Arlene Canja

As a single parent, Arlene proved to herself that she could raise her son alone even if her only business is a sari-sari store.

Arlene Canja, 37, a single parent and a resident of Bagtason, Bugasong, Antique. She was a high school graduate and she 1 son named Ryan, 8, a grade student at Bagtason Elementary School.

Being a single mother is not easy. Arlene has proven this statement because she had also experienced difficulties in raising her son alone. She got pregnant and the father of her child left her alone. Arlene stayed strong. She knows that her parents are already disappointed of her so she wanted to show to them that she could still stand to her own despite of her situation. When she gave birth to her son she decided to move out from her parents’ house and live with her own. Her sister let her borrowed a small capital so that she could start a small business that could sustain their daily expenses. With a small capital to start with, Arlene decided to put up a small sari-sari store in front of their house. It has a small income but it can sustain their daily expenses. She was able to support the studies of her son in elementary. It was really hard for her to maintain her business but through her proper management of her sari-sari store, slowly it improves and the number of her customer is increasing. The major source of their income was from their sari-sari store. Arlene sees to it that she can meet the demands of her customers. She is very happy with the good outcome of her business.

Arlene needed an additional capital for the expansion of her business. She wanted to convert it into a grocery store to generate more income. She really wanted to provide her only son a good education. She also wanted to invest in other business like buying and selling fruits and vegetables or to put up a small eatery.

An additional capital would be a big help for Arlene and her son. With bigger capital she could also earn higher income.