COLLEGE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 100 OUTSTANDING ALUMNAE

Response – Words of Gratitude

College of the Holy Spirit Manila 

100 OUTSTANDING ALUMNAE AWARDS

2 Feb 2013

Paraclete Auditorium, Mendiola

Sr. Eden Panganiban, Provincial Leader of the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit

Dr. Felina Co-Young, President of the College of the Holy Spirit

Isabelita Sy- Palanca, President of the CHS Alumnae Foundation

Ellen Young-Gomez, President of CHS North America Foundation

Sisters of the Holy Spirit, dear teachers, staff, manongs and manangs, alumni, students, my co-awardees, guests, especially my sons Rafael and Carlos, my daughter-in-law Edwina, and my grandsons Andres and Adrian, ladies and gentlemen, 

A very good afternoon to you all. 

I am deeply honored and truly humbled to have been given this wonderful opportunity to respond on behalf of my fellow awardees -  all awesome, accomplished, and successful ladies, many of whom I have looked up to as my role models. Truly Women of Faith, Service, and Excellence. 

First let me thank you, on behalf of all of us, for this tremendous honor the School has bestowed upon us. We thank those who nominated us for their generous spirit in considering us worthy of the recognition. We thank the Awards Committee chaired by Celine Gamalinda-Borromeo, and members Elizabeth Natividad-Ibuyan, Ma. Eliabeth-Oca, Ma. Roxane Mendoza-Belardo, Ma. Elena Palenzuela-Meir, and Sr. Victricia Pascasio, SSpS. for bestowing upon us this singular honor of having been chosen as one of the 100 Outstanding Alumnae of the College of the Holy Spirit. It is an honor that has elicited an avalanche of congratulatory messages from our family and friends. It is an award that we will treasure forever. It is an honor that we hope will inspire our younger alumnae and students to aspire for as they navigate the difficult paths they must choose throughout their lives. 

As I stand here before you, on this stage, in this auditorium, I remember with great clarity my graduation day from college almost 50 years ago. I invite you all to hark back to that day in our lives -  as we held our diploma in our hands, eager to face the future, confident in the kind of education we received. We had passed the tests of Germanic discipline, engaged in  intellectual  discourse, prepared to discuss and debate such things as the interplay of countries in the global community, scientific discoveries, and the deeper meaning of poems that touched our hearts. We were also steeped in the spiritual values that served as our moral compass.

With that diploma in our hands, we felt we could conquer the world. 

As we heard of the wonderful achievements of our 100 Outstanding Alumnae, it  seems like we DID conquer the worlds in which we decided to serve. Our 100 outstanding alumnae represent an awe-inspiring community of individuals who have been recognized, not only by our Alma Mater today, but by the institutions they have served. By the excellent quality of their work, by their courage, by their commitment and dedication, by their unselfish service, they have risen to  the highest levels of government- national,  local, and even international;  presided over board meetings in large corporations; led NGOs in finding strategic solutions to the problems of poverty; held top positions in  colleges and universities;   carried the flag of the Philippines  in foreign countries; served at the helm of  religious orders; made their mark in countries around the world. The intellectual power, the expertise and experience, the passion, the dedication and commitment they have shown are the best reason to celebrate the 100 years of the College of the Holy Spirit here in Mendiola. They are the fruits of the dedication of the nuns, faculty, and staff who labored in the vineyard of the College of the Holy Spirit. 

Actually, however, there are many more hundreds, if not thousands of outstanding CHSM alumni out there who have lived lives of professionalism, excellence, integrity,  dedication, and hard work.  They are wives and mothers who gave totally of themselves for their families, showering them with love and devotion. They are government officials and employees who served our people well and kept their integrity intact. They are teachers who opened the minds and hearts of their students to the beauty of literature, the wonders of science, the joy of sports, the exhilaration of finally understanding some of life’s mysteries. They are nuns and lay workers who brought Christ to people and communities in urban slums or in remote hinterlands around the world. They are scientists, writers, artists, accountants, doctors, entrepreneurs -  individuals who, in their own ways, by their Spirit ablaze! have been role models to the all those whose lives they touched.

They should really be here with all of us. Each and every one of them affirms the work of the College of the Holy Spirit. Each and every one of them is the reason the Holy  Spirit guided those four intrepid nuns to travel across the world to establish a school in Her name. 

It was in these classrooms that we learned to use information to develop knowledge and from knowledge to acquire wisdom. It was in this campus that we forged enduring friendships with teachers and classmates who have celebrated our successes but kept us down to earth, friendships that have helped us through our personal challenges with quiet compassion. It was in this auditorium that we learned to perform in plays, sing in choirs, compete in declamation contests, work the lights and sounds, direct our classmates, and work together, giving us  confidence and honing our skills. It was in the quiet and natural beauty  of the grotto that we sought the intervention of Mother Mary, and in the silence of the chapel where we felt the power, the grace,  and the protection of the Holy Spirit.  

Indeed, what we dreamed as young students, what we have achieved since our graduation, what we are today,  we owe in large measure to the years we spent in these hallowed halls. Our teachers demanded excellence, but had the patience to work with us on our difficulties. Our nuns demanded strict discipline, but could laugh with us at our teenage pranks. The manongs and manangs served us with quiet dignity, teaching us the value of service to others. Through it all, we learned the enduring values of Veritas in Caritate – truth in love –  three words which sum up our CHS education.

Today, in grateful acknowledgment of the debt we owe our Alma Mater, we pledge to continue learning, to continue striving for excellence in everything we do, to continue seeking the truth and upholding the truth, to continue maintaining the highest levels of integrity, and to continue offering fraternal love and charity to all who need it. Today, in grateful acknowledgement of the debt we owe our Alma Mater, we pledge to find ways to help her continue her mission of offering quality education to all who need it. We offer our time, our talent, and our treasure and will encourage all our alumni to do the same.  

We know that the school still needs us as their partners in helping her achieve our shared vision of an educational institution that can offer quality education to all Filipinos. It is the Holy Spirit who has brought us here, at this time, in this place. Let us keep praying to the Holy Spirit a slightly revised prayer “ Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of thy faithful and enkindle in US the fire of Thy love. Send forth Thy Spirit and WE shall be created and WE shall renew the face of the earth.”  Let us all pledge today  - all of us, in the name of our 23,000 or so alumnae - to be  co-creators with the Holy Spirit as together we strive to “renew the face of the earth” through our full and unstinting support to the renewal and revitalization of the College of the Holy Spirit which was established in Her honor. If we harness the talent, experience, passion, and energy of all our alumnae, we can truly conquer the world. Let us start with our Alma Mater. 

May the Holy Spirit continue to guide us, inspire us, protect us, and bless us all. 

Spirit ablaze!