2011. She said she applied as many times as she could remember”•and failed all of them.
“I always wanted to be a soldier, until one day I received a call when I was in Manila. Without a doubt, I immediately grabbed the opportunity to join the Task Force Davao to fulfill my childhood dream,” she said.
Plaza said it is fulfilling to be part of Task Force Davao, the group she says molded her to be a better person.
Col. Nolasco Mempin, Task Force Davao Commander, said he couldn’t be prouder of Plaza’s achievement.
“We are very proud of her, as she is an example of how determination, perseverance and hard work can lead to achievement of her ambition. She did not mind working as a Cafgu of the Task Force just to reach her goals in life,” he said.
Mempin said Plaza set as an example not only to her colleagues but also to the youth who struggle to achieve their dreams.
Plaza was also the first scholar of Task Force Davao through a memorandum of agreement it signed with Rizal Memorial College. She plans to start teaching soon and help other people through education.
“Maybe the reason why I failed every time I applied to be a soldier is because He (God) doesn’t want me to becomes one, He wants me to become an educator instead,” Plaza said.
“I’m saddened by having to quit my job as a Cafgu of Task Force Davao, but I am proud of being one. But I have to find myself to have a brighter future,” she added.