Poor Boy - The Dreamer

This sequel to the first edition of POOR BOY - THE DREAMER offers more insight into the life and aspirations of the author, Ruperto B. Pajela. Ruperto is married to my father's first cousin, Lourdes Corpuz. As the title of this book implies, Ruperto is a dreamer who has traversed the trails of life with bumps but managed to come out victorious. He has gone through and survived World War II. His children are a living testament to his lofty ideals because they are all successful and good citizens of this world. From his earliest days in the poor farming village of Sto. Domingo, Tayug, Pangasinan, in the Philippines, he already possessed the good character traits of compassion and a propensity for education. He rose from the ranks ahead of his contemporaries, became a Municipal Secretary and then became a dedicated bank employee of a bank in the city of Manila. He made an impact later in the industry when he burned his bridges and became a labor union leader. When he immigrated to the United States of America, he worked in the newspaper publishing business and later on continued to work in the banking industry. Anyone who immigrates to another country must adjust to living conditions to which one is not accustomed -- and it is not easy. With patience and perseverance, however, he achieved the American Dream. He was able to provide for his family, and send his children to universities from which they all graduated from college. Upon his retirement, he and his wife would take on travels to places he had dreamed of in this world. As we all say, we never stop learning and dreaming until our last breath. Grounded by his faith, he founded a non-sectarian ministry and a non-profit organization aimed at evangelization and helping the plight of the poor; and he became a non-sectarian minister himself. He has survived a life-threatening situation, and decided afterwards to write the first edition of this book to serve as a legacy for his family as well as his clan. He continues to dream of things that would alleviate the plight of humanity. His dreams will go on. He invites you, the reader, to leaf through the pages of this book and re-live and be inspired by his dreams and aspirations that we, and his children, and his children's children will continue and live as part of his present legacy. . . . --Jovi Corpuz Boyd