Mangyan Boy Makes Toy Vehicles Out of Recycled Materials to Raise Funds for School

Jupel and his creations (Photo by Jeru Cajapin)

Meet Jupel, an 11-year-old boy from the Mangyan tribe who is a student at the Casillon Elementary School in Baco, Oriental Mindoro. Unlike you, he lives in a place with no electricity. He walks "at least 20 minutes" just to reach his school, sometimes barefoot because his family is too poor to afford a pair of slippers. And the rare pair that he manages to put on his feet, very quickly gets worn-out from the sheer distance he treks on a daily basis.

Armed with discarded flip-flops and fantasies of motorized conveyance, Jupel started making toy cars out of rubber and sticks. More in Top Gear PH.