CVML 250 at Bulao

Ian Alfredo Magno .

THAT unique Filipino trait of communal volunteerism has always been exemplified through the bayanihan tradition.  Such is an ancient custom which espouses community spirit that exhibits Juan’s concept of helping one another especially in times of need, without expecting anything in return.  A vivid recollection of this custom, as suggested in textbooks and illustrations in postcards or portraits here and there, depicts a scenario of villagers helping someone relocate his home by literally lifting the latter’s hefty bahay kubo and moving it elsewhere.

Ancient as it is, it may have found its early beginnings even before foreign expeditioners set foot on Phlippine soil.  And after history has managed to navigate its way toward today’s 21st century, it is awe-inspiring how this organic Filipino custom has remained intact and unadulterated.  While the hefty hut had been practically reduced to a kind of symbolism for the custom, the practice has nonetheless pervaded in various forms.

The sight of individuals hailing from different groups and sectors, doing their part in removing debris, rearranging fixtures, or simply keeping certain areas spick-and span at Bulao elementary school last 30 May 2018 brought deja vu of sorts vis-a-vis the ancient bayanihan norm.

Bulao is a remote part of Barangay Iponan located in the City of Cagayan de Oro.  Situated in such sitio or purok, as you might call it, is the Bulao Elementary School, a medium-sized public school with a number of roughly 394 students from kindergarten to grade 6.  With only 8 classrooms to stack the kids all up, keeping it conducive for learning has always challenged the commitment – and creativity too – of the faculty, headed by School Principal Naomi Tocmohan.  In times of disasters and calamities, Bulao’s classrooms likewise accommodate evacuees who seek temporary shelter from floods, and the like.

In tidying up the insides and surroundings of the school at 6:30 early in the morning last 30 May 2018 pursuant to the Department of Education’s “Brigada Eskwela 2018” campaign, and in preparation for the school’s opening on 4 June 2018, the faculty yet again displayed their commitment to the school’s welfare and the students in it.  This time, gladly, the teachers were not alone.  Extending a helping hand were individuals and volunteers from various sectors, civic organizations, parents, residents living in the nearby vicinity, media personnel, and of course, the knights of Carmen Valley Masonic Lodge No. 250 (CVML 250) headed by Worshipful Master Josan A. Gonzaga, of Masonic District R-10 Misamis Oriental and Cagayan de Oro, under the jurisdiction of the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippines.

The latter was actually not a rookie volunteer to the school. In fact, CVML 250 has adopted Bulao Elementary School as of year 2015, and has since been conducting monthly feeding activities for all its students across grade levels.  When asked why, VW Erwin L. Pepino, a member and past-master of CVML 250, and the incumbent District Deputy Grand Master (DDGM) for Masonic District R-10 Misamis Oriental and Cagayan de Oro, candidly responded that the need is simply there, and that it is in pursuance to the Grand Lodge’s mandate of supporting the public school system in the country.

The other members of CVML 250 who provided valuable assistance was yours truly, and Brothers Lemuel Gonda, Angelo Lozano, Bernard Colegio, Dondanon Galera, Sean Sasing, Bernard Colegio, Ike Villaranda, and Ajie Santos, the Executive Aide to the DDGM, petitioners Mark Adeva and Charlie Sta. Ana.

Indeed, it was one charitable undertaking worth doing again.

As the great Mahatma Gandhi once said, “The simplest act of kindness are, by far, more powerful than a thousand heads bowing in prayer.”

(Ian Alfredo T. Magno is a Cagayan de Oro-based lawyer who serves as a marketing head at Philhealth. E-mail: ianalfredom@gmail.com)