14 July 2009

Commitment: Behind SPAC’s quest for excellence

Renewed commitment to provide excellent Christian education to students propelled school leaders to make every way possible for a sustained program of spiritual, academic, physical, and facilities development at South Philippine Adventist College (SPAC), in Camanchiles, Matanao, Davao del Sur, Philippines.

Included in these developments were the renovation of the administration building, acquisition of a brand-new Toyota van, and the arrival of a 48-seater Hyundai bus donated by Samhyook University, SPAC’s sister institution in South Korea.

Such commitment was celebrated during the July 14 blessings ceremony for these new acquisitions. Despite the heavy the rain, the SPAC community witnessed how the Lord continued to bless the school even before it was upgraded into a tertiary institution of learning.

The administrators, faculty and staff, academy and college students and the members of the school board, headed by Pastor Wendell M Serrano, were among the hundreds who saw the event. Pastor Serrano who flew to the college straight from his trip to Geneva, Switzerland, where he attended the world congress on health, addressed the school community at this celebration.

Besides Serrano from the headquarters of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in southern Philippines (SPUC) were Pastor Wilson C Catolico, executive secretary; Mr. Levi Baliton, treasurer, and Dr Ildefonso Faigmani, education director. Other guests included Pastor Robert Jimenez and Mr. Lawrence Llamera, president and treasurer, respectively, of the Davao Mission; and the Honorable Nery Obedencia, barangay captain of Camanchiles.

“As you march out of this building, as you get off from the bus or from the van, you shall be a witness to the people and the community,” stressed Pastor Serrano. “And the people will know what South Philippine Adventist College exists for.”

“We just can’t let time go without us in the leadership doing something for the Lord,” said Dr Chliejvferwyn C Catolico, college president. “These projects: college van, school bus, and the administration building facade enhancement were done for a purpose, and that is to invite students to taste how beneficial and important Adventist education can be to their life as they prepare for service here and in the hereafter.”

As pastors, church leaders, faculty and staff, and students encircled the two transport vehicles parked in front of the administration building, Pastor Serrano and Dr Nemuel Tambalque, SPAC theology department chair, performed the rites of thanksgiving and blessings.

At the said ceremony, the college administration expressed its elation for the services of Ian Enoch, a young Davao-based architect, who saw to it that such structural enhancement meets both functionality and aesthetic values.

“It’s like a first-class resort!” students and visitors were heard saying, as they beheld the new look of the administration building and the landscaping that enhanced it.

 

 

“We also wish to thank Sahmyook University for the bus which will greatly help our students and school family in their transportation needs,” added Dr Catolico. “And the school Toyota van will help us meet our official functions.”

“Indeed, these new developments add to our pride of being at South Philippine Adventist College,” students concluded. [Rhoen P Catolico]