For those great men and women who champion noble causes, it is not unusual to hear stories of that one defining moment in their lives of how they got involved in their advocacy in the first place. Some claim that their epiphany came in form of a man or a woman who enlightened them and showed them to their path, some claim that it came after a long meditation while some claim it came in form of a dream, a song, a TV show or a film. For social worker and teacher by profession Efren Peñaflorida, his epiphany came in form of rocks.

Growing up in a poverty-stricken part of Cavite City, Efren’s life was full of struggles even at an early age. He lived near the city dump site, his parents (his dad a tricycle driver and his mom a vendor) worked hard to make ends meet. The young Efren knew back then that it was education which will be instrumental to alleviate their destitute status. Thus, he made sure to always do his best at school. However, Efren often encountered neighborhood kids who would hang out outside his school who either bullied him or enticed him to join gangs, some even resorting to the violent actof beating him up. When Efren was in fourth year high school at the Cavite National High School, the bullying reached a new low: the bullies started to throw rocks at them.