After living in a pig pen to put himself through university, Jeannie Maano says the feeling of walking into his family’s house in Putāruru is indescribable.
After living in a pig pen for a year, Jeannie Maano says the feeling of walking into his family’s new house in Putāruru was indescribable. He spoke to Maryana Garcia about the hardships he overcame in his journey from the Philippines to home ownership in South Waikato.
Walking for kilometres under a punishing sun, carrying a chilly bin full of ice blocks and trying to dodge bites from stray dogs.
This was just one of the ways 10-year-old Jeannie Maano worked to earn a living.
“All I saw was survival,” he told the Herald.
“You had to walk and walk and walk until you sold it all, and you never knew if people were going to buy or not."
In the late 80s and early 90s, between classes at primary school, Maano walked the streets of Marinduque, in the Philippines, selling rice, dried coconut, caramelised banana treats and everything in between.
He collected fares on jeepneys and on weekends worked as a ferry crew member, often returning home just in time to go to school on Monday.
“It was all monkey business,” he laughed.
He said he learned his work ethic from his mother.
“She was a very hard worker. I can remember when she was alive, we had a good life.”
His father worked as a fisherman. Whatever he brought home, his mother would sell.
When there was no catch for the day, she would improvise, making deals with farmers for produce that she could on-sell or turn into different products.
Then, when Maano was 9, tragedy struck his family.
He doesn’t remember much from that time, except that his mother had a headache.
After four days in hospital, she died.
She left behind her husband and nine children. Maano was the eighth. His youngest brother was 5.
With his father unable to support the family on a single income, the elder six children moved to the capital city of Manila for work.
To help put himself through school, Maano started his “monkey” businesses.
“I supported myself.”
His hard work brought him enough income that, at one point, he thought of giving up on education.
“I had my businesses. Studying wasn’t on my mind.
“I’m very grateful to my dad because he taught me the value of learning.
“He told me, ‘No one can steal your education from you.’”
With his father’s encouragement, Maano finished high school and won a scholarship to go to Marinduque State University to study agricultural technology.
There was one problem: he lived far away and had to find and pay for accommodation.
“I needed to support my studies. I had to grab any option. It was survival of the fittest.”
He found a 36-pig farm with four pens. In exchange for looking after the pigs, he was offered one of the pens as a place to sleep.
“It was free accommodation and paid labour.”
He did not know then that his year of living in a piggery marked the beginning of a career that would change his life.
In his second year at university, he was elected student council president and awarded a full scholarship to complete his degree.
He moved out of the pig pen, partly to make room for a sow named in his honour, and set up a piggery that he designed and supervised as part of the on-the-job training component of his degree.
In the last years of his studies, he would rise at 2am and slaughter pigs before getting ready to attend classes from 7am to 5pm.
After graduation, he found a job as a pig farm manager with Formos Farms, moving regularly to be able to negotiate a higher salary.
He met and married his wife Janice, sold food ingredients and pharmaceuticals and was able to buy a two-bedroom home and a car.
Things were looking up until 2011, when a second disaster struck.
“Trust is very important to me but, unfortunately, not everyone agrees.”
After being ripped off by one of his friends, Maano and his family lost everything.
“I hit rock bottom,” he said.
Not being able to see a way out, he contemplated suicide.
Then, by chance, he saw a newspaper advert calling for farm workers in New Zealand.
“I had no idea about New Zealand. I knew about Switzerland.”
Once again, he acted for survival. He applied to the recruitment agency.
On December 30, 2012, he landed in Stratford, Taranaki.
“What I saw was no high-rise buildings and many cows. It was very laid-back.”
In 2013, Janice joined him. The couple then moved to Cambridge, where Maano has worked as a pig farm manager for more than 10 years.
Their three children, Liam, Lianne and Lincoln, were all born in this country.
Since December 2021, the couple have also owned and operated cleaning franchise Cleantastic.
This year, the family hit a joyous milestone. After going through four property brokers, they became homeowners once more.
They bought a home in Overdale, the $200 million 400-home residential development by Ultimate Global Group in Putāruru.
“Every day I wake up in the morning and my family are with me, that’s the best part,” Maano said.
“South Waikato is a great place to raise a family.”
“No words can explain” what he felt when he walked into the home for the first time.
“It’s brand new. It’s very light, very welcoming.”
His only regret was that his parents weren’t present to share in his joy.
“I want to give them the life they should have had when they were alive. I wish they were here.”
Looking back, Maano said he had three messages for his younger self: “Education is very important. Love your parents. Follow God.”
He also had some thoughts for his present, 48-year-old self: “You need to do more.
“My dream isn’t happening yet. To have my own farm. That’s the last goal that I want to achieve.”
Maryana Garcia is a Hamilton-based reporter covering breaking news in Waikato. She previously wrote for the Rotorua Daily Post and Bay of Plenty Times.