Kwentuhan with amazing single dad na si Rich Lopez na mag-isang itinataguyod ang kanyang apat na anak
Kwentuhan with amazing single dad na si Rich Lopez na mag-isang itinataguyod ang kanyang apat na anak
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00:00As a early celebration of Father's Day,
00:03he shines upon us today.
00:05And our guest is a true gem,
00:08because he's not only the apple of the eye,
00:10he's also the light of the eye.
00:12We'll be joined by the single dad, Rich Lopez,
00:15a father of four children,
00:17and a business owner,
00:19to tell us about his fatherhood journey.
00:21Good morning to you, Rich. Welcome.
00:23Hi, Rich.
00:24Good morning.
00:25This is the person who won't get poor.
00:26He's a rich kid.
00:28All right, Rich, tell us about your fatherhood journey.
00:33I became a father at the age of—
00:35I was so young at that time.
00:37I'm 15 years old.
00:4015 years old?
00:41Yes.
00:42I was just watching when I turned 15.
00:44Okay.
00:45You became a father at that time.
00:47Yes.
00:48I grew up without a father,
00:50without a family,
00:53without relatives or any friends
00:55who decided to raise me.
00:57I had a father,
00:59but he was facing a mental issue.
01:02Okay.
01:03I think it was because of a drug issue.
01:06My mom left him.
01:09There were just the two of us.
01:11At the age of—
01:13At that time,
01:15I learned to feed myself.
01:19There was no choice.
01:21No one would support me.
01:24My father had a mental issue.
01:27So you learned to support yourself.
01:29Yes.
01:30At what age?
01:31I became a public vendor,
01:34a sidecar boy,
01:35a conductor.
01:36I did everything I could
01:38to survive on my own.
01:40Okay.
01:41You have four children.
01:43Yes.
01:44Where are your—
01:45You're a single father.
01:46Where are your four children?
01:47They're with me.
01:48One of them is a different mother.
01:51Okay.
01:52I have three children.
01:53At first,
01:54when you had a 15-year-old son,
01:56you separated.
01:57Yes.
01:58Okay.
01:59So he was the only one.
02:00Yes.
02:01But you were able to sustain.
02:02I was able to sustain.
02:03And then you had three children
02:05from one woman.
02:06Yes.
02:07Okay.
02:08You separated.
02:09Yes.
02:10But you had the kids.
02:11The kids.
02:12The three of you.
02:13We were co-parenting.
02:14Oh, you were co-parenting.
02:15Okay.
02:16So,
02:17how did this happen?
02:18Because this is hard.
02:19I experienced this.
02:20I'm also a single father.
02:22How?
02:23Because our pressure,
02:25as fathers,
02:26is that we are providers to our children.
02:29That's what you said.
02:30You put in all kinds of work
02:32to sustain their needs.
02:35What is the most challenging thing?
02:37I just want to hear your story.
02:39Okay.
02:40So,
02:41at the age of 15,
02:42when I had a child,
02:43I didn't know how to support my child
02:46because I didn't have a family to help me.
02:48So, I kept begging.
02:51Even if it was three jobs in one day,
02:54not until I did things that I didn't want to do
02:58so that they can be supported.
03:01You were close to planting.
03:02Yes.
03:03But as I grew up,
03:05I started to think about right and wrong.
03:07It's also true that if something bad happens to me,
03:10they will look down on my children.
03:13Okay.
03:14So,
03:17what I did that time is
03:19I started to buy and sell.
03:23I did buy and sell.
03:25I did buy and sell gadgets.
03:27So, I saved money.
03:29And then,
03:30I started to do business.
03:31Okay.
03:32What is your business now?
03:33What are you working on?
03:35So,
03:36we don't have a house.
03:37We don't have a house.
03:38So, I like to own a property.
03:40I like to own a property because
03:43I grew up without a home.
03:46So,
03:47I started to rent a house.
03:51I also rented a house from others.
03:53It's an AirBnB.
03:54AirBnB.
03:55We call it rental arbitrage.
03:58But it's a sub-leasing.
04:00You rent a house from the homeowners
04:01and you also rent a house from others.
04:03Then,
04:04I was able to buy my own property.
04:06That's great.
04:07That's a great way to start.
04:10Your children are your inspiration.
04:12My children are my inspiration
04:14for why I did that.
04:15Because I don't want them to experience
04:17what I experienced when I was a kid.
04:19Living on the streets without a house.
04:23I don't want them to experience that.
04:26So now,
04:27I made that a motivation
04:28to give them a better future.
04:31There are fathers who are responsible
04:33like Rich.
04:34There are also those who are not.
04:35But for those who are responsible,
04:37there's only one thing they say.
04:39If your child needs something,
04:42there's nothing you can do about it.
04:45That's true.
04:46So,
04:47in your experience in life,
04:49do you think that...
04:51Of course,
04:52your children were born early.
04:54So,
04:55your children will graduate from college
04:57at a young age.
04:58Is that right?
04:59One of my children is already in high school.
05:01She's 12 years old.
05:03My second child is already in 6th grade.
05:07So,
05:08she's already in grade school.
05:09And the other two are still babies.
05:11Four and two.
05:12Oh.
05:13Okay.
05:14So,
05:15Rich has a long way to go.
05:16Yes,
05:17but I'm already saving money for their college tuition.
05:22It's for the future.
05:23So,
05:24that's it.
05:25Okay.
05:26For the fathers who are listening to us,
05:29I know that you two
05:30don't have an easy job.
05:32But what are your pieces of advice to them
05:35who still have a lot to learn?
05:37Of course,
05:38there are a lot of challenges.
05:39So,
05:40what's your message to them?
05:42So,
05:44okay.
05:46There are a lot of fathers
05:47who have become parents.
05:49There are some who are lazy.
05:50There are some who are unexpected.
05:52But,
05:53parenting is only hard for good parents.
05:56There are some parents
05:57who don't care about their children.
05:59They don't care about what happens in their lives.
06:02So,
06:03to the fathers who are good parents,
06:06my advice to you is
06:08to motivate your children.
06:10Look at them.
06:12Whenever you're tired,
06:14find the reason why you need to continue in life.
06:18Because
06:20they don't have a choice.
06:23We don't have a choice,
06:24but it's our responsibility as parents.
06:27Especially to the mothers who have become parents.
06:31To the fathers who haven't become parents,
06:34they are exempted.
06:37That's very inspiring.
06:38Do you have social media pages?
06:40Yes, I have a social media account.
06:42Actually, I also vlog as a single parent.
06:44At the same time,
06:45I also teach business to those who want to own an Airbnb.
06:49I coach and mentor them.
06:51What are your social media accounts?
06:53On TikTok,
06:54you can follow me at
06:56Papa Rich.
06:57Papa Rich.
06:59And on Instagram,
07:00TheRichDad8.
07:03Papa Rich.
07:04Off the air,
07:05I gave him some advice earlier.
07:07He told me that
07:08when his children graduate,
07:10they will be able to relax.
07:11Because he got married early.
07:13I told him,
07:14not yet.
07:15Because I'm the first one.
07:17Someday,
07:18you'll be a grandfather.
07:20You won't be able to fulfill your obligation.
07:22I thought I'll be able to travel that time.
07:24No, you'll still have grandchildren.
07:26You can still travel.
07:28Take care of the kids.
07:30Thank you so much, TheRichDad8.
07:32Thank you for having me.
07:34Thank you. Happy Father's Day.
07:35Go visit your social media.
07:37Thank you. Happy Father's Day.
07:38Happy Father's Day to you too.
07:39Thanks, Papa Rich.