Soaring despite her physical disabilities
Marilou Deniega is a visual artist on a wheelchair. She was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when she was three, that’s why she has not been able to move her head. She underwent physical therapy, and because of her grandparents’ support, she was able to move her arms and was able to speak. She met her husband Allan at Tahanang Walang Hagdanan and he has been her constant companion, walking her to work and helping her with her wheel chair.
Despite her disability, Marilou is able to work. She teaches persons with disabilities (PWDs) like herself how to paint. For Marilou, it is perseverance and vision that has helped her move beyond her disability, and know that she is actually able to be productive and make a difference in the lives of others.
Right now, Marilou is working as an Office Staff in the Persons with Disability Affairs Office (PDAO) in Cainta Rizal. She was able to purchase her own dream home in Access Ville Neighborhood Association, an inclusive community for the deaf, blind and those with disabilities in Brookside Hills in Cainta Rizal. The lot’s actual value is P8,000 per square meter but the lot owner was a philanthropist so he brought down the price to P3,800 per square meter for the PWDs.
Marilou, despite being a PWD, is also into sports, boccia, which is a precison ball sport that is played by PWDs. She even once represented the Philippines in Thailand ASEAN Para Games. This is a testament that despite the limitations of our human bodies, God created in us a spirit that enables us to conquer the limits of the physical, since we can operate in the realm of the spiritual.