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Daughters say mother wanted the best for them continued from p.1 The girls flew to Canada Sunday, April 14 and are staying with the Gilberts in Oakville for approximately a month. Their mother, Maricon, is currently lying in a hospital bed. In October 2012, Maricon suffered a severe, week-long headache that turned out to be a brain tumour, one from which she would not recover. Maricon currently has no higher cognitive function. At the end of the month, it's expected she will be taken off drugs that are keeping her alive and she will likely die. After she's cremated, the girls plan to scatter half of their mother's ashes in Canada and take the rest back home to the Philippines. Maricon left the Philippines to work for a family in Paris, France, when Saniel was just a newborn. She sent money back home to support her daughters and pay for them to go to school. Both girls went to an English-language private school where they were honours students. Saniel still attends the school, while Lean has entered a public high school. After five years in Paris, Maricon came to Canada, where she has lived the past five years, working for the Gilberts as a nanny for their children most of those years. She also attended school and recently was working as a personal support worker. Maricon was also working to bring her daughters to Canada. She returned home to the Philippines once a year for a month didn't ask for. Their mother was also strict, and pushed her daughters to excel in schoolwork. She gave her daughters a curfew of 6 p.m. so they could concentrate on their schoolwork. They also did summer classes. Lean was top of her class for four consecutive years in a highly respected school. The girls heard stories from her mother of a time when she was younger and wanted to be a ballerina and to attend private school but couldn't because her parents couldn't afford it. Being able to offer that kind of childhood for her daughters is what drove Maricon overseas to find work. To keep their mother proud, the girls say they will continue to work hard in school. "That's her number one priority, her dream for us. She actually planned it when we were still young. She wants Saniel to be a nurse or go to medical school... She kept telling me, `When you grow up, I want you to be the most rich architect.' I didn't even know what an architect does," Lean said. "She just wants us to be the girl that she always dreamed of when she was young. I'm happy with that because when she sees us, she sees the girl that she wants us to be." Though they were friends and communicated frequently, Lean misses the time she lost with her mother and the pair fought over it. see Mother on p.12 5 | Thursday, April 25, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Saniel Karla A. Gerente, 11, left, and Ma Lean Andrea A. Gerente, 14 (right) came to Canada to say goodbye to their mother, Ma Concepcion Ala Gerente. Known as Maricon, she is expected to die this spring. photo by Nikki Wesley ­ Oakville Beaver (Follow on Twitter @halton_photog) and communicated with her daughters regularly on Skype and by telephone. "She was just like our close friend. When we go out, many people say, `You're sisters.' I'm actually taller than my mom," Lean said of her mother. Globo Shoes, Sodhi Furniture, Fortinos Freshco, Food Basics, Metro, Holland Park Garden, M&M Meats, Drug Trading, Lastman's Bad Boy, Synergy Contracting, Real Canadian Superstore, Corbeil, Kitchen & Bath Inc., McMaster University, Arctic Spas, Loblaws, Sid's Ponds, Gentleman Jim's Handyman, 2001 Audio, Home Hardware, The Bay, Michael-Angelo's, No Frills, Home Outfitters, Sobeys, Fortinos, Pharmasave, Canadian Tire, Future Shop, Payless Shoe Source, Mark's Work, Target, Pharmaplus, Bouclair, Rexall, Walmart, Shoppers Drug Mart, Service Experts, Best Buy, Make Yourself@Home, PetSmart, Sears, The Source, Toys R Us, Centennial Windows, Reliance Home Comfort "She's cool. She's a hipster. She knows a lot about me and she's friends with my friends, too. She's close with them." 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