TALAVERA, Nueva Ecija – Her husband has been working on minimum wage for years but Myla Umali, 31, of Barangay San Miguel Na Munti here, has never been insecure of her family’s future until Jeffrey died in a blast that rocked Two Serendra in Taguig City on Friday.
“He would not allow us to be empty-stomached. He was willing to toil day and night,” Umali said of Jeffrey who was among the three people in an Abenson delivery van.
Married for five years now, the couple has two children, Jhay Myren, 4, and Jhemiella, 10 months.
“Together we built dreams for our children which he promised to work for,” she said. Jeffrey had not finished his information technology education while Myla graduated Bachelor of Science in Education but did not take the board exam. “We agreed that I will have to take care of our children,” she added.
Prior to Jeffrey’s death, the family was living for free, as the woman acted as caretaker, in a property in Sta. Mesa, Manila. Jeffrey, hired by a manpower agency that provides services to Abenson, has been working for the company for four years, she said. He started as a warehouse man in Pasig before he was transferred to delivery services.
“He would tell me he can endure working overtime for our children, that he wanted the two to finish whatever course they would want to take,” she stressed, saying the man had to do farm work at his early age of three to help his family make ends meet.
She said Jeffrey would make sure a certain amount is saved on paydays.
Myla recalled her husband met his tragic end when he and a fellow employee from Abenson happened to pass by the area for Market Market.
She said Jeffrey died at around 8:10 pm but she learned of it only at 1 a.m. the following day.
Hours earlier – at around 4 p.m. – she said they had their usual conversation where he whispered his usual sweet nothings and inquired about their kids.
Myla said they had big dreams for their young offspring, foremost of which is to send them to school, provide them with good education and a stable livelihood.
“My husband had been working hard. He’d been toiling day and night, up to the wee hours of the morning so we can make both ends meet,” she said.
She said in spite of the difficulties, she never heard him complain, telling her that he had been working even as a child, as young as nine, to make his family survive.
A devoted family man and partner, she said her husband was “malambing” (caring) and would not leave the house without any food for the family.
With him gone, Myla said she is devastated and at a loss since her husband was the lone breadwinner. The property she is tending in Sta. Mesa, Manila is for sale.
One of those who came to the Umalis’ rescue was Taguig Mayor Lani Cayetano who handed financial assistance worth P20,000.
“I want to fulfil my husband’s dream for our kids but I don’t know how,” she said.
