Last week was a sad one indeed for the Hope Channel staff in the Philippines. One of the pioneers in broadcasting ministry in southern Philippines (SPUC), died on March 8, six days short of his 58th birthday on March 14.

Joel Acub had been an active member of the church. He would always be there when no singer showed up for a “special song” or did the part of a song leader. He is specially remembered for his active lifestyle and spirit of volunteerism, be it his transportation services, help in engine trouble and repairs, cargo needing to be moved, guest accommodations, and many others. At the Hope Channel studio at SPUC, he kept track of the program schedules, signing on early in the morning and signing off almost at midnight. He was a man with a wealth of wisdom and experience in and outside of the studio. He never lived to witness the soon inauguration of the Hope Channel Philippines which he had been helping to realize.

He had a bout with viral meningitis at a local hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. All his life he was never admitted to the hospital: his first turned out to be his last. But what consoles the Hope Channel staff and the SPUC family was that he had seen Hope Channel, the TV ministry for that matter, came to its present height.

The SPUC family and the Hope Channel International condole with the bereaved family—his wife and daughter—with the hope that this beloved and faithful worker rests in his grave “until the resurrection morning” when the dead in Christ will be awakened from their resting place. [Jade Y Soreno]