When I was a freshman at Silliman, I stayed at Larena Boys Dorm on my first week in campus, and moved to a cooperative dorm, Ipil Cottage, after that.
At Ipil, the campus phone directory was plastered on the wall. On my second Friday evening in Dumaguete, I was calling my kababayans, and inviting them for an evening stroll at the boulevard.
While searching for the phone numbers of the dorms, I was attracted to the number of the President’s Home. Just for fun, and out of curiosity, I dialed the number, and just before the third ring, someone picked up the phone. “This is the President’s Home, good evening,”said a very dignified voice with an American accent on the other line. I wanted to put the phone down as I got scared of the voice of authority, but he continued: “This is King Doromal, may I know who’s on the line?” I took the courage and responded, “I’m Moses; I’m a new student calling from Ipil Cottage.” Then he casually chatted with me, and I knew right then that even without introducing himself using his actual title and stature in campus, I was just certain I was actually talking to the President of the University.
Then he went on tell me that he would request his daughter Meg, a junior elder at Silliman Church that time, to visit me at the dorm.
And indeed on Saturday morning, Silliman’s First Daughter was knocking on our door at Ipil Cottage, inviting me and my dormmates to the worship services at Silliman Church.
And so Sunday morning came, and I was on my first Silliman Church experience.
Preaching that Sunday was a familiar face, someone who, I remembered, had dinner with us in our home in Cabadbaran one time… but I forgot his name.
Then I was surprised when the preacher acknowledged my presence before the congregation, and asked me to stand. And from the pulpit, he introduced me as “the son of the mayor of my hometown”.
Actually, at that time of the introduction, it was no longer true that my father was the mayor of Cabadbaran. Because in fact, my father became mayor when he was still a bachelor. And so you see, I never really grew up experiencing being the “son of the mayor”.
Then after the service, the preacher told me that he and my father were roommates at Guy Hall, a dorm at that time.
The preacher turned out to be the legendary Rev. Dr. Proceso U. Udarbe.
And the authoritative voice who casually chatted with me on the phone was another legend, Dr. Quintin S. Doromal.
The welcoming hearts of these two great charismatic leaders was, I think, the very root of my loyalty to Silliman Church.
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Silliman Church is collating stories of faith by members of the congregation, in time for its centennial celebration in August 2016. Please email your stories to irmafaithpal@gmail.com
