LEOPOLDO Serantes, who won bronze in the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, will receive P100,000 per month for life for his service to the country, Chooks-to-Go vowed on Tuesday.
The 59-year-old native of Bicol is suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and has been confined at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center for some time now.
"Just like with Onyok Velasco, we cannot just forget the sports heroes that gave honor to our country in the past. We should continue to honor their legacy," said Chooks-to-Go president Ronald Mascariñas.
"In the case of Leopoldo Serantes, we decided to give him a monthly allowance of P100,000 for the rest of his life so that he can live with dignity befitting a living hero."
Serantes, the sixth Filipino overall to win an Olympic medal and a gold medalist in the Southeast Asian Games, is one of the childhood heroes of Velasco. Velasco was the one who helped Mascariñas track the whereabouts of Serantes.
"Si Leopoldo Serantes, isa yang alamat sa boxing. Nung naguumpisa pa lang kami, nandiyan na siya. Siya na yung tinitingala na namin," shared Velasco, a silver medalist in the 1996 Atlanta Games.
"Nung nag-Olympics siya, dun na nagumpisa yung pagka-idolo namin sa kanya. Naka-medal siya tapos hindi rin siya ganun kalaking tao, maliit lang pero naka-medal at talagang malakas.
"Naisipan ko na ilapit siya sa Chooks-to-Go kasi natulungan din ako. Si Serantes, nangangailangan din ng tulong. Nangangailangan talaga siya ng tulong."
According to Serantes' daughter Leodelia, her dad has been suffering from COPD for months now and their family has been struggling to cope with the expenses.
"Kailangan po niya ng suporta parang kailangan pa niya lumapit para tulungan siya ng iba," said Leodelia.
The daughters said the sum will be enough to take care of Serantes' medical bill.
"Sobrang laking tulong po nito para sa tatay ko. Hindi na siya mamomoblema sa araw-araw niya na gastusin para sa oxygen, sa gastusan niya sa gamutan na pang buhay," she said.
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