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After the homecoming party, now what?
Fronie Velante, 4-43
Sofroni "Fronie" Velante, MD served as the first elected President of Classes '69/73 Alumni and of the SBCHS 73 Educational Foundation Inc.
When the reunion efforts in preparation for Classes '69/73 Silver Jubilee anniversary was organized, the class goal was to have a near 100% attendance in the homecoming night. It was as simple as that! However, as more of our classmates showed up during the pre-reunion gatherings, we realized that some of |
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us continue to need help and that collectively, we can impact our own lives if we want to. The true wisdom of the Benedict Soul lies in being able to apply the virtues of humility, charity and friendship which our mentors have taught us. If we apply these lessons in our current lives we also repay our parents who toiled hard to afford us a quality education which we now benefit from.
In 1997, SBC Class 1973 became a fully operational corporation registered with the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Thanks to the contribution of Sonny Cases, 4-43, now an Attorney. Sonny prepared and filed the registration papers in behalf of class members and personally paid the mandatory P60,000 ($1,500) registration fee. Thereafter, we elected a Board of officers who would carry a fiduciary responsibility of managing the Class 1973 Educational Fund. The fund was initially created by our first and only fundraiser; a golf tournament spearheaded by Ronnie Samaniego, 4-40. The fund is continuously sustained by member donations.
The objective of the Educational Fund is to provide scholarship opportunities to indigent but qualified children of class members. Hopefully the fund can support the tuition requirements of San Beda which is currently averaging P30,000 ($800) per semester. On some occasions however, the fund was tapped for other purposes. For instance, officers approved disbursement to pay homecoming fees in behalf of members who cannot afford it. The fee was P1,000.00 per member. On another occasion, monies were issued to defray funeral expenses for the mother of Oying Pineda, 4-42. And then, there was also some help requested in behalf of Ato Valera, 4-41. Ato has a larger family than most of us and therefore bears a more than average cost of living which his regular income from his Bus Driver occupation can barely sustain. Please be aware though, that the loans made to Oying and Ato were minimal. Majority of the financial assistance needed came from voluntary contributions from members like Chuck Mathay, 4-42, Ned Manalili, 4-40, Rachy Cuna, 4-44 and others.
The release of funds require a structured and stringent approval process. This starts with a request usually submitted by Marlo Sanchez, 4-43, who then provides the details of the request to the Board of Officers. At times, the process proves to be challenging and forces a delay in the release of funds. Understandably, unless the officers can convene at an instant notice, Marlo has to meet each one in their respective offices or residences to secure their approval and signatures. Although the membership supports full approval for everyone's request, we maintain, that the funds are limited and are intended for educational purposes. The only way we can extend assistance to other causes is through more member contributions. Sadly, our fund deposited at a PDCP bank remains stagnant at about P100,000.00 ($2,000+). Without continuous support we may dry up the funds and not be able to achieve our goals. Fund depletion may also eventually lead to an early demise of Class '73 as an organization. We have other projects in mind that will benefit us all: providing free medical checkups , legal and accounting assistance to members and their families, by classmates who are now in the medical, legal and accounting fields, possibly another grand reunion prior to SBC's centennial celebration, this time with more of our overseas based classmates and of course moving forward with our educational goals for our children.
The message is undeniably clear: It is each one's commitment that will give us the strength to continue and achieve our goals. Your generous contributions will ascertain that our friendship will survive through this century and will be a legacy to our children and the next Bedans to come. The details as to where to send contributions is discussed in Mr. Blanco's list.
Let us answer our own clarion call. Mabuhay! Class 1973! Back to home page
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