One of the well-known idioms of our Philippine National Hero, Dr Jose Rizal enunciated is that the youth is the hope of our motherland. In addition to our local young people, the youth doing us proud are the Filipino International Students, not only through their academic achievements but being valuable volunteers in community organisations. They make a lot of sacrifices in pursuing their studies here. Aside from working part time to support themselves, they find time to lend their talents and support to various events undertaken by community organisations.
David Joshua Delos Reyes is one of these achievers and community servants. He was conferred his Master’s Degree of Development studies in July 2022. At the historic 10th anniversary event of the Tagalog Association of Australia, David breathed life to two Tagalog poems. One was composed by Danny Peralta, founding President of TAA, titled "Dakilang Tungkulin" and the other one was composed by himself, with the poem titled "Hanggang Dito Na Lang Ba?".
Another achievement by David was being one of the organisers of the inaugural Kamp Hiraya held recently in the Blue Mountains. The Australian Filipina caught up with David to congratulate him on this event and asked him a few questions about the initiative and to give an insight by our readers into his persona and advocacies.
*Who is David Joshua Delos Reyes?
I hail from the Southern part of the Philippines, particularly from Sultan Kudarat, Mindanao. I am the middle child of three, and a son of a military man and a nurse. I graduated with a degree of Business Economics from the University of Santo Tomas (UST) and worked as a research analyst for a multinational financial information company in based in Manila. I have two sisters, the older one (Ate Pearl) is an MBA graduate from FEU and the younger (Angel) one is currently taking Sociology at UST and is a consistent Dean’s Lister.
I came to Australia in February of 2019 where I started pursuing my Master of Development Studies at the University of New South Wales. I just recently finished my masters after almost 3 years in Australia. Now I am accepted to study Juris Doctor in the same institution with partial scholarship.
* Of what you have accomplished so far, do you hold fondly in your heart as your achievement?
I am very much proud of the amount of work we have achieved among the Filipino-Australian student community here in NSW. We have created projects that have promoted the Filipino culture, uplifted the Filipino identity and have supported the Filipino international students during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
*On the flip side what challenges have you faced and overcome?
When I came here as an international student, it was all just too big a burden. Financially we are not stable, we had to borrow money and sell our farmlands for the down payment of my Masters. I had to live with a monthly allowance of 270 dollars from my family for the first six months, then I got a job as a delivery man for Yakult and had to support myself financially ever since earning 19 dollars per hour. I also chip in for my tuition fees to help ease the burden of paying it.
Australian higher education for international students is not cheap. It cost us AUD45,000 annually for my masters alone, not considering the living costs. My parents don’t earn as much, and we have to find other means to pay the fees. Good thing my accommodation and food is for free since my Great Aunt and her husband Uncle Graeme took me in their home.
When COVID-19 hit, I was rendered jobless just like thousands of international students here in Australia – or anywhere in the world. I applied for hundreds of jobs, and got none. I was jobless for the entire 2020, no means for funding, alone in Australia, no money to pay the fees, no money to afford transportation to school and all. I had to sell my personal laptop I use for school and my own camera to stay afloat. I had to borrow friends from church friends to go by. My grades were going down from consistent distinctions to merely passing. I was diagnosed with depression and was financially challenged at the worst possible time and place.
*What course/s (past and present) are you doing and why did you pick Australia to be where you are studying, as well as what process did you undertake to get here?
When I graduated with a Business Economics degree, I was very much looking forward to work in a corporate environment. When I started my first job as a Research Analyst, it was rewarding in finances and benefits, but it could not fill my soul. I was thinking that I don’t want to spend my entire life to make people who are already rich go richer. So I chose a degree that will allow me to help shape others’ lives. That’s why I chose Master of Development Studies as my go-to course. Australia was the first country I went overseas back in 2017 when I presented our group’s thesis about Public Health Systems in the Philippines at the SIBR Conference in Sydney. I find the place nice and the quality of education is superb.
I lodged my applications alone and met all the requirements. I came here on February of 2019. I was fortunate enough that I have a sponsor in Australia who is willing to accommodate me for almost free. It was my Grand Aunt Malou and her husband Graeme Mitchell. I stayed with their family ever since.
*Did you ever get to a point that you regret the decision to be in Australia? what advice would you give somebody who is finding it difficult to cope with the studies and adjusting in their temporary ‘home country’?
So far, there has been no major regret since I came here. For those people who just started, they need to take it slow and find their belongingness through a company of people – it can be friends or family. One of the challenges for us international students is homesickness and acquired depression through financial difficulties. They need to proactively find means to help themselves in difficult times, and more often than not, they need to be vocal with their needs. Australia has a lot of helping avenues, and the stigma of us Filipinos of not seeking help should be broken so that we can get to the right help needed.
*Aside from studying and being involved in student groups, what other activities are you involved in?
Apart from my student endeavours, I have pushed myself to be involved with the community here in NSW, both Filipino and the greater community. I have volunteered in Filipino events ranging from International Women’s Day celebration of Adhika, COVID-19 assistance projects by Gawad Kalinga Australia, and the Halina sa Barangay multicultural event of the Institute for Global Peace and Sustainable Governance. I was also part of the recent YMCA Youth Parliament and served as an adviser for the Mental Health committee.
Currently I work four paid jobs, Digital contributor to SBS Filipino, Program and Communications Support Officer for Diplomacy Training Program, and two roles at the University of New South Wales namely Cultural Programs Officer and Assistant Production and Venue Coordinator.
I also work on a few volunteer positions such as the Higher Degree Research Representative for Refugee Education Special Interest Group, Youth Coordinator for Gawad Kalinga Australia, the Director for Social Cohesion and Inclusion for IGPSG and the current Chairperson for the Filipino Student Council of NSW.
*What is the international students group you belong to and what projects have been undertaken?
The Filipino Students Council of NSW has been operating since 2018, it was named before as FISC or Filipino International Student Council and was spearheaded by the Consul General then. The changes were made in 2018 to include the domestic students to be part of the group.
FSC has undertaken a lot of programs over the last three years. We have done events/programs such as talent competitions, cultural sporting events, mental health awareness workshops, humanitarian relief projects in the Philippines (Taal Volcano masks donation drive, PPEs for frontliners, and student kits for students in Siargao during typhoon Rai), financial and food aid for international students here in NSW and across Australia, art workshops and quite recently, a youth camp. We have done a lot with very minimal resources, given that we are students and we don’t have means of funding.
*What was the inaugural Kamp Hiraya held by the group in the Blue Mountains?
Kamp Hiraya (purposely started with a K), talks about dreams and aspirations as it came from the Filipino saying “Hiraya Manawari” or “Hope that your dreams come true”. It was meant to reconnect the younger Filipino Australians to dream again and rebuild the community by gathering in one place for few days and nights and building a stronger relationships among the youth.
The camp was held last July 15-17 at Youthworks Blue Mountains. The camp activities ranged from team building, career development talks, mindfulness sessions, campfire performances, peer to peer groupings and many more.
The participants came from over 8 universities in total namely, University of Technology Sydney (UTS), University of New South Wales (UNSW), Macquarie University (MQU), University of Sydney (USYD), University of Newcastle (UON), Australian Catholic University (ACU), Western Sydney University (WSU) and University of Canberra (UC). In total there were 35 people who attended who study undergraduate and post graduate degrees.
The speakers were Kate Andres from FILCOOP, Michelle Baltazar from Money Magazine, Gerald Santiago from Commonwealth Bank of Australia/ Ateneo Alumni Association of Australia, and Marisa Vedar from Gawad Kalinga Australia.
*Where can people especially international students find information about the group and what are the future projects being planned.
We have our own website at fscnsw.org and an active Facebook and Instagram page named Filipino Student Council of New South Wales. We also have a Facebook group for networking. We have an upcoming event with an NGO from the Philippines coming here on August/September and for a capoeira workshop with our group. We will post the details soon.
* What is your personal definition of “tagumpay” or success? ‘
Tagumpay is a word that celebrates the triumph over challenges that one has go through, and it does not have to be something big or glamorous. It can be finally learning a new skill such as making your own coffee. It can be learning how to drive. Also for me, tagumpay is a celebration of the people who have helped you where you are at now. It is giving credit to the lives that have honed and made you grow over the years which ultimately led to your triumph. Tagumpay is a collective celebration with gratitude and remembrance.
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David was interviewed by Radio Tagumpay on August 3, 2022. You can listen to his interview here. Radio Tagumpay airs on Wednesdays, 6-8pm and can be streamed globally via this link.