HONOLULU, HAWAII — Leonila de Jesus Valencia, who graduated from Silliman with an Elementary Teacher Certificate in 1950, wrote a vivid recollection of the birth and growth of Aloha Sillimanians:
“We arrived here in Hawaii in 1957. It was in 1959 when the SU Alumni Association of Hawaii held its very first meeting. The 10 members who were present, including myself, were the following: Rev. Bienvenido Junasa who organized the event and became the first president; Regina Junasa; Lily Echiverri, who hosted this first gathering at her Aiea Heights home; Modesto Salve, a woodcarver and businessman from Palolo; Glicerio Samson who hails from Siquijor (even though he never studied in Silliman, he was an active affiliate member with his wife, Daisy, and sent all of his nephews and nieces to Silliman University); Arturo Johnson from Bais who was into acting and a nephew of Education Dean Dr. Herman Gregorio; Dolores Springer; Eutiquio Lontayao of Ewa who also hails from Larena, Siquijor; and Casimiro Almonte from Wahiawa.
In 1962, the Junasas went to New York for further studies, but our group remained active under the leadership of Mr. Samson: we packed boxes of new and used clothing for the typhoon victims in Guam, and for the Mission Hospital in Silliman; we collected money to donate to a deserving Nursing student; and we decided to send money to Dumaguete to put up our first float for the 61st anniversary of the SU Founder’s Day parade: “We promise to help build a greater Silliman” .
It was Dr. Cicero D. Calderon’s first year as the fifth president of Silliman University, and we gave him a hawaiian lei. When our float passed by the grandstand, the SU Band played ‘Aloha Oe’. Right after that, we received communication from Silliman naming us Chapter 13. I think we were the 13th alumni chapter organized outside of Silliman”.
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Among today’s dynamic prime movers of the Chapter is Gerardo “Jard” Pfeiffer, a Silliman High School alumnus of 1980. He was excited to share this recollection: “We actually found an excerpt from ‘The Honolulu Advertiser’ dated Sept. 9, 1962 (page 18, “With Hawaii’s Filipinos”): ‘Silliman University Alumni Association of Hawaii celebrated Founder’s Day at Willie’s in Aiea last week. Special guests were Carmen U. Pak of Lahaina, Maui; Ligaya Magbanua, a scholar undergoing orientation at East West Center; Catalino Yaptengco who was also at the East West Center, Prof. and Mrs. Bill Pfeiffer of University of Hawaii Music department, Helen [Nazareno] Brubaker of Kailua, Modesto Salve, Lily Echiverri, Glicerio Samson, Eutiquio Lontayao, Casimiro Almonte, and Nila Valencia.”
These names actually made distinctive contributions to Silliman’s history, and the communities they were serving.
I am especially thankful to Ligaya Magbanua-Simpkins who worked in writing the profiles of the American missionaries. Her book Glimpses of Missionaries and Fraternal Workers at Silliman University, 1901-1998 is a useful research material on the American contributions in Philippine education.
Jard also remembered: “…We started attending these Silliman gatherings when we came to Hawaii in the 1980s. It was just a regular get-together of a group of friends from Silliman. In 1997, we decided to give a specific name for the Hawaii chapter, choosing between ‘Rainbow’ and ‘Aloha’. We became known as the SU Alumni Association — Aloha Chapter. We are proud to have produced two Outstanding Sillimanian Awardees: Rev. Dr. Bienvenido Junasa for Church Work & Public Service in 2001; and my mom, Ruth Imperial- Pfeiffer for Church Ministry in 2005.”
I’m here in Honolulu as invited speaker of the 60th year celebration of the Aloha Chapter, organized by a humble student leader of my generation at Silliman, Meda Magdamo-Palencia — the most bankable eventologist of this alumni group; and highlighted by the expression of support from the Aloha Chapter president Otillio Gimang Jr.
OG, as he is fondly called, has committed to embark on a student recruitment program for the SU College of Nursing as one of Aloha’s primary activities.
The Aloha Chapter’s Nanay Nilda Magdamo made the reunion event as her farewell moment, after finally deciding to return home to Dumaguete for good. Nanay assured me that with OG as president, the Aloha Chapter can actually do more for Silliman.
After 60 years of existence, the Aloha Chapter has been involved in various projects for Silliman, responding to the community concerns of Hawaii and Dumaguete, collaborating with Sillimanians all over the globe, upholding Silliman’s Via, Veritas, Vita, and manifesting the Silliman Spirit and always sharing the welcoming hearts of the aloha islands.
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Author’s email: [email protected]
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