“All of the things that we started
seem impossible. In our tribe, it is
impossible even to dream,”,
Lodema said as she started telling
her beautiful life story.
The Dumagat tribe is a group of
indigenous people living in the
Sierra Madre Mountain Ranges in
the Philippines. They have a rich
culture and a deep sense of love for
the land that God, whom they call
Makidyapat, has given them. They
believe that the land and all the
natural resources are God’s gift to
them, and they have the
responsibility to protect them.

In the earlier days, they were nomadic,
moving from one place to another. They
live by hunting, gathering, and planting.
Every wild boar that they get from
hunting and every grain of rice that they
harvest will be divided equally among
every clan of the tribe. They have a
group of elders that lead their tribe and
guide their young ones. The male elders
that mentor the boys are called
Kaksaan, while the female elders that
mentor the girls are called Gemot. They
practice a communal way of living.
The elders of the tribe were not able to
go to school. Back then, no one was able
to have a formal education, and no one
even dared to dream of going to school
and finishing college. Moreover, women
in their tribe usually marries at the very
young age. They are usually expected to
take care of the children, do house
chores, and till the land. When Lodema
had the chance to go with her parents to
the lowlands, she was both surprised
and challenged by what she saw.
“I saw the difference between our tribe
and the people on the lowlands. How
come they could read? We were so tired
carrying sacks of bananas and sweet
potataoes (kamote), but they would
just exchange one can of sardines for
our products. I know that our effort is
not worth what they are giving us. But
we cannot do anything… We cannot
read, we cannot count… But worse, we
are afraid to try to learn these things.
Then in my heart began my deep desire
to learn and go to school,”, Lodema
recalls.

Lodema shared that in their tribe, when one
wants to do something important in his or her
life, he or she would have to ask the
permission of the tribal elders. For Lodema
and the other children to be able to go to
school, they would first need the permission
of their elders. Lodema and the other children
expressed their desire to go to school, but
many of their elders discouraged them. Some
said, “We are already experiencing many
difficulties here; it is better for you to help
your family till our land. Our food is scarce;
how can we even provide for your studies?”
While others said, “Our life here is quiet and
peaceful; we should be content. Why do you
have to go down to the town and study with
those from the lowlands?”
Thankfully, their grandmother, Nanay Loida
Doroteo, spoke to enlighten the whole tribe,
saying, “Our tribe will not be forever like this.
We should be able to read and write. We were
not able to learn these things because we
were afraid. We were so afraid that we
couldn’t even dream of having a better life for
our children. We should start to have
education, self-confidence, and faith.”

Finally, the tribe allowed them to
go to school. Lodema was only six
years old when she started going
to school. Some of the children
who were sent to study for grade
one were already 13 or 14 years
old. Lodema was the youngest
among the first batch of more
than ten children that their tribe
sent to study at the nearest
elementary school to their
community. They would have to
walk together barefoot for one
hour and cross 13 rivers before
they arrived at their school. They
would have to walk again for an
hour to go home. At first, when the
Dumagat children did not have
school supplies, they would use
leaves as their paper and
charcoal or bamboo as their
pencils. Later on, they would
exchange products from their
community (fruits and
vegetables) or they would work
odd jobs (like washing dishes in
the school canteen) so they could
have the school supplies they
needed.

Lodema persevered in her studies. By
grade 5, all of her batchmates from their
tribe had already dropped out of school.
Many opted to help their parents and work
on their land to provide for their families.
Some were arranged to be married early.
Their tribe decided that Lodema should be
sent to the town proper to finish
elementary school. She had to live away
from her family and mountain home.
Everything was new to her, but she
continued to pursue her dream. Lodema
was the first one from her tribe to finish
elementary school, but no one from her
tribe attended her graduation. Her tribe
didn’t know that there is a celebration
when one finishes her studies. Moreover,
her tribe told Lodema that it was already
enough that she finished elementary
school. She should go home and help their
tribe. Again, Lodema pleaded with the
elders to continue studying in high school.
They allowed her on the condition that she
would provide for her studies.
All through high school, Lodema worked
hard and studied even harder. Her
perseverance and hard work paid off as
she finished high school. To her surprise, her whole tribe went to her graduation to
show their support. She was so happy. By that time, their elders had told her, “You
taught us to dream. Go and live our dream; continue studying.” But by that time,
Lodema felt very tired, and she wanted to go home already. The elders continued
to convince her to study, but she stayed in their village to help there instead. The
elders devised a plan to push her to continue studying; they told her that if she did
not continue to study, they would arrange for her to be married instead. True
enough, Lodema chose to continue studying. But the next problem would be
where to get the provisions needed for a college education. Moreover, she
doubted if she could indeed finish a course in education to be a teacher. She
worked to save for her studies while earnestly praying to God.

One day, Harris Memorial College (the school
where United Methodist women aspiring to
be Deaconess study) had an outreach
program in Lodema’s village. They had a
Christmas gift-giving activity among the
Dumagat tribe. They asked the tribe elders,
“How come no one finishes college education
in their village?” The elders told them about
Lodema, who is struggling to finish her
studies. Their tribe hurriedly introduced them
to Lodema, and to her, it was God’s answer to
her prayers.
Lodema was very thankful to God. At first,
Harris Memorial College assigned Lodema to
do community service for her tribe for a
whole year. She experienced going around
their village and teaching other Dumagat
how to read, write, and count. One time,
Lodema was able to teach one of the oldest
member of their tribe how to write his name.
He was so happy and very much thankful to
Lodema. “That experience inspired me to
finish my college education. I saw that I
could really help a lot if I became a teacher. I
have to do this for Makidyapat and for our
tribe,”, Lodema shares.

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When Lodema finished her
community service, she entered
Harris with a full scholarship.
She took up a course in
education to fulfill her dream of
becoming a teacher. For four
years, she studied and stayed at
Harris. She didn’t go home
because that might make her
more homesick. Instead, her
family would visit her at school
on special occasions.
Although she is a full scholar,
she insisted on doing house
chores and planting in the
garden. She also struggled to
learn many new things, like
using the computer, playing the
piano, and singing in front of a
lot of people. Her Harris family
had realized that their “Ate
Diday” would learn a lot from
the school, but they would also
learn a lot from her. Because of
that, they all went into a
community immersion in their
village for them to learn not just
about “Ate Diday” but about the
whole Dumagat tribe and their
Sierra Madre mountain home.
When “Teacher Diday”
graduated from college in 2016,
a jeep full of her whole tribe
went to her graduation proudly
wearing their traditional
clothes. It was a triumphant
moment for the Dumagat tribe.

The United Women in Faith—Asia and
the Pacific has been helping Lodema
since she was studying at Harris. They
saw in her the potential to be an
empowered female leader with a deep
faith in God. She attended their
seminars and leadership training.
When they had an opportunity, the
UWiF sent Lodema to be an exchange
student in Cambodia and Singapore.
Along with regional missionary Emma
Cantor, Lodema had the opportunity to
speak at conferences. When she gave
a speech abroad, she shared her story
to inspire other women and members
of indigenous tribes. Despite the
hindrances of being a poor woman
from an indigenous tribe, she was able
to reach her dream of becoming a
teacher to help her community. She
testified to the international
community that indeed, when you
place your trust in the Lord, nothing is
impossible.
“When we were young, we thought
that airplanes were large birds with
glowing eyes. I never imagined that I
could see one up close, much less ride
inside it. When I shared with our elders
that I rode an airplane, they were very
happy. They told me, ‘What God did to
you, He already did to us too. It is as if
we experienced it ourselves,”, shares
Lodema.

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When Lodema graduated from college,
her tribe asked her to return to their
village and teach them. Going back to
her home, she experienced many
difficulties in teaching her own tribe.
They only had a nipa hut for a
classroom, and they don’t have any
school supplies to use. One of their
elders advised her, “You yourself are
from the mountains. Whatever we
have here that God has given to us,
use it so you can teach us.” Lodema
and her students then used materials
that can be found in their
surroundings, like leaves, stone,
charcoal, and bamboo.
Lodema continued going around the
Dumagat communities in their area to
teach. After some time, they decided
to put up Paadalen E Denomagat,
which means “School Where
Dumagats Go”.

“I realized that I was always busy all
those years. I did not even attend
worship services on Sundays because
I thought that I should be teaching and
helping my community every day.

Lodema experienced state persecution,
and this was very challenging for her.
That time, she could not go back to
their community because her own tribe
feared for her safety there. But it was at
that moment that she had the time to
reflect and strengthen her faith in God.

God has always been calling me, but I did not
listen,”, Lodema admitted.
But as the saying goes, when God closes windows, He opens doors. While Lodema
was staying in the lowlands, new local teachers were able to teach in their tribe.
Today, she is the administrator of four Dumagat schools in their area. Lodema
was also able to lead the construction of a “Dumagat Dormitory” in the town
center where members of their tribe who are studying in high school or college
could stay for free. This building will also be a commercial center where their
products from the uplands can be sold. Moreover, they have built a church in their
community and have continued to strengthen it.

Now, Lodema could freely go
back to her community. And
recently, she volunteered to
enter the ministry and learn to
be a pastor in their local church.
Now Lodema would really fulfill
her dream and God’s call to be
a teacher, not just of numbers
and letters but of the word of
God. Indeed, nothing is
impossible for the Lord.