Pia didn’t want to go to school. It was early, and she was tired. She yawned and rolled back over. She knew her father, Pepito, wouldn’t get her out of bed. Since her mother left, Pepito was simply trying to make sure his family survived. Arguing with his teenage daughter was more than he could muster most days.
But then Pia sat up. She had to get ready. Bing would be there any minute!
As a volunteer tutor at the Compassion center Pia and her younger sister attended, Bing had always taken her role seriously. She was often the first to arrive and the last to leave the church, leading Bible studies well into the evening.
And Bing saw everything. She noticed when Pia began arriving late to the center. Skipping classes at school. She visited Pia’s home and met with Pepito. When she saw the single father’s struggle, she made a choice.
Bing wouldn’t let Pia’s family give up.
So every morning, she would come knocking on the door. She helped the girls get dressed for school. Fed them breakfast. Packed their lunches. Walked them to school. All of the things a mother would do, Bing did.
These daily sacrifices got Pia through the abandonment of her mother. Under Bing’s care, she went from a reserved, distant girl to a determined teenager who began to dream of one day being a teacher. Just like Bing.
That was the kind of woman Bing was — an inspiration. And that’s what made her sudden passing from a severe asthma attack in January of 2017 so devastating. She left a tremendous hole, at the center, at the church and in the children’s lives she touched. But she also left a legacy.
“We are grateful that she has been part of our lives,” says Evangeline Villagarcia, the project director where Bing worked. “We salute her and try to emulate her level of service.”