FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Onofre Bejona spent his 34th birthday riding the bus alone, readying himself for the next three years of his life. It was Aug. 14, and the teacher had arrived in Broward only a few days before from his home in Malita, a city in the southern Philippines. School was starting soon, and he wanted to understand the Broward bus system enough not to get lost, because he would be using it multiple times a day.
Bejona couldn’t celebrate with his family like usual; he’d left his parents and two brothers in his homeland, 12 hours ahead in time. He had made at least one friend, though: Artie Marfori, the 48-year-old Filipino science teacher who now teaches next door to him at Westpine Middle.
Bejona and Marfori are among the 102 teachers Broward public schools hired from the Philippines as part of an effort to fill hundreds of vacant teaching positions this new school year. The two instructors recently spoke with the South Florida Sun Sentinel, recalling the highlights and challenges of their experience so far. Though they miss their families back home, they see this trip as a valuable opportunity.
