TREES save lives. Here?s a true story, narrated by Toby Tamayo, about how kamachile trees saved the lives of captured soldiers on the Death March from Bataan to Tarlac during World War II.

We were traveling along the national highway in Tarlac when we stopped to buy kamachile fruits. Toby then recalled a story told by his father, the late General Antonio Tamayo, who was a survivor of the Death March. According to his father, the captured American and Filipino soldiers were very hungry and weak from the forced march.

Fortunately, kamachile trees were then fruiting, and the trees by the roadside were a source of food for the weary soldiers. Their Japanese captors didn?t mind the prisoners eating the fruits, because they thought they were poisonous.

Destination

The prisoners who were on the brink of death were grateful for the nourishment the kamachile provided. And, when they reached their destination, they were glad to see kamachile trees all around the concentration camp!

The survivors could never forget the important role the kamachile played in their struggle to survive. Thus, when a government official in Bataan started cutting down the kamachile trees along the fabled highway years later, word spread fast among the war veterans. They trooped to the office of the public official to complain about the terrible act?so, the trees were spared.

We shouldn?t forget the benefits that the kamachile offers: The trees don?t just provide shade for travelers, they?re also leguminous, and their fruits are known to fight diabetes.