If you are already a senior citizen, what do you plan to do with your life?
For 72-year-old farmer Diosdado “Tatay Ebang” Evangelista, he chose to push forward, and his determination paid off.
Evangelista, a resident of Candoni town, recently passed the November 2025 Agriculturist Licensure Examination (ALE), succeeding on his second attempt. He was among the 6,678 passers out of 9,742 examinees, marking a national passing rate of 68.55%.
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| Photo courtesy: CPSU-Candoni-Publication/Facebook |
The septuagenarian’s journey back to the classroom began years earlier when he enrolled at Central Philippines State University. In 2023, he finally earned his agriculture degree; a dream he had postponed for nearly five decades while prioritizing family life.
After failing the board exam in 2024, Evangelista refused to give up. Instead, he returned to his review materials with renewed focus, even learning how to navigate the digital processes required for the modern licensure examination.
“That experience taught me discipline,” he said. “You cannot rely only on courage. You must put in the work.”
His motivation, however, was also deeply personal. Evangelista shared that he had long set aside his dream of professional advancement after marrying his wife, Ofelia Garcia, in 1974.
The loss of Ofelia in 2024, just months before his first board attempt, became both a source of sorrow and strength for him.
With their four children already professionals, Evangelista said he felt it was finally time to fulfill the dream he once carried quietly.
“I promised myself I would finish what I started,” he said. “With faith and perseverance, nothing is impossible.”
From tending crops in the fields to earning a professional license in his seventies, Evangelista’s story stands as a powerful testament that learning, and dreaming, truly have no expiration date.
— Noel Ed Richards, The Summit Express