Just like the thousands of Filipinos whose lives changed drastically due to the pandemic, Ernesto Dagasuhan and his family also went through huge, dramatic adjustments just to survive that phase.

Ernesto, a husband, father, and fish vendor from Barobo, Surigao del Sur, was left helpless when the national government implemented the community quarantine to minimize human contact and control the spread of COVID-19. Due to the quarantine, Ernesto had to stop vending fish as they were advised to stay at home. Fish vending was the family’s main source of income. Without it, supporting his family was almost impossible.

To get through each day, Ernesto used the money he had saved from his fish vending business. Sometimes, he would borrow money from relatives or friends just so he can put food on the table.

“Pag-declare sa lockdown tungod sa pandemic, nakasinati jud mi og kalisod sa akong pamilya tungod kay dili mi pwede makagawas para makapamaligya og isda. Tungod sa lockdown, nagkautang-utang mi sa among pang adlaw-adlaw nga panginahanglanon (When [the government] declared the lockdown due to the pandemic, our family went through a hard time because we couldn’t go out and sell fish. Because of the lockdown, we fell into debt just to buy our daily needs),” Ernesto tearfully shared.

Despite their struggle and even in the midst of his helplessness, Ernesto kept praying that an opportunity would come to help them resolve their problem. He believed that it was only a phase and they will eventually find their way out of the woods.

Ernesto’s faith paid off when he became one of the beneficiaries of the Livelihood Assistance Grant – a financial assistance program under the Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) which aims to help low-income families whose existing livelihoods have been severely affected by the pandemic. And so, on December 11, 2020, Ernesto happily received an amount of PHP 15,000 which will serve as a seed capital fund in financing his fish vending business.

As soon as he received the grant, he immediately resumed his fish vending business. He excitedly bought fish which he used to peddle around the municipality.

With his hard work and determination, Ernesto was able to slowly settle their family’s debts and provide for his family’s needs like he used to. On top of that, he was able to save again with his income.

“Nalipay ko tungod kay isa ako sa nakadawat sa livelihood assistance gikan sa SLP pinaagi sa DSWD. Gamit ani, nahimo nako siyang capital para makabalik mi sa among panginabuhi nga fish vending. Hantod karon, nagapadayon akong negosyo ug nakabawi na jud mi hinay-hinay (I’m happy because I’m one of those who received the livelihood assistance from DSWD through SLP. I used the money as capital to resume our fish-vending business. Until now, I’m able to keep my business going and we’re able to recover gradually).”

Ernesto and his family are just grateful that they were able to surpass that hard phase in their life. As of now, Ernesto plans to expand his business and sell more varieties of fish to double his income. Their hard experience during the pandemic has become his motivation to work hard and “fish” for a better life in the coming days.